IS IT WORTH IT? Hanauma Bay Snorkeling // Review of Hawaii's Best Snorkel Spot

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Boy you bring back memories. In 1977 I did a bike tour of the islands and spent time here. It was a holiday weekend and the place was mobbed. The ranger and his fam who lived down there sort of adopted me were really nice and he allowed me to camp down at the end even though it really wasn't permitted. I stayed 3 nights. Tourists by day, empty at dark. Head in the water. Truly a magical place then.

We visited Hanauma Bay in 1985 and boy have things changed. No fees back then, we also drove to it. The water was clear and fish were everywhere and scared the wife to death. I also was one of the few people who was able to jump in and enjoy the "Toilet Bowl", just around the end of Hanauma Bay, before they closed it to the public. It was scary at times, what a rush, memories.

Glad you were able to turn the day from a Hanauma Bay bust into a Leonard's Malasadas win!

We had a similar experience in Hawaii but we didn't snorkel while we were at Hanauma Bay - we did go to Leonard's after for some delicious malasadas!

That is a good question “Is it worth it”. With the new reservation system of trying to get tickets to Hanauma Bay @$25 each , then you have to get there. No tour company’s can take you , like I did in 2018 - that’s all gone. The Beach Bus #20 is permanently discontinued which used to dropped you off at Hanauma Bay. Your choices are to hired a car , more expensive $$ and hope to get a parking spot or get a Uber/Lyth $$ or TheBus to HawaiiKai then walk for about 30/35 mins up the hill to get there. With these expenses , it becomes an expensive visit to Hanauma Bay.

Love the new graphics! Your videos are so good you make me want to visit places in which I had no interest. 🤪

Y’all went on a bad day. I went a couple months ago and it was some of the best snorkeling I’ve done. Visibility got better for me as the day went on too

7:13 is best view and gets right to the point.

I grew up near Hanauma (Ha-na-u-ma). You just hit it on a bad day. We took our son there when he was 3 and he was able to stand in the water and feed the fish. The were plentiful and swarming. My husband use to skin dive and snorkel there quite frequently and the views were spectacular. We haven't lived there since 1973, but have gone back to Honolulu to visit my parents frequently until they passed. We'd often go there when we were dating in high school, and yes we walked up and down that hill. We were much younger then and are in our 70s now. Sorry you had su ch a bad experience.

I was in Oahu couple weeks ago. Had reservations for 1:30 . Was denied access to park at the gate . They didnt care that i had reservations. I found a parking spot at a nearby park/school and walked up. Attempted to enter and the security guard up front said "Parks closed " this was at 1:27 . I said are you joking? No reply, so i took a few more steps then one them stood up and yelled "Parks closed!!" Probably the rudest person ive dealt with in a long time. I said "ok, who do i talk to about that reservations refund? Ignored me again. I walked off furious after my girlfriend grabbed me because she saw how i was responding. It was a terrible experience. Ended up driving up to the north shore to sharks cove, which turned out to be just fine. Enjoyed some garlic shrimp afterwards. Its my fault for not taking parking into consideration and i accept that. To those who read this, make sure you either get there early to park or have a ride share drop you off....

Awe it was clearer when I went during the time my family lived there back in 1995-1999. I still want to go back though

I was at Hanauma Bay in the late '70s. Back then you just parked and walked in like any other beach. No admission, no lines.

It's definitely worth it

I went pre pandemic. Morning was definitely better, I remember the afternoon waves got a lot worse. There are definitely fewer people, the beach was more comparable to Waikiki when I was there.

Ok, been reading up on this. My understanding is that if you go after say, noon, you may get in as a stand by so to say, since folks have left.

It's unfortunate to get there and only see murky water. I had the same experience at Kaneohe Bay. But when I visited Hanauma Bay, it was all clear.

You have to get there earlier (when the park opens) before all the guests start swimmIng and kicking up the sand which limits visibility. After 10:00am isnt ideal for clear snorkeling.

What's an uber cost from Waikiki and do they drop you in the parking lot? Shame the bus doesn't go there anymore...

I’m curious how the parking was for your reservation time. It seems like a mad rush to get parking and walk-in tickets in the morning and was it difficult to find parking for noon time?