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Admiring Hawaii from above provides you a brand new perspective on these stunning islands. Our Kauai helicopter journey was so spectacular that we couldn’t resist taking one other helicopter trip over Oahu.
Although Oahu is a way more populated island (dwelling to the capital Honolulu and the favored seaside resort, Waikiki), the pure surroundings continues to be gorgeous.
We flew over volcanic craters, jagged inexperienced mountains, hidden waterfalls, and golden seashores.
The artifical points of interest had been additionally fascinating—the high-rise lodges of Waikiki, limitless Dole pineapple fields, and the enduring Pearl Harbor and USS Arizona Memorial.
In this publish, I’ll share what to anticipate on an Oahu helicopter tour, which one you need to select (doorways on or off?), and every little thing else you want to know.
Contents
Choosing a Honolulu Helicopter Tour
Various firms supply Oahu helicopter rides and most of them take off from Honolulu Airport, a 20-30 minute drive from Waikiki Beach (the place you’ll probably be staying).
We selected to go along with Rainbow Helicopters as a result of they’ve wonderful opinions and supply the choice to trip with doorways on or off (for a similar value).
While it may appear scary to trip doorways off (we had been definitely nervous our first time on our Kauai doors-off helicopter tour), I extremely suggest it.
The views are much more unimaginable with out glass between you and the setting and it’s by far the best choice for photographers.
If you might be in a bunch that may’t agree, it’s doable to have the doorways on within the entrance row (subsequent to the pilot) and off within the again row.
Rainbow Helicopters supply flights from 30 to 60 minutes. Trust me, go for the 60-minute choice, which loops round virtually your entire island. It goes quick and you’ll not need the flight to finish.
We took this precise 60-minute Oahu Helicopter Tour with Rainbow Helicopters and liked it.
Seating within the Helicopter
The helicopters seat six folks—two folks within the entrance (subsequent to the pilot) and 4 within the again. This is certainly cosy and fortuitously, there have been solely 4 of us on our flight (one within the entrance and three within the again).
If you might be with one different individual, the chances are solely certainly one of you may be seated subsequent to the door.
You additionally don’t have any alternative on which facet of the helicopter you sit, and the views are higher on the left facet as you journey counterclockwise across the island. Unfortunately, we had been on the suitable facet (within the again), going through out to the ocean.
We had been apprehensive at first, and there have been some photograph alternatives I missed, however the pilot did a great job of circling round on the main sights so all of us obtained a great view.
If this bothers you, you’ll be able to ebook a personal tour as a substitute (select your date then choose the non-public choice). I’d undoubtedly take into account this for subsequent time, however it’s a splurge.
What to Expect on a Doors Off Helicopter Oahu Tour
Getting Onboard
Rainbow Helicopters require you to examine in a single hour earlier than your flight, so we arrived at 4pm for our 5pm flight. We got complete directions on precisely the place to park and go.
When checking in, they discreetly weigh you (this determines the place you’ll be seated), after which take you to a small room the place you watch a security video.
You should depart all of your belongings in a drawer on this room—solely telephones, cameras (no luggage), and sun shades are allowed on the flight. I share extra tips about getting ready for the journey beneath.
You’ll be given a lifejacket, which is worn round your waist, a neck case in your telephone, and, in case you are sitting subsequent to an open door, goggles to guard your eyes.
There are restrooms on this constructing.
With the one-hour check-in, we had been apprehensive we’d find yourself ready round, however after our briefing, we had been taken by golf cart to the helicopter and ended up flying half-hour early.
Before you get within the helicopter, the crew take photographs of you in entrance of it.
Take Off
The crew helped us into the helicopter and buckled us up in our strong harnesses.
We had two-way headphones, which enabled us to speak to our pilot and listen to his commentary as we flew over the island.
Soon we took off gracefully straight up. It was unnerving at first to be subsequent to an open door, however I quickly obtained used to it and commenced having fun with the views beneath.
We headed in direction of Waikiki over the calm Ke’ehi Lagoon close to Sand Island, and virtually instantly, I noticed a turtle swimming beneath!
