One of our favorite snorkeling experiences in Oahu, Hawaii is at Hanauma Bay. Over 400 species of colorful fish, green sea turtles, and other marine life call this place home. Due to its calm, shallow waters and abundant marine life, Hanauma (“curved bay” in Hawaiian) Bay is hands down the best snorkeling spot in Hawaii, especially for beginners. Because of this, to protect this beautiful marine paradise, Hanauma Bay turned from a beach park where anyone can go to a nature preserve, where you will need a reservation to enter. The nature preserve, once saw at least 6,000 visitors a day, is now limited to about 1400-2000 visitors. This helps protect the reef and marine life from crazy crowds. In this blog, we will go over everything including what to expect and tips on how to get your reservation successfully.
Hanauma Bay is located on the eastern windward side of Oahu, Hawaii, about 30-minute drive from Waikiki, along Kalanianaole Hwy (Highway 72) with minimum traffic. We listed the address below so you can map your way there. There are parking attendants at the turn into Hanauma Bay to keep tabs on how many cars coming and going. If you see the “lot full” sign, come back later. The lot will be open again.
If you don’t have a car, you’ll either need to book a tour or take an Uber or Lyft. No bus route stops here.
Address: 100 Hanauma Bay Rd, Honolulu, HI 96825
Hanauma Bay opens from 6:45 am to 4 pm every day except for Mondays and Tuesdays. The nature preserve closes during these two days to let the marine life and reef take a breather from the crowd. The last time slot for entry is 1:30 pm. There is no entry allowed after that.
Hanauma Bay’s entry is free for Hawai‘i residents with valid photo identification, active military, and kids 12 years or under.
For everyone else, it is $25/person for the park entrance fee. If you pay through the online reservation system, there is also a 2.35% service fee. Unless you’re a Hawai‘i resident, you will need a reservation to enter. Please note that the admission fee for Hanauma Bay is subject to change, so it’s always a good idea to check the park’s website or call (808)-768-6861 for the most up-to-date information.
It costs $3/car to park, $1 for locals. CASH ONLY! There are only 300 parking spots at Hanauma Bay. We recommend picking the earlier or after 12 pm time slots so you can get parking. Having a reservation doesn’t guarantee your parking spot.
We highly recommend getting to Hanauma at least 30-45 minutes earlier than the time on your reservation, just in case you need to find parking and walk to the admission window.
We prefer getting to the bay as early as possible. This way, we can find parking more easily and have plenty of time to spend in this tropical paradise. The beach closes at 3:30 pm so if you come later, there just isn’t enough time to enjoy. We recommend getting your reservation before 9 am.
Hawai‘i residents with valid photo identification can visit without a reservation. Any non-Hawai‘i residents, even when going with a local, still need a reservation or a walk-in ticket.
For non-residents, it is possible to get a walk-in ticket for Hanauma Bay. At this time, there is a limited amount of walk-in access without an online reservation available. This is to accommodate visitors without access to the internet or a computer. However, there is no guarantee. If you’re attempting this, we recommend to be in line at the admission window by 6:45 am or even earlier. Walk-in tickets must be used on the same day and everyone in your party must be present to get a ticket.
Now that we went over all the general info, let’s get to the important part, getting your reservation! Here are some tips we found helpful while making our reservation. But before we start, make sure you bookmark this link below. This is the link you will need to make reservations.
Online reservations for Hanauma Bay can only be made 2 days (48 hours) in advance, starting at 7 am Hawai‘i Standard Time (HST). This means if you want to go on a Thursday, you can’t book your reservation until 7 am on Tuesday.
The first time slot starts at 7 am and the last time slot is at 1:20 pm, with time slots available every 10 minutes.
You can only get a maximum amount of 5 adults and/or 5 kids tickets. This means if you have 7 adults in your group, you will have to make two separate reservations. We had 8 people with us and had to split our reservation (4 at 10am and 4 at noon).
We recommend booking time slots that have more available options (35 tickets instead of 15). You’ll have a better chance at these. The later time slots (noon and after) are also easier to get. However, if you’re aiming for the earlier time, try to go with the time slots such as 8:10 am, or 8:40 am instead of the round number like 8:30 am or 8 am. Most people instinctively go with round numbers.
Your goal is to get to the payment screen on your first try. Otherwise, you’ll lose your reservation and might not be able to get back into the system to pick a different time slot
The online reservation starts at 7 am HST. Make sure you’re ready by 6:59 am SHARP! This is Hawai‘i Standard Time so don’t forget the time differences to where you live. Another important thing: Log into your account beforehand!
