What'sThe Best Way To See Kauai ???

[Somonica]

Thanks for the really cool pics Somonia. The map with all the red dots, are those areas you flew over?? Does this tour have a DVD that you can buy afterwards of your flight?

 

Greg

 

Greg, we book our flight online about a month before...

 

yes, those red dots are the exact area we flew over and where I took my pictures... ;)

 

this company "Island Helicopter" do not sell on board DVD, they gave us free CD with pictures instead...

 

since I got the best seat (right front, with my 70 years old mom seat beside me and my brother at the left side of the back), I shoot almost 20 minutes of 1080 Full HD video and tons of pictures with my own digital camera any way... :rolleyes:

 

just give you some idea what it feel like, without spoil your fun... :D

 

[bronxite]

We will be sailing on April 9th. In Kauai we are using Kauai Eden Tours for a private tour on both days. Little bit more money, but I like the fact of spending time with someone that lives on the island. She will take us to all the "hidden spots". Karen was recommended through other CC members. She can take 4 people in her car or if you rent a van she will still be your tour guide. Hope this helps.

[gskline]

Greg, we book our flight online about a month before...

 

yes, those red dots are the exact area we flew over and where I took my pictures... ;)

 

this company "Island Helicopter" do not sell on board DVD, they gave us free CD with pictures instead...

 

HD video and tons of pictures with my own digital camera any way... :rolleyes:

 

just give you some idea what it feel like, without spoil your fun... :D

 

 

 

 

Thank you for the info Somonica! Please tease me with one more picture. How about one of the coast (or your favorite shot):D

[Somonica]

Thank you for the info Somonica! Please tease me with one more picture. How about one of the coast (or your favorite shot):D

 

not my favorite nor the coast...

 

how about another teaser... :rolleyes:

 

ps: see those reflection? if you love to take nice photos for the trip, remember to bring your CPL filter on board...

 

[gskline]

not my favorite nor the coast...

 

how about another teaser... :rolleyes:

 

ps: see those reflection? if you love to take nice photos for the trip, remember to bring your CPL filter on board...

 

 

 

Somonica.......you are such a tease:p! Thanks for another beautiful photo!

PS: Is it crowded in the helicopter? Are you able to see well?

[Somonica]

Somonica.......you are such a tease:p! Thanks for another beautiful photo!

PS: Is it crowded in the helicopter? Are you able to see well?

 

as you may already knew, sitting positions in a helicopter (or small plane) are assign by your friendly pilot...

 

his/her only consideration is the weight distribution of the plane...

 

how crowd (and how good the view) highly depend on where your seat assigned...

 

my mom sit at the front middle, a small seat with limited leg room, but being a 120lb 5'3" little old lady like her is OK and with good view up front... ;)

 

my brother sit at left side of the back, and he got floor to ceiling window by his side. space was rather good for him, since he is only a 5'6" 160lb guy... :rolleyes:

 

my front row seat on the right side is the best seat, having a lot of room and great view, front AND side... :D

 

so in short, if you want a good seat keep yourself REALLY fit and light, you don't want to end up with those two middle seat at the back... :o

 

[clsee1515]

Not sure how quickly they fill up. This may be determined by the time of year also, but not sure. I booked mine on Jan 9 for an Apr 1st flight @ 8 am. Others in my party just booked theirs on Feb 11 for an 8:30 am flight.

 

Gyp - Thank you. Exactly what I needed to hear. Definitely want an early flight, so will book 3-4 months out. Still a little (ok, a lot! :eek: ) nervous about the flight, so will have some time to get used to the idea.

[Somonica]

Gyp - Thank you. Exactly what I needed to hear. Definitely want an early flight, so will book 3-4 months out. Still a little (ok, a lot! :eek: ) nervous about the flight, so will have some time to get used to the idea.

 

helicopter (like small plane) is highly weather dependent...

 

on our day, they actually cancel some earlier flight(s) in the morning because it was too wildly...

 

the sky clear up and the wild die down when we took our flight...

 

luck have to be on your side... :o

 

as the flight itself, the worst movement was no worst than a normal airliner turbulence and it last less than 2 seconds... ;)

 

[gskline]

helicopter (like small plane) is highly weather dependent...

 

on our day, they actually cancel some earlier flight(s) in the morning because it was too wildly...

 

the sky clear up and the wild die down when we took our flight...

 

luck have to be on your side... :o

 

as the flight itself, the worst movement was no worst than a normal airliner turbulence and it last less than 2 seconds... ;)

 

 

 

WOW......that's an awesome photo! Thank you:D

[Somonica]

WOW......that's an awesome photo! Thank you:D

 

errr...

 

the real awesome stuffs is right behind this hill... :p

 

still trying very hard not to spoil you... :rolleyes:

 

[gskline]

errr...

 

the real awesome stuffs is right behind this hill... :p

 

still trying very hard not to spoil you... :rolleyes:

 

 

 

Is it behind Hill #1 or Hill #2 :D

[Somonica]

Is it behind Hill #1 or Hill #2 :D

 

Hill #1 = Hill #2... ;)

 

same Hill in the shadow, view from PoA around sunset that same afternoon... :rolleyes:

 

[chipmaster]

If there is one place in Hawaii to do helicopter its Kauai!

 

It is no more scary than a plane, actually better IMHO!

 

We used Blue Hawian and will be doing it again this summer with them, hopefully if the DW doesn't balk at the price for 5.

 

 

This is very helpful information. When I mentioned a helicopter ride to my wife, I got that look that she too would be hanging on for dear life with her eyes closed also LOL:D

 

Greg

[gskline]

If there is one place in Hawaii to do helicopter its Kauai!

