The bf and i are going to Kaua'i for 7nights. We will be staying at the Marriott resort and beach club in Lihue. I hear the "helicopter tour is a must," any suggestions how to find one that won't break the bank? How much do they cost? Do i need to get "the video?" Thanks

Most helicopter rides start at $100 or so per person (more, if you take their longest flight).

If you've got the stamina to sit through a timeshare presentation (practice saying "No thanks", and "Not really interested" first though!), some of the timeshare companies will give you 2-for-1 helicopter discount coupon. Check the visitor info kiosk by the luggage carousel at the Lihu`e airport when you arrive -- lots of discount coupons there, also.

Take your own video camera and save some extra $$

Highly recommend a helicopter tour. Exhilarating view of waterfalls, canyons, peaks, Napali coast. We took the "deluxe waterfall" tour with Safari Helicopters in '94. It's still in business, a good sign. Safariair.com. Prices for that tour run between $139 and $209/pp. The video and ride are narrated theater, choreographed to music. Still, few of your friends will want to sit through your video. We can't pay our children to watch more than 5 minutes of ours.

Just 2 weeks back I took the HeliUSA tour over Kauai (it's out of Princeville). Just spectacular! Very very cool.

We'd booked a package through Pleasant Holidays and got a 2-for-1 HeliUSA coupon from them. Way cool. Grab those tourist guides at the hotels & airports -- there are some great coupons in there!

We just returned from a trip to Kauai where we did a helicopter tour with Air Kauai. We signed up for a time share presentation at the Embassy in Poipu and got a 2-for-1 deal on the helicopter ride. We signed up through Mari at the "Vacation Activity Center" (or something like that) at the Poipu shopping center and booked the presentation and the helicopter tour. We simply said we weren't interested at the end of the time share presentation and that was it. It was a fairly painless way to save approximately $200.
Best wishes and have a great trip.

We went with a trip with Air Kaui. We loved it so much we wanted to go again. The views are just spectacular. We paid regular fare and bought a CD with professional photos of all the scenery that we had seen on our ride.

Don't miss doing this.

you could check http://explorearizonatours.com/helicopter.php
Goodluck!

We went with Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. Safety was a concern for us. We paid about $195 per person and enjoyed our trip very much. Our pilot was very professional. He had sixteen years experience. We also got the video. They have new equipment and the video was quite good. It was of our actual trip and includes our questions, etc. No question, it really is very pricey but for a first time in Kauai, it was worth it.

Reply to <blue>tokmik<black>,
IMHO, there is no substitute for the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.