oahubound

the Windward side

Pali Lookout

The gap in the Koolau range where the wind comes through, looking down over the windward coast.

Pali Lookout

Why go

It is the clearest view of how this island is actually put together: a thousand-foot green wall with Kaneohe laid out at the bottom of it.

The catch

The wind is not a figure of speech. It will take a hat, a car door and a phone. It also clouds in completely, and there is no view at all on a bad day.

How long
20-30 min
With children
Yes
Effort
Easy
Cost
Parking fee for out-of-state cars
Parking
Easy

A stop on the way to the windward sideMornings, before the cloud comes down

Before you go

  • Not worth it in poor weather
  • Busiest in the middle of the day
  • Exposed and genuinely windy

Getting there

Driving times on real roads, from the same data the trip planner routes on — not straight-line distance.

From Waikīkī27 min13.6 miles
From HNL airport44 min22.5 miles
From Kailua11 min5.3 miles
From Downtown Honolulu21 min10.2 miles

Add traffic. These are free-flowing times, and the H1 through town at eight in the morning is not free-flowing.

More on Pali Lookout: OpenStreetMap

Hours, fees and access rules have not been checked against a primary source for this entry yet. Confirm before you build a day around it.

See it on the map Build a trip around it

What else is close

Nearest by road, which is not the same as nearest on a map — and not the same as sharing a region either.

  • Likeke Falls8 min awayA wide, low fall over mossy rock, reached by a short walk off the old Pali road.
  • Queen Emma Summer Palace8 min awayThe small wooden retreat in Nuuanu that Queen Emma used to escape the heat of town.
  • Kapena Falls9 min awayA small fall and pool in Nuuanu, five minutes from the car and ten from downtown.
  • Mauna Ala, the Royal Mausoleum9 min awayThe burial place of the Kamehameha and Kalakaua royal families, in a small walled ground in Nuuanu.
  • Lili‘uokalani Botanical Garden11 min awayA small garden of native Hawaiian plants on land the Queen left to the city.
  • Foster Botanical Garden12 min awayThe oldest garden on the island, in the middle of downtown, full of trees nothing else here has.