Kyle M.
Yelp
It's tough for me to review Blue Hawaiain fairly because I had two totally different experiences. Had I written this based on my first trip there would be a lot less stars involved. Let me explain.
I was really looking forward to my first time on a helicopter so I booked the Kauai tour as I heard it was the most scenic. We had requested the front as we were on our Honeymoon. When we arrived, the place was very well organized & clean. The staff was friendly, professional, & ran the operation fluidly. We did the safety briefing which consists of a video, then we were given our bright yellow safety pouches(not the most ideal color considering you are told not to wear bright colors due to reflections on the helicopter glass) but hey, safety first I guess. Side note, these reflect a LOT on the glass.
My smile quickly faded & turned into a WTF as I boarded and we were given seat #4 & #5 on the Eco Star. For those that haven't ridden on the Eco-Star, there are a few seats in front next to the pilot. These are the seats that are worth paying full price for. The other seats(a row of 4 behind the pilot) pretty much have a LOT of obstructed views. The window seats aren't so bad however the back middle two seats are horribly obstructed... this is the seat I got. Right from takeoff I knew this was going to suck. I was so mad I could barely enjoy any of the flight. The pilot was cool, the actual tour itself goes to some beautiful places but the only way to get your money's worth in my opinion is to sit up front. I spent most of the flight trying to lean out towards the windows to attempt to see anything. We ended up buying the video so I could at least see all the stuff I was supposed to.
When we returned, I voiced my frustration with the staff in as polite a manner as I could being that I just spent $300+ for what I felt was worth much less. I was leaving the island soon so the best the staff could offer was a small discount to try them again on another island. Not wanting to have that be my first & last experience on a helicopter, I agreed & requested front seats again. The staff member (who was very understanding & helpful) did what she could to try & get us up front but could not 100% guarantee it.
When we arrived at Blue Hawaiian in Honolulu, I was trying my best to go into the second trip with a fresh attitude. My smile was ear to ear when I heard we would be sitting up front this time! Although, as expected, Honolulu is more historical than scenic(compared to Kauai) it was still going to be a great flight. Our pilot was very nice, & even with a little rain, we were still in for a nice flight. We got to fly over Diamond Head, Hanamana Bay, we got to see where they filmed Giligans Island, 50 First Dates, & Forgetting Sarah Marshall. The most eerie part was flying the same flight path the Japanese Zeros took on Dec 7th, 1941 as they attacked Pearl Harbor.
Having done both flights, if I had to rate sitting up front in the Ecostar to sitting in the back middle seat, it would be a 10 up front & MAYBE a 3 or 4 in the back. I can only imagine how amazing it would have been to sit up front during the Kauai tour after having watched our video.
In summary, I'd only fly the tours again if I sat up front, but that's just me. Riding in the back might not bother some people.