点评:This has been an experience that I have wanted for a very long time, so when I go the chance I booked it! I used to live in NYC but now in south Texas, but seeing the city from the sky would be a whole different way to see it.
I paid extra for a guaranteed window seat, as I am a photographer and wanted a clear view, however I will come other that later in my review.
After making and paying for my reservation (and it's not that cheap with the add-ons) I received my email with instructions. One of them was to arrive 1 hour and 15 minutes before my scheduled flight time.
I thought I had left my hotel in good time, about two and a half hours prior, but good old NJ Path train had other ideas and we sat on the track for a good while.
I called the number on my reservation just to let them know that I would be 5-10 minutes late, and I was met by a very unsympathetic young man on the phone, who told me that once I get there they will assess late charges! For 5-10 minutes? I found him quite rude and probably he did not represent the company the way they wish?
He then put the phone down and that was that. Not really great customer service over the phone.
I did arrive about 6 minutes late, and was told that would not be a problem. The young lady at the desk told me, 'it's not a big deal', and was somewhat surprised I was told there would be late charges for a few minutes.
She lead me to a conference room to watch a safety video, pretty obvious stuff, but it needs to be watched. After that I was taken to the back room to stow my bag in a locker and then I had the harness strapped on to me. The entire facility was top notch, so to speak, very light and modern, and most of all relaxing. So if you are a nervous flyer their space is just for you.
A very jovial gentleman then drive myself and four other passenger the short 2 minute journey to the airfield, where we met by Evan and he took us to the helicopter. Evan was super nice. He is a credit to the company.
I was sat in the co-pilot seat, and my fellow passengers behind me.
The fact that everyone had a 'window seat' ticked me off as I did not need to pay the extra up charge. And even if it was full, meaning two middle seats in the back, there was ample viewing.
Evan started the clock, fired up the engine, stabilized all what needed to be done and we took off. At about 500ft up, he said that I could swing my feet out of the helicopter, he told me not too worry, I was securely strapped in, and from then on my camera was firing away. At times I purposely stopped shooting, put the camera down and take it all in. By the way, it's breathtaking!
Flying over Jersey City, Statue of Liberty, Lower Manhattan, up the East river to take in all of Manhattan was just amazing. Evan gave us some point of interests on where we were but for the most part he let us enjoy the flight.
I did pay for an extra time flight of 30 minutes versus the normal 16 minute flight. However I did not notice on the website any description stating that the clock starts as soon as the engine does so in fact I think the flight was about 22-23 minutes. Again, paid for the extra time and did not get it all in the air.
Over all, it was a great experience and I would definitely be a returning customer.
翻译:这一直是我渴望已久的体验,所以一有机会我就立刻预订了!我以前住在纽约市,现在则住在德克萨斯州南部,不过从空中俯瞰这座城市肯定会是另一种截然不同的体验。
因为我是一名摄影师,希望能有清晰的视野,所以我又额外付费以确保能坐到靠窗的座位。不过关于这一点,我会在后续的评价中详细说明。
完成预订并付款后(加上各种附加费用,价格可不便宜),我就收到了包含相关说明的邮件。其中一班火车本应在我预定航班起飞前1小时15分钟抵达。
我原以为自己提前两个半小时离开酒店已经足够早了,但可恶的NJ Path列车却不听使唤,我们在铁轨上停滞了好一会儿。
我拨打了预订时留下的电话,只是想告知他们我会迟到5到10分钟。接电话的是个冷酷无情的年轻男子,他告诉我:等我到了之后,他们会收取迟到费用!就5到10分钟而已?我觉得他相当无礼,或许他并没有按照公司的期望来行事吧?
之后他就挂断了电话,事情就此结束。电话服务实在不怎么样。
我确实迟到了大约6分钟,但对方告诉我这不成问题。前台的年轻女士对我说:“没什么大不了的”,而对于我被告知迟到几分钟也会产生费用这一情况,她显得有些惊讶。
接着她带我进入会议室观看安全宣传视频。这些都是显而易见的事情,但还是需要留意。之后,我被带到里间的房间把包放进储物柜,接着有人给我系上安全带。可以说,整个设施堪称一流:环境明亮、现代,最重要的是让人感到放松。所以,如果你是个容易紧张的飞行员,这里绝对适合你。
随后,一位非常开朗的男士驾车载着我和其他四位乘客,进行了短短两分钟的行程便抵达了机场。在那里我们见到了埃文,他带我们走向直升机。Evan人非常好,他真是公司的骄傲。
我坐在副驾驶座位上,其他乘客则坐在我身后。
所有人都获得了“靠窗座位”,这让我有些不爽,因为我本没必要支付额外的费用。不过即便后排坐满了人,只剩两个中间座位,视野依然很好。
Evan启动了计时器,启动引擎并完成了所有必要的操作,随后我们便起飞了。在上升到约500英尺的高度时,他告诉我可以把脚从直升机里伸出去。他叫我别担心,说我已经被牢牢固定好了。从那之后,我的相机便开始不停拍摄。有时我会故意停下拍摄,放下相机,好好欣赏眼前的景色。说真的,这景色简直美得令人窒息!
从泽西市上空飞过,经过自由女神像、下曼哈顿区,再沿着东河欣赏整个曼哈顿的景致,真是太棒了。埃文给我们介绍了沿途的一些名胜景点,但大多数时间他都让我们尽情享受这次飞行体验。我确实支付了额外费用,以享受比常规的16分钟飞行时长多出30分钟的飞行服务。不过我在网站上并未看到任何说明,表明计时是从引擎启动时就开始的;实际上我觉得那次飞行时长大概只有22到23分钟。我付了钱想要获得更长的飞行时间,结果却未能如愿。
总的来说,这是一次很棒的体验,我绝对会再来的。