As mentioned above, if you can, use a computer or laptop. It is so much faster than a phone. If you only have a phone, try to use multiple devices to book different time slots. As long as you get to the payment page, you’re golden. Once here, you’ll have some time to finalize your reservation and pay.
So the trick is to refresh your page at the right time, not too early, not too late. Right at 7 am. If you refresh too early, it won’t work. If you refresh your page just a second too late, the system will be locked down and won’t proceed further due to a clog in traffic. Now, if the page won’t load, keep refreshing. That was what my sister did. And finally, she was able to get in.
Now that you have your reservation and we got ours, we will show you what to expect when you get to Hanauma Bay
We got to Hanauma Bay with about 40 minutes to spare. Our time slot was at 10 am so we didn’t know if we could find parking or not. After turning off the highway, parking attendants was asking for our reservation confirmation before allowing us into the parking lot. If you don’t have a reservation, tell them that you’re trying to get a walk-in ticket. As long as there are available spaces in the parking lot, they’ll let you in.
Since we visited on a weekday in the off-season, we didn’t have any problem finding parking for the 10 am slot. If you’re here during the weekend, holidays, or busy seasons, you might not be so lucky. After parking, we walked toward the line in front of the entrance. Don’t forget that you’ll need to be in line at the admission window at least 15 minutes before your reservation time.
After waiting for a bit, we were let in toward the admission window. Here, since the reservation was booked under my name, I had to show my photo ID along with the reservation confirmation to get the actual tickets. Once we checked in, we followed everyone in our group into the Marine Education Center for a quick overview of the nature preserve. Then, we had to watch a mandatory 9-minute video about the fragile ecosystem of the bay and how to visit Hanauma Bay responsibly.
By the way, if you forget your reef-safe sunscreen or want some souvenirs, there is a gift shop and a cafe here. Just make sure to get your hand stamped before going to the cafe so you can get back in.
After we finished watching the video, we were released to make our way down to the beach. You can either take the free shuttle or walk down. It is a steep but paved path. We recommend walking down and then taking the shuttle back up later. There are a couple of view points along the walk that give you a wonderful top-down view of Hanauma Bay. By walking, you can stop and take a look. The shuttle drops off near the middle of the bay.
There are restrooms and showers located near the shuttle drop-off. That is where you’ll find an information booth and snorkel rental as well. We brought our own but my mom didn’t have one. So we rented it for her. For $20, it comes with a complete set of snorkel, mask and fins. If you need a wetsuit or life jacket, they are $10 each. They take cards only, no cash! If you need to lock up your valuables, they also rent lockers here.
As for food and drink, we recommend bringing your own. The only cafe or snack bar is located near the entrance, which is quite a way up. The food is also overpriced with not that many options to choose from. You can bring a small cooler with you, no large cooler is allowed.
Now, let’s get to the good stuff, the snorkeling experience! The water here is perfect. It is shallow enough for beginners closer to shore but deep enough further out for those with more experience. My mom, who had very minimal experience in snorkeling, had a great time. The water was so clear that she was able to see plenty of fish without having to go too far. For Dustin and I, we went further out to the reef for more exciting marine life. Dustin was so happy that we saw many Humuhumunukunukuapuaa, the Hawaiian state fish.
It doesn’t matter where you go, there is plenty to see. Usually, the right side of the beach (facing the water) is less crowded than the left side or the middle. So, we tended to go toward that side more.
We spent about 5 hours here because we love snorkeling. However, it depends on you. Most people typically spend about 3 hours at Hanauma Bay.
If you’re looking for other things to do around Hanauma Bay, we recommend hiking the Makapuu Point Lighthouse Trail. It is a paved, easy trail that offers beautiful views of the coastline and the historic lighthouse. If you’re up for some challenge, hike down to the Makapuu Tidepools. For a quick stop, the viewpoint for the Halona Blowhole Lookout is interesting. If you love hiking, check out the Koko Head Trail. For off-the-beaten-path things to do in Oahu, check out our blog. We also have some awesome recommendations for free things to do on North Shore.
Happy Adventuring. Don’t forget to check out the related posts below for more inspiration on your upcoming adventures. While at it, follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube channel! We’ll love you forever!
These are the gear that we personally use and find helpful for this particular adventure. Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
Our favorite biodegradable, eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen!
This is our go-to camera for all of our adventures. It comes with us everywhere!
Compact GoPro pole that extends to 25", perfect to bring on your adventure.
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Hi! We are Dustin & Vy, the proud creators of Live That Adventure. We created this website because we wanted to inspire others to live their lives to the fullest. On here, you’ll find everything from hiking, canyoneering, kayaking, and snorkeling to adventure and travel tips, gear reviews, and bucket list items such as bungee jumping or wing walking. We’ll show you the ropes so you can do them too!
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