We additionally flew over the tiny Mokauea Island, dwelling to Oahu’s final Hawaiian fishing village.
Waikiki and Diamond Head
Soon we reached the towers of Waikiki, the place quite a few lodges overlook its beautiful (and crowded) seaside.
Next was Diamond Head, certainly one of Oahu’s most iconic sights. Seen from Waikiki, it seems like a mountain, however from above, you’ll be able to see that it’s a volcanic crater.
The day earlier than, we’d hiked to the highest of Diamond Head, which is among the hottest issues to do in Oahu, and it was fascinating to see it from a special perspective.
We hadn’t realised that the customer centre (the place we began the stroll) was proper in the course of the crater.
Southeast Coast of Oahu
Continuing on the southeast coast, we reached one other spectacular volcanic crater, Koko Crater.
It overlooks Hanauma Bay, the place we loved a number of the finest snorkelling on Oahu (notice you should ebook 48 hours prematurely). Again, it was fascinating to see a few of our favorite spots from a brand new perspective.
We’d pushed alongside this arid coast simply that morning and recognised locations just like the Lanai Lookout, Halona Blowhole, and Sandy Beach.
At the very finish of the south coast is the Makapu’u Point Lighthouse, the place we’d walked for gorgeous views.
It was even higher from above trying down on the uninhabited islets, Mānana Island (also called Rabbit Island) and Kāohikaipu Island.
Windward Coast
Turning the nook up the Windward Coast, the surroundings obtained much more spectacular.
This facet of the island is lush and inexperienced, with the dramatic Koʻolau mountain vary operating the size of the east coast.
First, we flew over the lengthy white stretch of Waimānalo Beach, certainly one of my favorite seashores on Oahu, with its beautiful mountain backdrop.
Olomana or the Three Peaks overlook Kailua city. There’s a difficult path you are able to do alongside these mountains.
We additionally flew over the Stairway to Heaven path that leads up a slim ridge. It’s now closed because it’s so harmful, and it definitely did look scary.
The Kaneohe Sandbar seems gorgeous from above.
As does Mokoli’i Island (often known as Chinaman’s Hat) off the coast of the Kualoa Regional Park.
We obtained up near the jagged mountains and flew over the well-known Kualoa Ranch, the place many films, together with Jurassic Park, had been filmed.
Further north, the waves obtained larger and we handed extra verdant peaks.
One of the very best sights on an Oahu helicopter tour is Sacred Falls.
These tall waterfalls in a lush valley can solely be seen from above. The climbing path to the falls was closed after eight folks had been killed by falling rocks in 1999.
North Shore
The North Shore is a quieter, much less developed a part of Oahu that’s well-known for its big surf breaks in winter.
Instantly, we noticed how a lot wilder the surf appeared (even in October) as we flew over Sunset Beach.
Waimea Bay is one other beautiful North Shore seaside. The valley behind it’s recognized for its botanical gardens and among the finest swimmable waterfalls on Oahu.
Climbing larger, we obtained a great view of this part of the North Shore, stretching from Turtle Bay Resort (which we completely liked after we later stayed right here) on the far left, previous Sunset Beach and Shark’s Cove (a rocky snorkelling spot) to Waimea Bay.
Dole Plantation
Although we noticed the western tip of Oahu within the distance, we didn’t journey all the best way across the island. Instead, we lower inland by way of the flatter center of Oahu.
The main sight right here is the Dole Plantation, with its geometric fields of pineapples that appear to stretch on for miles.
Pearl Harbor
Back on the south coast, we flew over the Pearl Harbor naval base, together with the USS Arizona Memorial, which commemorates the lives misplaced within the 1941 assault.
Is an Oahu Doors Off Helicopter Tour Worth It?
Our Honolulu helicopter trip was our costliest exercise on Oahu, however it was additionally essentially the most memorable, and for us, it was nicely price it.
The surroundings is actually spectacular, and seeing Oahu from above provides you a novel perspective. You additionally get to see locations like Sacred Falls and Stairway to Heaven that you would be able to’t go to every other means.
