Skydive Hawaii® — Local services in Oʻahu

Had my first ever skydiving experience here.

1. The flying was good but the landing was nah- I was told to hold my legs on and stand when instructed for landing. Eventually I didn’t even have the chance to stand because I fall over, my instructor too. I had to use my hand to touch the ground to avoid my face going down to the ground. Some grass were on my trousers, and a small prick went into my little finger. Can’t imagine what happened if I didn’t use my hand to go first.

2. And, upon paying, staffs told us that tips are not necessary but they suggested an amount of $50 for each. This is kind of “forcing”. To me I think it’s way too high, so I just tipped a $20. Now taking account into the incident I’m kind of regret for tipping. Also for your info, Pacific Skydiving gives their guests an envelope to put in the tips, what printed on the back of the envelope for suggestions of tips is $10, $20, $30. Versus Skydive Hawaii “suggested” a tip of $50. Just keep in mind for those who interested, prepare to pay a $100 tip more other than the indicated price on the website.

3. They charged a 3.5% fee for card payment, even for debit card transactions. This is RIDICULOUS. Take note that it is illegal to charge a surcharge on debit cards federally in the United States, meaning businesses cannot add an extra fee to a customer's purchase when they pay with a debit card; this is due to the Durbin Amendment of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. But they charge no matter you are using debit card or credit card. This is nonsense. If they prefer not to take card payment, they could have declare on the website that they only take cash. But they didn’t.

All in all, not recommended. I’m glad with just the flying experience but everything else, no.

THIS IS A REPLY TO THE OWNER’S REPLY:

I am indeed a first jump customer with low satisfaction, that’s why I wrote so long for other users to view. The reason why I know the competitor’s tipping policy is that I have friends that jump with them, and do you know that there’s a social media called xiaohongshu where everyone can make a post? I was so unsatisfied and I went there to search about skydiving in Hawaii, there popped up: there’s not just me who were forced to tip $50, and there’s people shared that their experience with Pacific Skydiving too. Whoever reading this, you can search on it and you will verify that what I said is all true. And see how this arrogant and haughty owner accused a real customer. :) And ya, just so you know that xiaohongshu’s users opt for Pacific Skydiving because they claims that they have an excellent safety record and for safety reason, the users went for them. I know I have signed the waiver, but previously I don’t believe the statement, now I somehow did. I’m writing all these not because I like Pacific Skydiving more (I didn’t even jump with them), but just because I’m unsatisfied with Skydive Hawaii, and so I shared my experience with other Google users.

Yes, customer can tip based on their experience, but so what’s the point of indicating an amount prior to tipping and uses the aggressive tone to want us to tip the amount told?

It’s just ridiculous for you to state that you only charge processing fee for credit card. Because I was there literally yesterday, and staffs told me they will charge no matter what card is it, as long as you are making card payment, we will charge you a 3.5%. How ridiculous of you to deny this fact. This is a truly fake and despicable retort, the evidence is your staff told me the two different amounts of I’m paying by cash...

The jump itself was a 5 star experience! I loved my tandem partner and all of my friends enjoyed their time completely from pre interviews to landing.

I've giving 4 stars because of the business organization.

On our shuttle to the facility, we had already been picked up and on the freeway to the facility when the office told the driver to turn around to pick up more guests, wasting about 30-45 minutes in extra commute.

I would have preferred if they advertised the 3.5% credit card fee upfront. Instead of when you get there and have the choice of the credit card fee or the $8 atm fee in their facility. On a several hundred dollar experience, the credit card fee isn't nothing.

The $20 fuel surcharge pp was not shared until you get there.

I also didn't understand the tipping culture, something like this is so niche, that 20% tip felt strange when the jump and pictures themselves carry a high cost, then to tip 20% on top of that was a shock. They also recommend $50 for your partner and $50 for the camera person, which doesn't add up on the math front. Even when I said 20% at check out, they still added $50 each and I had to correct it.

I think the terms could be a bit confusing, and I think their execution with photos/videos could have been better. I don't like that although they have already taken photos and videos, you have no option to switch out. I understand that it would be unfair to buy photos, have the service, and then back out of payment. But in a place where you fairly paid for a service, and preferred the other option, why you can't swap it out. It felt a bit like a cash grab on their side, since there really is no incentive for them other than to keep the premium on videos, which they don't seem to sell much of anyway. (General advice for the reader is that videos are not worth it, unless your tandem jumper is going to be doing flips...

My wife and I had an absolutely incredible time skydiving with Skydive Hawaii. From start to finish, the team made the experience fun, exciting, and safe while keeping the atmosphere lighthearted and enjoyable.

My wife had Kainoa as her instructor and Mike as her photographer, and she couldn’t have asked for a better team. Both were friendly, professional, and made her feel completely comfortable throughout the jump. Mike captured amazing shots while Kainoa kept the energy up and made the experience unforgettable.

I was lucky to have Lauren as my instructor and Knoxville as my photographer, and they were just as fantastic. Lauren brought such a calming yet fun energy to the jump, and Knoxville’s photos and videos perfectly captured the thrill of the moment. They worked seamlessly together, making my second jump an adventure I’ll never forget.

What really stood out was how personable and genuine everyone was. It didn’t feel like just another routine jump for them, they truly cared about making sure we had the best possible experience.

One small suggestion that could further enhance operations: It might be helpful to provide a golf cart or similar transport option for instructors who are hot-swapping and going back-to-back with customers. This would not only save the instructors from running back and forth to the aircraft, but could also improve overall efficiency and potentially reduce some fuel consumption for the planes.

Overall, Skydive Hawaii exceeded our expectations in every way. The staff is professional, friendly, and clearly passionate about what they do. If you’re considering skydiving in Hawaii, this is hands down the place to go. We’ll...