 

It is no more scary than a plane, actually better IMHO!

 

We used Blue Hawian and will be doing it again this summer with them, hopefully if the DW doesn't balk at the price for 5.

 

 

 

Thank you Chipmaster. Your pics are awesome. Hope I convince my wife to take the ride!

[gskline]

We will be sailing on April 9th. In Kauai we are using Kauai Eden Tours for a private tour on both days. Little bit more money, but I like the fact of spending time with someone that lives on the island. She will take us to all the "hidden spots". Karen was recommended through other CC members. She can take 4 people in her car or if you rent a van she will still be your tour guide. Hope this helps.

 

 

 

This tour sounds interesting. Do they have a website I can get more information from? I arranged for a private tour last summer on St. Maarten. My family said this was their favorite thing out of all the excurions we took!

[atlasali]

In Feb. We did the flight on Air Ventures (a plane). Everyone was by a window. Hour long flight. Got a free DVD of another flight when finished, and we were shuttled to the boats to do the Fern Grotto cruise afterwards.

[gskline]

In Feb. We did the flight on Air Ventures (a plane). Everyone was by a window. Hour long flight. Got a free DVD of another flight when finished, and we were shuttled to the boats to do the Fern Grotto cruise afterwards.

 

 

Thank you Alison. What did this tour cost per person? Also do you have a website for them :D

Greg

[lancers]

We were on the same cruise as Atlasali. Our group of four took our tour with Wings over Kauai. It was the highlight of my trip. Maren picked us up at the ABC store ( a ten minute walk or 2 minute free shuttle ride from the port ). She was exactly on time and drove us the ten minute trip to the Lihue airport for our 11:00 tour. We met Captain Bruce who took us on an hour long tour of the island. We were fortunate to have terrific weather, and were able to enjoy the breathtaking views of Kauai ( including some whales off the coast ). Upon completion of the tour, we were presented with a complimentary DVD that had our picture on the cover. Ellen drove us back to the ABC store where we still had the afternoon to explore. All this for $125.

 

My three companions were vetrans of various past helicopter tours and said that this experience was better. Their web site is wingsoverkauai.com

[princesspv]

We are renting a car in Kauai for the first day on POA. Can anyone recommend those "secret spots" that you saw on the tours that we can drive to ourselves?

[Boytjie]

It has been over 30 years since we went to Hawaii, but we are sailing on the POA on March 19th. We are renting a car in Kauai because we can see more faster on our own. We will head for Waimea Canyon the first day, and I have read that you should beat it up there with no stops and then do your stops on the way back. The clouds come in late in the morning and then you can't see anything.

 

BTW, you need to purchase a parking pass right after you get your car to be sure the lot won't fill up.

 

We haven't planned the whole itinerary, but will probably head north the second morning. I intend to take a couple of guidebooks and really study them so we can maximize our available time. If you don't want to rent a car, I'm not much help, as we rarely take the ship's excursions (though we often arrange private ones.) Have fun!

 

Nancy

 

We had similar plans but ran into trouble on the last day when we went to the North Shore: we turned around with plenty of time to get back to the ship for lunch onboard prior to the 2 pm departure UNTIL we hit major traffic due to road construction! We were frantic, dropped the rental car off without having time to fill up the gas tank and made it back on board with about 15-20 minutes to spare.

[Boytjie]

ps: see those reflection? if you love to take nice photos for the trip, remember to bring your CPL filter on board...

 

And wear dark clothing. :)

[Sunny AZ Girl]

We had similar plans but ran into trouble on the last day when we went to the North Shore: we turned around with plenty of time to get back to the ship for lunch onboard prior to the 2 pm departure UNTIL we hit major traffic due to road construction! We were frantic, dropped the rental car off without having time to fill up the gas tank and made it back on board with about 15-20 minutes to spare.

I know a lot of people do venture out on Day 2 on their own, but I remembered your earlier post concerning this and that made me concerned. Then I picked up the Travel Guide "Hawaii by Cruise Ship". the author there specifically suggested NOT renting a car on Day 2 due to the early time the ship leaves port for exactly the reason you mentioned. She suggested renting a car on Day 1 to tour the island, then doing a flightseeing trip or excursion through the ship.

 

That sealed it for me. Since we had already decided to do the Smith Family Luau & Fern Grotto Combo Tour through Robert's on Day 1 with pick up at 2:30 PM, we cancelled our 2 day car rental in Kauai all together and decided we would spend the morning on Day 1 at the beach near the ship, the afternoon and evening on the Robert's Tour/Luau. We booked a flightseeing tour with AirVentures Hawaii for $125 on Day 2 at 8:30 AM. I'm happy!:)

[gskline]

We were on the same cruise as Atlasali. Our group of four took our tour with Wings over Kauai. It was the highlight of my trip. Maren picked us up at the ABC store ( a ten minute walk or 2 minute free shuttle ride from the port ). She was exactly on time and drove us the ten minute trip to the Lihue airport for our 11:00 tour. We met Captain Bruce who took us on an hour long tour of the island. We were fortunate to have terrific weather, and were able to enjoy the breathtaking views of Kauai ( including some whales off the coast ). Upon completion of the tour, we were presented with a complimentary DVD that had our picture on the cover. Ellen drove us back to the ABC store where we still had the afternoon to explore. All this for $125.

 

My three companions were vetrans of various past helicopter tours and said that this experience was better. Their web site is wingsoverkauai.com

 

 

Thank you Lancers. This might be a better alternative for my wife who is nervous about a helicopter ride:eek:. How many people does the plane hold? Also what is the visibility like? Are the windows small and hard to see out of?

Greg