What to expect when chillin’ with the fishies
July 22, 2019
A trip to Oahu would not be complete without some snorkeling at Hanauma Bay. A beautiful and popular “curved bay” (Hawaiian translation of Hanauma) that is located on the southeastern tip of Oahu, is a convenient location to snorkel the reef.
Getting There
The easiest and one of the cheapest options to get to Hanauma Bay is to take public transportation. The #22 bus conveniently travels from Waikiki to the bay in just under an hour for $2.75 one way. This option is very popular and the bus was packed with tourists making their way to Hanauma Bay! This option is also extremely convenient because instead of the bus dropping you off along Kalaniana’ole highway at the top of the bay’s entrance road, the bus will bring you down to the visitors center.
Driving yourself and parking at Hanauma Bay is another option. It only costs $1 per vehicle, but space is limited and fills up very quickly.
Hanauma Bay also offers shuttles to and from select Waikiki hotels to the bay for $7.50. However, you do have to make a reservation.
Price
Visiting Hanauma Bay can be a very inexpensive day trip if planned appropriately. Entrance to the bay is only $7.50, however, if you are a local resident, military, or under 12 years old, the entrance is free.
Renting snorkeling gear and storing your valuables is where the trip can become expensive. A standard snorkeling set runs $20 to rent, and a premium set sets you back $40! How did I get around this? I stopped at Longs Drug (basically CVS) on the way and purchased a youth-sized snorkel set for $5! Can’t beat that! If you plan to do a lot of snorkeling in Hawaii, I recommend bringing or purchasing your own cheap set.
Something I did not get away from paying for was a locker. As a solo traveler, visiting the beach and swimming can be a difficult task when you have no one to watch your valuables while you are in the water. I do not bring many valuables with me to the beach anyway, but it would still be a loss if they were stolen. So I paid $10 to store my backpack in one of their lockers.
Something to note, the lockers are located in the rental hut and controlled by the employees. You can request your items in the locker as many times as you wish, but you have to wait for an employee to retrieve them. You are given a secondary key to keep on a coil wrist band. This way you can take it with you swimming.
For more information about planning your trip to Hanauma Bay State Park, please visit their official website here.
What to expect
When you arrive at Hanauma Bay and after paying entrance, you will be given a ticket with a time for your safety video. All visitors to Hanauma Bay must watch the 9-minute video about the history and safety of the bay. Once your time slot arrives, you will be directed into a large room (standing room only, but long poles are there to lean against) to watch the video. Once the video is complete, you do have the option to sign up for a year-long exemption of the video. If you plan on visiting Hanauma Bay more than once in a year, you can be added to a list that exempts you from having to watch the video again. Once this is completed you can walk down to the bay.
The bay is located down a steep road that you can either walk down or pay for a tram down. The tram costs $1.00 down per person and $1.25 up. The majority of visitors walked down and walked back up, or would walk down then pay for the tram back up. The walk honestly was not too bad, so I opted to walk both ways.
At the base of the road and along the beach is where you will find equipment rentals, lockers, and restrooms. On an important note, there are no food services at the beach. The gift shop and food stands are located at the top of the hill outside of the entrance. Don’t worry, you can have your hand stamped so you can walk in and out of the park. Just make sure you get the stamp! Security is very tight at Hanauma Bay!
The Snorkeling
After stowing my belongings away and having a minor panic attack trying to get used to a snorkel again, I spent hours snorkeling the reef! My favorite thing about the reef is its proximity to the beach. You only have to swim less than 10 feet and you are there. Also, the bay is very shallow so you can almost walk around a lot of it.
Although the shallowness of the bay was great because it made the reef more accessible, it makes it a little difficult to swim around it. At times it was difficult to swim over the coral because it was so close to the top of the water. Because of this, I spent most of my time in the troughs between the reefs. It is very important not to touch the reef as this damages the living organism. It was evident that the reef has suffered because the coral was very blanched.
Another annoyance that made it difficult to explore the reef was the number of people. The beach was packed, and so was the water. Around 3,000 people visit Hanauma Bay each day….that is a lot! Every few minutes I ran into someone or was kicked by someone’s flipper.
But when I was able to get away from the crowds and swim around with the fishies, it was amazing! The water was crystal clear and relatively warm!
Seal of Approval
The highlight of my day at Hanauma Bay was seeing a Monk Seal sleeping on the northside of the beach! Just like the sea turtles the day before, the seal was roped off and guarded by a volunteer.
From the volunteer, I learned that only about 40 Monk Seals are living around Oahu and that there are only 1,400 remaining in the wild. Also, Monk Seals are harmless and not aggressive like the sea lions in the US. Monk Seals often rest on the beach at Hanauma Bay because they enter and exit the bay via channels along the outside of the bay. These channels are coral free, so they can enter and exit without getting scrapped by the coral. I enjoyed watching the lazy seal bask in the sun and learn some interesting facts about them! It is much more fun and memorable to learn about things while traveling versus in a classroom!
My verdict
Is Hanauma Bay the world’s best place to snorkel? No. I have been snorkeling at much prettier reefs. However, I would say it is a great place to bring children and for those just learning to snorkel. Also, the bay is very calm with barely any waves. Many beaches on Oahu are a bit rough to swim in, but not here! All in all, it was a great activity for the day and would recommend it for those looking for something to do on Oahu!
