Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
HONOLULU'S BEST FREE THRILLS
»
Catch sunset from Magic Island at Ala Moana Beach Park (
Click here
)
»
Gaze out to sea atop the Aloha Tower (
Click here
)
»
Peruse downtown's Hawaiʻi State Art Museum (
Click here
)
»
Hike to Manoa Falls (
Click here
) and the Nuʻuanu Valley Lookout
»
Hobnob on First Fridays (
Click here
)
in Chinatown
»
Hear the Royal Hawaiian Band at ʻIolani Palace (
Click here
)
»
Learn to speak Hawaiian and make flower lei at Native Books/Nā Mea Hawaii
(
Click here
)
»
Party at the Honolulu Festival (
Click here
)
or Pan-Pacific Festival (
Click here
)
Beaches
Ala Moana Beach Park
BEACH
(1201 Ala Moana Blvd;
) Opposite the Ala Moana Center shopping mall, this city fave
is fronted by a broad, golden-sand beach nearly a mile long. It's hugely popular, yet big
enough that it never feels too crowded. For swimmers, the deep channel that runs the
length of the beach can be a hazard - it drops off suddenly to overhead depths.
The peninsula jutting from the east side of the park is
Magic Island
. During the school
year, outrigger-canoe teams practice here in the late afternoon. In summer it's a hot surf-
ing spot. Year-round, there's a postcard-worthy sunset walk around the peninsula's peri-
meter, within an anchor's toss of sailboats pulling in and out of neighboring Ala Wai
Yacht Harbor.
The park has full facilities, including ball fields, lighted tennis courts, picnic tables, re-
strooms, outdoor showers and lifeguard towers. City residents come here to go running
after work, play volleyball and have weekend picnics with the
ʻohana
(extended family
and friends). Beach wheelchairs for visitors with mobility issues are loaned out between
9am and 4:30pm daily from the food concession stands; call
768-3033 for informa-
tion. Smoking is now banned at this park.
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