The Incredible Aerial Adventure That Will Show You Hawaii Like Never Before
By Megan Shute|Published April 18, 2018
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Megan Shute
Author
With more than 10 years of experience as a professional writer, Megan holds a degree in Mass Media from her home state of Minnesota. After college, she chose to trade in her winter boots for slippahs and moved to the beautiful island of Oahu, where she has been living for more than five years. She lives on the west side but is constantly taking mini-road trips across the island and visits the neighboring islands whenever she can getaway. She loves hiking, snorkeling, locally-grown coffee, and finding the best acai bowl on Oahu.
Living in Hawaii, or even vacationing on the islands, is truly an adventure in itself, but not all adventures are created equally, especially when it comes to experiencing thrills. But not everyone has the desire — or stomach — to experience the freefall associated with skydiving. Enter parasailing, an adventure that is not only perfect for the entire family but features absolutely jaw-dropping views.
If you live on Oahu, you’re in luck! One of our favorite parasailing destinations is found right here in Waikiki.
Hawaiian Parasail is the Aloha State's original parasailing company and the most popular as well!
The year is 1977, and a parasail is launched from the shores of a beach in Hawaii Kai. People ran out of their houses along Portlock beachfront pointing in the air, curious as to what this brightly colored sail was doing in the air. Some assumed it was an airplane pilot who parachuted out of their crashing plane. This was the first parasail flight in Hawaii, and no one had ever seen anything like it before.
"We parasailed our first rider for about 20 minutes before landing him in the ocean. I soon was met with a huge Coast Guard helicopter hovering over us, asking us over a very loud speaker if we picked up the pilot. We all waved saying yes we have him. When we arrived back at the dock we were swamped with reporters from every news station running up to us asking about the pilot," reads the Hawaiian Parasail website. "There was police, fire trucks and ambulance waiting nearby. They were all surprised when we told them that it is a new sport here in Hawaii, that I had brought it here after seeing it in Mexico while on a surfing trip there."
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Parasailing was officially introduced to the Hawaiian Islands that day, and in the years since then, it has become a much safer and easier sport, with hydraulic winch boats, and the capacity to accommodate multiple riders at once.
And of course, Hawaiian Parasail is the largest parasail company operating in the Hawaiian Islands, now operating hour-long tours ten times each day out of the Ala Wai Boat Harbor.
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Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need any special skills to go parasailing.
The sweeping panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean and the Oahu coastline are sure to make you forget about that fear of heights — if only for a moment.
The length of the line will determine the length of your ride, which varies from three to ten minutes. There are also kama’aina and military discounted rates available.
1651 Ala Moana Blvd #600b, Honolulu, HI 96815, and is open from 8 a.m to 6 p.m. daily. For more information, or to book your parasailing adventure, check out their website!
Looking for more thrilling adventures sure to test your nerves? Click here!
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