Our 60 minutes flew by and everybody obtained off the helicopter with big grins on their faces.
If you’ll be able to afford it, I extremely suggest an Oahu helicopter journey. Definitely select the doors-off choice for the very best photographs and a extra immersive expertise.
Book your helicopter trip with Rainbow Helicopters right here.
The solely state of affairs the place I wouldn’t suggest it’s in case you are additionally visiting Kauai, the place the helicopter journeys are much more unimaginable. I’d put it aside for Kauai if you happen to can’t afford each. See my publish on our Kauai doorways off helicopter trip for extra particulars.
The Best Time of Day for a Helicopter Tour of Oahu
I attempted to discover a definitive reply to the very best time for an Oahu helicopter tour and couldn’t.
There are professionals and cons to each time of day. The mild is all the time going to be good in a single route and never so nice in one other.
We booked the final 5pm flight as a result of it was simpler to suit into our schedule, and we had been hoping for some pretty golden hour mild.
The mild was stunning going through east however we had been heading into the solar when going west. Overall, I’m proud of the time we selected.
I wouldn’t fear an excessive amount of about it—simply select a time that works for you.
One issue that we did consider was the site visitors between Waikiki (the place we had been staying) and Honolulu Airport. We did our journey on a Sunday, so site visitors was minimal and it was a straightforward 20-minute automotive trip.
On weekday rush hours (6.30am – 9am and 3pm – 6pm), you’ll want to permit 40 minutes for the journey as site visitors will be horrendous.
Ideally, schedule your flight for earlier in your journey in case of cancellation as a result of climate. That mentioned, it was enjoyable to see a number of the locations we’d already visited.
Doors Off Helicopter Oahu Tips
- Wear heat garments and closed-toe footwear — I wore denims, a t-shirt, fleece, and trainers, and I used to be completely comfy. If you might be subsequent to the door, you should have lengthy sleeves.
- Don’t take unfastened gadgets – You can depart them in your automotive or within the constructing the place you check-in. This contains wallets, keys, hats, luggage, and even lens caps.
- Sunglasses are OK to put on – But I left mine behind as I needed to put on goggles sitting subsequent to the open door (in addition they aren’t nice for images).
- Tie again lengthy hair – I additionally wished I’d worn a scarf as a number of stray bits of hair got here unfastened and went wild. It was annoying and a knotty mess afterwards.
- Phone instances are supplied – You can put on them round your neck to keep away from the chance of dropping your telephone. Photos are first rate from telephones however will probably be higher from a digicam.
- If you could have a digicam – A large-angle lens is finest, use steady capturing mode, and purpose for a shutter velocity of 1/1000 to keep away from movement blur. For the photographs on this publish, I used a Sony A7III mirrorless digicam and Sony 16-35mm f4 lens.
- Travel illness isn’t a difficulty – I typically get journey sick however I didn’t have issues on both of my helicopter flights. If you might be apprehensive, take medicine like Dramamine an hour prematurely.
- Tipping the pilot is anticipated – You can do that again on the check-in constructing after the flight. They present envelopes if you wish to depart money, or you’ll be able to tip by card on the desk. $10-20 per individual is taken into account cheap.
Oahu Helicopter Trip Details
The 60-minute Royal Crown of Oahu tour with Rainbow Helicopters prices $375 per individual. We booked on Get Your Guide, which provides free cancellation as much as 48 hours prematurely.
It’s the identical value for doorways on or off. Just choose the choice when reserving.
You may go for a personal journey, which prices $1126 whole for 2 folks or $2252 for 4 folks. This is price contemplating if you’d like a assured window seat.
Rainbow Helicopters run flights day-after-day most hours between 9am and 5pm.
You must examine in a single hour earlier than your flight at their workplace contained in the Castle & Cooke Aviation constructing at Honolulu International Airport. They ship directions.
Book your Oahu helicopter journey right here.
More Hawaii Posts
We share extra of our Hawaii journey ideas in these posts:
General
Kauai
Maui