Honolulu, on the south bank of the island of Ohio, is the capital of Hawaii and a gateway to the US island chain.
Honolulu, on the south bank of the island of Ohio, is the capital of Hawaii and a gateway to the US island chain. The Waikiki neighborhood is a hub for food, nightlife, and shopping, renowned for its iconic crescent beach backed by palm trees and high-rise hotels, with Diamond Head volcanic crater within reach.
1. Diamond Head
Diamond Head is a volcanic tuff cone on the Hawaiian island of Oʻahu and known to Hawaiians as Lēʻahi. The Hawaiian name is most likely derived from lae plus ʻahi because the shape of the ridgeline resembles the shape of a tuna’s dorsal fin. Its English name was given by British sailors in the 19th century, who mistook calcite crystals on the adjacent beach for diamonds.
2. Hanauma Bay
Hanauma is a marine embayment formed within a tuff ring and located along the southeast coast of the island of Oʻahu in the Hawaii Kai neighborhood of East Honolulu, in the Hawaiian Islands. Hanauma is one of the most popular tourist destinations on the Island and has suffered somewhat from overuse. At one time, this popular tourist destination accommodated over three million visitors per year. In 1956, dynamite was used to clear portions of the reef to make room for telephone cables linking Hawaii to the west coast of the US.
3. Magic Island
Magic Island is a small man-made peninsula in Honolulu, Hawaii, adjacent to Ala Moana Beach Park and the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor. It was created in 1964 as the site of a resort complex but was subsequently converted to a park. The name was changed to “Aina Moana,” but the new name is used infrequently. The park on Magic Island is a popular spot where people gather for picnics, frisbee, socializing, and an occasional festival or drama performances.
4. Honolulu Zoo
The Honolulu Zoo is a 42-acre zoo in Queen Kapiʻolani Park in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, US. It is the only zoo in the United States to be established by grants made by a sovereign monarch and is built on part of the 300-acre royal Queen Kapiʻolani Park. The Honolulu Zoo features over 1,230 animals in specially designed habitats. Over 601,510 people visit the zoo annually.
5. Pearl Harbor National Memorial
The memorial, built in 1962, has been visited by more than two million people annually. Accessible only by boat, it straddles the sunken hull of the battleship without touching it. Historical information about the attack, shuttle boats to and from the memorial, and general visitor services are available at the associated USS Arizona Memorial Visitor Center, which opened in 1980 and is operated by the National Park Service. The battleship’s sunken remains were declared a National Historic Landmark on May 5, 1989.