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Hawaii - which island to go droning?

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Hey everyone,

I'm taking a trip to Hawaii, arriving on May 12th and leaving on the 19th, with a team to do some aerial videography with the Inspire. Coming from Canada, so account for travel time at either end.

I've been doing a bunch of reading around, and in comparing the islands and their landmarks, accessibility, and overall what would be the most bang for your buck....I'm not sure what to do.

I've mainly looked at O'ahu and Kauai, and though Kauai has the dramatic cliffs that O'ahu doesn't have as much of...it's also not as accessible to get to those spots.

Just wondering for people who have already been there, and know much about all the islands, if you had the amount of time that I have going there - which island would you pick? Keeping mind variety of landscape, accessibility, etc. etc.

And for whichever island you would pick - WHAT ARE THE MUST SEES?

Appreciate any and all comments,

Tristan
Storytape.com
 
On Oahu head northeast to Kaneohe and follow King Kamehameha Highway (83). The bus will go all the way to Turtle Bay (North Shore). Along this winding ocean side highway you can stop and view the beaches and some of the locations below. Beware, it may be a bit overpopulated in some locations.

- Kualoa Ranch
Kaneohe, HI (The best location to fly on Oahu)
Best Oahu Tours & Activities | Eco Tours |

- Turtle Bay Resort (walk around back to the rocky beach)

- Diamond Head (just east of Waikiki)

- The "Pipe Line". A well known surfing location along highway 83 on the north shore where world wide competitions are held.

- Waikiki Beach. Probably not a good place to film but nice scenery. Very, very populated. People gather here during sunset, which would make for a good film shot - but then again, there's water and lots of people.

The other islands would be much more scenic and less populated to fly and film. Kauai, Big Island (volcano), and Maui. I personally got tired of living on Oahu and moved back to the mainland.
 
On Oahu head northeast to Kaneohe and follow King Kamehameha Highway (83). The bus will go all the way to Turtle Bay (North Shore). Along this winding ocean side highway you can stop and view the beaches and some of the locations below. Beware, it may be a bit overpopulated in some locations.

- Kualoa Ranch
Kaneohe, HI (The best location to fly on Oahu)
Best Oahu Tours & Activities | Eco Tours |

- Turtle Bay Resort (walk around back to the rocky beach)

- Diamond Head (just east of Waikiki)

- The "Pipe Line". A well known surfing location along highway 83 on the north shore where world wide competitions are held.

- Waikiki Beach. Probably not a good place to film but nice scenery. Very, very populated. People gather here during sunset, which would make for a good film shot - but then again, there's water and lots of people.

The other islands would be much more scenic and less populated to fly and film. Kauai, Big Island (volcano), and Maui. I personally got tired of living on Oahu and moved back to the mainland.



But with Kauai:
- doesn't it rain more?
- isn't it harder to navigate?
- less to see?
 
My vote would be Kauai. Visited it three times, flown it once. Some areas you will encounter No Drone signs. Mainly on the north end.



But with Kauai:
- doesn't it rain more?
- isn't it harder to navigate?
- less to see?
 
But with Kauai:
- doesn't it rain more?
- isn't it harder to navigate?
- less to see?

It doesn't rain all the time. I think out of 10 days, just 1 afternoon we got rain. The south side is dryer.
I found plenty to see. Rent a jeep if you go.
Navigation of roads and airspace was easy. You will always deal with wind. Just fly smart and safe

Some of my videos

Ask the property owners and offer to provide them footage. That usually gets you a thumbs up. Never got around to filming the waterfalls.
Kipu Ranch while not on their brochure will allow you to charter a vehicle with a guide outside of a tour. That gives you unlimited access to the ranch. I can't remember his name, but they had this one drive, really big guy, who owns a Parrot. Get him and tell him to bring his also with you.

A lot of movies were filmed on Kauai. So you can fly some of those scenes. The one of Kipu Ranch has the rope swing from the opening of Raiders of the Lost Ark.
 
Been to Maui twice. Lots of beatiful things to film there. Hana has several film worthy locations that are simply stunning as does Walilea, and Lahaina. Also keep in mind there are a bunch of National Parks in Hawaii which are no fly zones for drones. You will need to be very aware of that as well as Trade winds which can make it harder to fly in certain areas.
 
My vote would be Kauai and Maui. Kauai there is tons of sightseeing helicopter traffic and you have to be extremely vigilant. They come out of nowhere. Unfortunately just recently Maverick Helicopters (highly recommend if you want to do a heli flight) had a run in – Investigators looking into report that drone struck Kauai tour helicopter Rain can definitely be a bit nasty on Kauai with Mount Waialeale being one of the wettest spots in the world.
 
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My vote would be Kauai and Maui. Kauai there is tons of sightseeing helicopter traffic and you have to be extremely vigilant. They come out of nowhere. Unfortunately just recently Maverick Helicopters (highly recommend if you want to do a heli flight) had a run in – Investigators looking into report that drone struck Kauai tour helicopter Rain can definitely be a bit nasty on Kauai with Mount Waialeale being one of the wettest spots in the world.

Why is it always, "The drone struck xxx... and never xxx struck a drone?" You never read a story about the ground, tree or mountain striking a plane.
 
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