Honolulu Soaring

Nice view and a great adventure. It’s a different experience being on a plane without powered propulsion. Very unique and fun.

This was my first time in a glider, or even any small aircraft. I purchased the half an hour flight with the «mini lesson». Michael, the pilot, was very friendly and instructive, showing me the best way to control the aircraft and where to fly it to get the best ridge lift off of the mountains. I let him know that I am an Aeronautical Engineer and that I was interested in every aspect of flying. The whole half hour he was teaching me about the glider, history of the activity, and how to control flying. I am now very interested in more soaring and actually taking flight lessons on the way to getting my private license.
Mr. Bill was super charismatic and funny, telling all sorts of stories to us as we waited out turn and even cleaning my sunglasses for me before I went up. Can’t spread the word quick enough about this place. Can’t wait to go back! Thank you Bill!

It was my very first time on the glider. I learned a little bit about the history of the glider by my pilot. I didn’t know that glider has such a long and interesting history. My pilot was great! He has such a great sense of humor.
Overall I had an awesome time and I would recommend this activity to anyone that interested and not afraid of height.

Loved the 20 minute scenic tour! The instructors were great and were very attentive to your needs. They explained everything and made the flight as smooth as possible. I would definitely recommend this as a tour.

This was a great experience! Our appointment was at 10:00am and we were in the air by 10:05am, we paid for a half hour and were up there 45mins and it was amazing! Our pilot (Sean) was very friendly and fun, my sister was a little nervous but Sean explained everything as it was happening and put her at ease. I would recommend Bill and his staff to anyone and everyone!

Absolutely great! If you’ve done this before, you have to do it here! If you’ve never tried it, this is the place. Bill and the pilots are all really nice and make it a really fun experience. Don’t make this a part of a packed day as there can be weather delays, there’s also a beautiful beach just down the road!

Decided to buy my Dad a glider ride for Father’s Day, since it was his first time to Hawaii. When we arrived at the airport he convinced me to go along with him on the ride. I was scared (afraid of heights) but realizing this was a once-​in-​a-​lifetime opportunity, went ahead and joined him. I’m so glad I did! Gliding is the closest thing I can imagine to being a bird. Our pilot took us right along the edge of the mountains, right above tree tops where we could feel the lift of the wind under the wings of the glider. We saw wonderful perspectives of the mountains, Kaena point, the ocean, the different colors of the reefs… All gorgeous and thrilling. All day long after the trip I felt like I had lived a flying dream.
The tow (take off) and landing were both smooth and exciting. I felt safe the whole time. I highly recommend this experience. However, if you are thinking of doing a 2-​person ride you should know that the back seat where you will be sitting behind the pilot is pretty small. The 2 people should either be small, and/​or know each other very well because you will be VERY close!

The staff, equipment and pilots are top notch. They’ve mastered providing a once in a life memory to visitors to Hawaii. All of the pilots treat foreign and domestic tourists with Aloha!!!

First time gliding and loved I it. Sean, the pilot was great. Very interesting commentary during the fight. Cut a little shorter than 30 minute booked flight. They offered to go back up or give refund for minutes not gliding. Free red vines! After your flight, walk across the road and enjoy the beach.

This is one of those things you have to do at least once in your life. I can say it’s well under the anxiety scale of a tandem skydive or a scuba dive, and I finally was in Honolulu when the weather was great and the ceiling was unlimited. The cockpit seems small when you get in and when it’s time to close the canopy, but then you realize it’s no different from a 2-​seater sports car. The pilot and ground crew are very personable, friendly, safety conscious and procedurally disciplined, and very cool. I didn’t go for the aerobatic flight for my first, and the pilot let me fly the stick for a while to get a real feel for soaring, explaining the instruments, how to feel up and down drafts, and we even saw whales offshore of Mokuleia. Take your camera, get comfortable with taking video and still shots with it, and be sure you have room on your storage card and a good battery charge because you’ll get outstanding views and photo ops in the air without any distraction from the ride itself.
Just do it!

I never would have thought of going up in a glider, had it not been the idea of my best friend. We did the 30 minute glider flight and it was absolutely breathtaking. The views from up there are unlike anythiing you could ever imagine. It IS a bit stuffy up there in the cockpit while you’re flying. I thought it would be cooler, but it is definitely not. And I would stay away from this type of airplane if you tend to get claustrophic. The cockpit is TINY. You had better LIKE the person you go with, because you are strapped together and literally almost sitting on top of each other. Lol Our pilot was named John and he was very informative, friendly and a great pilot (thank goodness!). The only reason why I rate HonoluluSoaring as 4 stars instead of 5, is because I got airsick. Which, is not their fault of course, but detracted from my enjoyment of the flight. :(I think had I known better what to expect, I might not have gotten so sick. I naively assumed that a glider flight meant that it would be completely tranquil and idyllic. You DO experience turbulence. And the pilot has to execute several negative G 90 degree turns to keep the glider flying. Nevertheless, it is still a one of a kind experience that I would recommend.

Fantastic! I was born and raised in Honolulu and this is something I’d never done before or never even really heard about. I. had no idea what I was in for since my boyfriend did the research but I was pleasantly surprised by how friendly and great the driver was, amazed by the fact that the plane can ride us around for half an hour without an engine. I think a lot of people may opt not to participate in this activity because it’s far away from Waikiki, where most people stay, and is definitely more pricey than cheaper activities like scuba diving, but it is sooo worth it. The sights were amazing. It’s the closest thing to feeling like you’re flying. The photos you get are amazing. That side of the island is just so majestic and you feel like you’re seeing Hawaii untouched, like it was so many deccades ago.

Very cool! Another activity that I highly recommend everyone tries at least once in their life. This is just as cool as the dolphin excursion we went on but completely different.
The ride took place at Dillingham Airfield so we did it on our way to the Polynesian Cultural Center. We chose to do the 2 passenger scenic ride and my goodness it’s either a tight fit or I ate one too many shrimps during my stay in Oahu. Everyone from the girl at the front to our fab pilot made the experience so awesome.
Basically you are towed up into the sky by a plane using a rope (that’s it!) then they let go of the rope and you’re literally soaring in the air on the wind from the mountain ranges. From the plane you could literally see all around you from the beautiful ocean to the mountain range. I loved how the pilot also gave background history on what everything was, how long its been there and the history of the island.
It’s a breathtaking view and the ride is not to be missed. For those of you that get a little claustrophobic or motion sick, I recommend the 20 minute ride, it’s just right.
Also, don’t be like me and forget to charge your camera before you head over there. From the air you can get some very cool shots!

My sister and I squeezed into the back seat of a glider and did our very own 20 minute scenic glide ride. We got to see beautiful mountain, beaches, and even Lost locations! Pretty sweeeet!
I would have loved to try the aerobatic flight! Maybe next time!