Waikīkī
Waikiki Beach
The famous city beach. Calm water, soft sand, and hotels right behind you.
Why go
Easiest place on the island to swim, rent a board, and learn to surf.
The catch
It is the busiest beach on Oahu and the water is not the clearest. Worth seeing once, but better beaches are 30 minutes away.
- How long
- 2-3 hours
- With children
- Yes
- Effort
- Easy
- Cost
- Free
- Parking
- Difficult
Before you go
- Lifeguard: Daily 8am-6:30pm
Getting there
Driving times on real roads, from the same data the trip planner routes on — not straight-line distance.
| From Waikīkī | 1 min | 0.3 miles |
|---|---|---|
| From HNL airport | 38 min | 16.4 miles |
| From Ala Moana | 6 min | 1.9 miles |
| From Downtown Honolulu | 11 min | 3.6 miles |
Add traffic. These are free-flowing times, and the H1 through town at eight in the morning is not free-flowing.
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.
- Honolulu Zoo2 min awayA small, shady zoo right next to Waikiki.
- Waikīkī Aquarium2 min awayA small aquarium on the Waikiki shore, run by the university, focused on Hawaiian reefs.
- Diamond Head5 min awayWalk up an old volcano and see a huge view over Waikiki.
- Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon6 min awayFive acres of still saltwater behind the Hilton, cut off from the surf entirely.
- KCC Farmers Market6 min awayThe Saturday morning market in the car park below Diamond Head.
- US Army Museum of Hawaii6 min awayA coastal artillery battery on Waikiki beach, now a museum, with the concrete left as it was.