Oahu travel guide & photo tour

our guide

The vibe

Most people know the island of Oahu for the state capital, Honolulu, home to the famous Waikiki Beach district. This storied piece of real estate, a miles-long, white-sand strand lined with high-rise hotels, is hands-down the premier urban beach resort on the planet.

Waikiki draws tourists from all over the globe, seducing them with water sports (sailing, standup paddle-boarding, outrigger canoe rides, beginner surf lessons), hula shows, fine and casual dining, umbrella drinks and shop-till-you-drop temptations at every turn. And that's not to mention the endless entertainment that people-watching provides. So captivating (and surprisingly diverse) is Waikiki that many visitors, especially those on a tight schedule, see no reason to leave.

 

Beyond Waikiki, however, lies an entirely different place. Lush, crenelated mountains form a beckoning backdrop to congested Honolulu,  and a drive around the island will fill a day with heart-stopping scenery, fascinating historic sites, quintessential surfer towns, shave-ice stands, shrimp and plate-lunch trucks — and, if you time it right, a chance to watch big-wave surfers tackling the giants at Banzai Pipeline and other legendary breaks on the North Shore.

The top excursion for cruise passengers, however, is much more somber in nature.  The USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor straddles the hull of the first battleship sunk by Japanese war planes on Dec. 7, 1941, prompting  the United States to enter World War II. Included on many tours organized for cruise passengers is the adjacent Battleship Missouri,  or "Mighty Mo," where the surrender that ended the war on Sept. 2, 1945, was signed. 

Super family fun

For families in search of a curated but more lighthearted (if pricey) experience, Oahu delivers in the form of Sea Life Park, a 22-acre, marine-themed attraction at Haunama Bay that offers, among other activities, a chef's luau, swimming with dolphins or swimming with four native species of sharks separated from humans by a wire-mesh fence. The Polynesian Cultural Center, a kind of educational theme park composed of "villages" depicting the cultures of seven Polynesian island groups, is another family favorite.

Top reasons to go

  • Spectacular scenery.
  • Snorkeling Hanauma Bay's rich coral reef.
  • Otherworldly jellies at Waikiki Aquarium in Kapiolani Park near Waikiki Beach. The nearby Honolulu Zoo is another great family attraction.
  • Waimea Valley Audubon Center is a nature preserve home to endangered moorhens (or marsh hens) and a botanical garden with lots of cool-looking plants.
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Janet Fullwood
Janet Fullwood is an editor, writer and photographer-at-large specializing in travel and hospitality topics.

Overheard

“Oahu is one-stop Hawaii — all the allure of the Islands in a chop-suey mix that has you kayaking around offshore islets by day and sitting in a jazz club 'round midnight.”

Fodor's

“DO come surf in summer, when the swell is mellow and long-breaking. Even I could do it, explaining why this is surfing's birthplace.”

Islands magazine

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