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 Arnott's GREAT SAVINGS
Arnotts Lodge acknowledges the role that Backpackers and budget travelers have played in the growth of our company by offering special rates for those that stay with us.
In the case of our Mauna Kea Adventure our $80 guest price is less than half that charged by other Operators, who all cater to the fancy west side Hotels and charge $200 a seat and up (their website 2010 prices). The Mauna Kea climb uses a lot of fuel, requires an in house mechanic, and the visitor center per head fee has recently risen to $6 a head.
Even our outside guest price at $125 is a bargain compared to competitive rates.
Our non-guest outside prices are based on the prices charged for comparable adventures by other Tour companies and adventure providers.
Many visitors to the Big Island of Hawaii have found our private bath units are equal to rooms that cost three to four times as much. We can offer this by providing excellent rooms with "No Frills" amenities.
If you can do without daily room service, free shampoo, lotion, TV and a mini bar, you will love our tropical environment where you are surrounded by coconut trees that actually have coconuts on them, unlike their Big Hotel sanitized cousins
Mainland
Flights (Continental US.) & Inter Island flights
A
protracted airfare war between
Hawaiian,
Aloha and
GO
has bankrupted Aloha.. What this means for you, our guests, is that
you now have three choices to get to the Big Island....
Hawaiian,
GO
and
Island Air
which flies twin engine prop-jets.
You might also try our new scenic smaller plane
airline
Pacific Wings
or
Island Air
which flies from Honolulu to Maui to Hilo and Hilo to Maui. These
smaller airlines while slower on the longer trips are highly scenic
as they fly at moderate altitudes and everyone has a view. Specially
for Big Island guests coming from, or going to Maui, it affords the
bonus of spectacular scenery along the way not seen on Hawaiian or
Aloha. As prices on the inter-island scene are constantly shifting
check their website for deals.
Iolani Air Tours
Flight of a Lifetime!
Whenever Lava flows change and we need to do an aerial survey,
Doug Arnott goes up in the Cessna or Piper Aircraft of this small
company which has an excellent safety record. Doug prefers these
slower safer flights, as helicopters are required to fly like regular
aircraft, no hovering and large ground and cloud clearances....so we
recommend this adventure in a reliable fixed wing aircraft.....at a
huge saving. (See Hilo air tour)
The views of the Volcanic vent, glowing skylights in active Lava tubes and the scenery and waterfalls on the way to and from the Volcano is spectacular. Iolani Air is located at the Small Aircraft facility which is a short taxi hop or bike ride, within a mile and a half of Arnott's Lodge.We have negotiated SPECIAL RATES for our guests with savings of up to 25%.
- Iolani's normal rate is $139+ per person
- Arnott's special guest rate is $120 (approx) as one of three passengers....better yet arrange your own three.
- Note that Helicopter rates are now up to $250 !!
- You get the same view in an infinitely safer aircraft at a great price
Please book direct at http://www.iolaniair.com/Hawaii-Air-Tours , scroll down to "Volcano From Hilo" or call 808-329-0018 don't forget to mention "Arnott's" to receive the discount.
Car
Rentals
First word of warning....because of the amount of resident
inter-island travel on weekends DO NOT ASSUME you can breeze into
Hilo and just pick up a car, make this your No.1 priority.....also
if you do find yourself stuck, get creative, many of the local car
renters also rent pickups, dumps and cargo vans.
As with the Airline Industry there is constant competitive
action in the Car and Van rental scene.
As of Jan 2010 we can highly recommend
Advance Auto they have a pickup and
drop-off service as they are half way between us and the Airport and
will also collect you at our Lodge. Advance also has a growing fleet
of 15 passenger vans at reasonable rates for your group or team.
Same goes for
Enterprise Car Rentals who have a
good selection of vehicles and a free shuttle to their off airport
site. Both these companies have been giving great rates and
excellent service to our guests.
Beware of "insurance" for 4x4 vehicles allowed to go up Mauna
Kea....even "full" insurance has high deductibles....be warned. We
have received many complaints against Harper's Car Rentals for lack
of warning on high deductibles and aggressive charges in case of
even minor damages.
Several Car Rental companies have free shuttles, we recommend that
you patronize these companies to save yourself a $15 taxi fare..
Advance,
Enterprise,
Budget,
Hertz,
National and
Thrifty will all pick you up and
drop you off at our Lodge, please use these companies exclusively.
Caution
on renting cars on the Big Island
Due
to our mountainous terrain and narrow roads in some remote
areas, almost all Car rental companies have restrictions
on where their cars may go and remain insured.
Most rental companies ban travel on the Saddle Road Hwy
200/220) which leads to Mauna Kea Mountain 13,796ft 4200m,
(strictly banned). South Point access road is also banned
by most companies due to it being extremely narrow and
the grass sides hiding large rocks.
We actually began our Mauna Kea Tours 15 years ago, in
response to the number of cars our guests wrecked due to
steep 20% grades and thin air. You also must consider that
all commercial tours have oxygen on board whereas if you
violate your rental contract and go up, you may suffer
Oxygen deprivation and pass out, or a family member may
pass out leaving you to drive and tend to them at the same
time. The summit is remote and there are NO SERVICES.
Some rental companies will rent you a 4x4 cleared
for Mauna Kea and you still have the Oxygen problem. Signage
at the Visitor station at 9000ft (2740m), warns against
taking children under 16 up the remainder of the mountain,
and of potentially life threatening consequences to certain
people with medical conditions or weak systems. These companies
have high deductibles even when you take their "full" Loss
damage waiver and we advise caution in renting any 4x4
vehicle.
Some other Rental companies have 4x4s but do not allow
off road or Mauna Kea use. Be sure to be specific when
booking your vehicle and when picking it up, some mainland
reservation centers are not fully aware of local restrictions.
While this is a very large Island with a relatively small
population of 172,000 it has only one belt highway, which
apart from occasional passing lanes, is one lane in each
direction. Allow for average speeds point to point of only
45mph (72kmh). Kona to Hilo for instance at 120 miles (193km),
will take a good three hours without much sightseeing.
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Guests of Arnott's Lodge or Tours and others may freely use pictures or links on this website for non professional purposes.
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