Epic Travel → North America → Hawaii → Oahu → Hanauma Bay

Location: Southeast Oahu, Hawaii

Time Required: 3 hours

Red Tape/Notes: Open 6am to 6pm, closed Tuesdays; price is $1 per car to park (although the parking lot fills up early so if you’re arriving later, don’t plan on finding a spot), $7.50 per person to get in. Don’t go 9-10 days after a full moon (due to box jellyfish hazards)

What’s Nearby?: Olomana Ridge, Moanalua Valley to Haiku Stairs, Kaneohe Bay Sunken Island

You want to snorkel at Hanauma Bay, you just don’t want to deal with all the other people who are also going to snorkel there. Because I’m pretty sure everyone who comes to Oahu goes to Hanauma Bay. The way to avoid the massive droves of people is easy – just go early. As in, right when they open. I went once, several years ago, at around 8:00am and it was already pretty crowded (as seen in the pictures here, taken at around 8:30am). I’m wiser now. The last time we went, we were at the gate at 5:56am, the third car in line. When they opened the gates at 6am, we parked right at the entrance, and walked down to the beach. The facilities don’t open until 7am, so if you get there prior to that, it’s free!! We were the first snorkelers in the water and only ran into people when we were on our way out.  Free, fast, and few people?! It was amazing. I recommend this approach. Side note, the water tends to be cloudy and much of the coral has been damaged. But there is generally a good amount of sea life, and the fish are so used to people that you can basically just pretend you’re a fish and swim along with them.

Epic Travel → North America → Hawaii → Oahu → Hanauma Bay