Most of the hikes on Oahu are a bit off the beaten path, but Diamond Head hike is not. It’s located in Honolulu, and it looks out over the resorts and the downtown area.
You drive up and pay $5 per car to park. You’ll get a ticket to put on your dashboard and a map of the park.
At the entrance, there are bathrooms, a gift shop, and a pineapple stand (where you can get those fancy drinks in pineapples that everyone always has pictures of.)
Then, you start up the trail. It’s a brutal hike in the summer because it’s very steep and crowded. However, it’s not as difficult in the winter. I still recommend bringing water and sunscreen, though.
The trail wraps up along the wall of the crater, and takes you through a very narrow tunnel.
At a lookout halfway up, you can choose to continue back into the tunnel and do a spiral staircase to the top, or take metal stairs that are outside.
I recommend the metal stairs because being crammed into dark and narrow tunnels with lots of people isn’t my idea of a good time.
From the top, you can see Diamond head lighthouse directly below, as well as Honolulu on one side and Koko head on the other side.
The sweeping views are pretty amazing for what is a fairly short hike. I did it at sunrise, and it only took me about half an hour.
In spite of the crowds, it’s a nice little hike. I recommend everyone do it once.
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