You haven’t been to Kauai, and you haven’t taken a helicopter tour? What in blue blazes are you waiting for? This requirements to be at the top rated of everyone’s bucket listing. No fooling, you just will have to get out to the island, reserve your tour, and consider a helicopter vacation close to the most lovely, enchanting, awe inspiring position on earth. Quit reading through this and simply call your travel agent, now!

Ok, I am a bit biased I actually flew Kauai excursions for a number of a long time, and in the interest of complete disclosure, I flew for a firm termed Air Kauai. So of training course I have a diverse perspective on helicopters, and traveling all-around islands in them. I’m heading to endeavor to share with you, dear reader, why it is that you simply need to drop whatsoever other holiday vacation designs you may perhaps have, get a ticket to Lihue, and hop aboard a tour helicopter. You can go to Orlando, or Branson, or the Catskills future year.

Here is why you need to do this, what helicopter organization you should consider, how a lot it might price tag, what to consider together, and what time of year and time of day to go. Additionally a few extras: what to count on on the helicopter tour, what you might see, a security overview, and other odds and ends to make your lifestyle-altering experience even more gratifying. Let us get started with having to Kauai, and a bit of the island’s mystique, starting, as they say, at the beginning, the origin of Kauai.

Kauai, or the Yard Island, is the furthest (exposed) northwest island in the Hawaiian chain. I say exposed for the reason that the Hawaiian Islands are slowly disappearing. No, this just isn’t a reason to shift your trip up a few months, relax. Here is a little bit of Hawaiian trivia that some of your tour mates probably would not know. There are in reality 127 islands in the Hawaiian chain, not just the 7 you see on a map nowadays–Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Oahu, Kauai, and Niihau. The Hawaiian chain stretches throughout the Pacific for one,two hundred miles, ending in a little coral atoll referred to as Kure, which is, in fact, the quite initial Hawaiian Island, courting again practically 100 million years. As a reference, just one of the Hawaiian Islands is a very little position referred to as Halfway which is found, effectively, mid way throughout the chain, about 600 miles Northwest of Oahu.

All the islands are volcanic in origin. Their supply is a volcanic rift in the ocean ground referred to as the Hawaiian Emperor vent, which lies deep underneath water seventy miles south and east of Hawaii, the so-termed ‘Big Island’. Over the last 100 million many years this volcanic vent has created all 127 islands*. The islands crack the surface area, acquire into a land mass, cool adequately to aid life sorts, and then, owing to wind, water and all-natural corrosive aspects, they slowly and gradually erode absent, sinking back under the waves. The islands are also positioned instantly on a tectonic plate with a northwesterly drift, which takes them off towards Japan and Asia in excess of their lifetimes. Every single Hawaiian island really moves Northwest about 50 % an inch for every year. Geologists declare that Kure, for occasion, will, in a couple dozen million a long time conclude up parked in the vicinity of the Kamchatka peninsula.

Kauai by itself is about seven million yrs aged. Its certain origin, the volcano that established the land mass called Kauai, is right now termed Mount WaiAleAle (Why-Olly-Olly). WaiAleAle sits in the center of the island. Go to Google Earth and kind that in, and see the place it usually takes you. Additional about this mountain afterwards, all through your tour.

Talking of the tour, let’s get on with it. E book your flight into Lihue, the major town on Kauai. There are direct flights from the west coastline. Most of the helicopter tour operators fly from Lihue airport. Here’s a listing of individuals providers, and an overview of each:

Blue Hawaiian: Fantastic business, excellent basic safety history, not the most affordable, but possibly the finest, and this is no time to scrimp. ‘Blue’ flies from Lihue calendar year round, giving a complete, experienced tour of about an hour. Not just about sufficient time to see it all, but adequate to fall your jaw to the ground. get in touch with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters

Safari: Very good business with a extended heritage on Kauai. Excellent safety record, and remarkably professional pilots. Safari offers some benefits other tour corporations do not these types of as a movie of your vacation, out there for a nominal price. Safari Helicopters Inc.

Island Helicopters: Island is the deal tour, the no frills, hop aboard and see the island helicopter tour. Fantastic but not fantastic, and, as I explained, this is no time to scrimp. Phone Island Helicopters.

Jack Harter Helicopters: Jack Harter himself was the authentic helicopter tour man on Kauai. Jack is the old guy of helicoptering on island, having at the time flown Frank Sinatra and other Hollywood types all around several motion picture spots when ‘ol blue eyes was filming on Kauai several moons back. Jack Harter Helicopters is the first. That claimed, the enterprise is great, not terrific, remarkably well-informed, protected, with aggressive rates and a very good tour. Robinson’s illustrious history provides two distinct aircraft depending on your curiosity–the AStar for a standard, comfy, tour, and a minimal hen flown with out doorways for individuals who tote highly-priced cameras and are, by God, heading to use them. Jack Harter Helicopters Inc.

There are other firms to pick out from, but these earlier mentioned are the ones I suggest. Here is the relaxation of the story: what to anticipate, what to acquire (and not get), pricing, weather conditions, basic safety, when to go, and numerous other issues.

When you get there for your tour you can expect to be supplied a security briefing for every FAA regulations, just like on the airplane. You will learn about using various protection things, and be specified a brief overview of your tour. Then you will have to phase on a scale. Sorry, folks, the airlines are permitted to use conventional weights, helicopter operators will have to use genuine. And certainly, some firms do demand more over a particular weight. It really is for aircraft working parameters, hence for your safety and others’. You’ll have to spend of system, and the fee structure is dependent on so a lot of variables I would not get into information. Suffice to say that a tour will price tag any where from $a hundred seventy five.00 apiece up to $300,00, as I say, based on reserving arrangements, firm, bargains and many others. Spend it, you can hardly ever regret it. Following the workplace visit you’ll be taken to the helicopter exactly where you’ll fulfill your pilot and ground crew.

At the flight line you will acquire an comprehensive security briefing from the pilot on exiting the plane, use of flotation gadgets, intercom procedure, headsets and a variety of other basic safety and pleasant to know things. Dependent on the corporation you opt for, you’ll probable board the plane ‘hot’, that is with the motor in procedure, blades turning. Just pay back attention to your floor crew, and no anxieties. One take note of warning–do not go close to the tail of the helicopter, ever. Normally remain within just the pilot’s line of eyesight. The tail rotor is NOT your close friend.