Your Guide to Pearl Harbor

There is a lot to see in do in Oahu, and Pearl Harbor is definitely a main attraction. There are multiple things to see and do when visiting Pearl Harbor, so it is easy to spend an entire day there.

Admission: 
Parking at the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center is FREE, and tickets to the USS Arizona Memorial are FREE, but recreation.gov does charge a $1 reservation fee. Reservations, however, are encouraged and can be made 56 days in advance. Admittance onto the USS Arizona Memorial and access to the two on-site museums are included in your ticket. Audio tours are provided to you during your visit to the site. As you walk around, you will see numbers next to each stop/ item of interest. You will enter that number into your headset, and it will give you details regarding what you are looking at. 

TRAVEL TIP: 
I do recommend arriving to Pearl Harbor early, as it can get busy and there is a lot to see! Our family spent the entire day, from open until closing, touring everything that Pearl Harbor had to offer.

Pearl Harbor is much more than the USS Arizona:
If you would like to dive into more of Pearl Harbor’s History, there are additional attractions to see on property besides just the USS Arizona and the two onsite included museums. Battleship Missouri, USS Bowfin Submarine and the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum are also on site, but are not managed by the National Park Service, so they do include an additional fee. If you purchase tickets to see any of these attractions, you must also still make reservations to see the USS Arizona Memorial. Our family chose to purchase an all-inclusive pass that would allow us unlimited access to all of the additional experiences throughout the day.

Inside of the submarine USS Bowfin – can you imagine cooking inside that kitchen!? Photo Credit: Linsday Obernuefemann

TRAVEL TIP: 
Pearl Harbor gets rain off and on throughout the day, so I do advise you to bring a light weight rain coat with you while visiting the sites.

USS Missouri. Photo Credit: Lindsay Obernuefemann

Staff are on hand and all over the USS Missouri to give you inside information into the ship, it’s history, and point out all sorts of interesting things on the ship. Even in the rain, we learned so much and had a great time! The USS Missouri and the Aviation Museum are both located over the bridge, at Ford Island. A shuttle will transport you to both destinations and return you back to the Visitor Center.

At the Aviation Museum, there are still existing bullet holes from the day Pearl Harbor was bombed. Photo Credit: Lindsay Obernuefemann

Grab a bite to eat:
Pearl Harbor does have some concession stands for quick and easy bites, but we opted to take a break halfway through the day for a bite of lunch. Restaurant 604 is just down the road, and has some great food options. I would recommend calling in and giving them your name when you start to exit Pearl Harbor, because they usually have a wait at lunch time.

The Pancake at Restaurant 604 was HUGE! Photo Credit: Lindsay Obernuefemann

For more Oahu tips, make sure to contact your Whitney World Travel advisor!

Lindsay Obernuefemann, Global Travel Advisor

Lindsay developed a passion for traveling while spending two years living in Paris with her husband and infant son. While living in France, she traveled over much of Europe and developed her love of history and sightseeing. A self-declared foodie, Lindsay loves finding local foodie gems and immersing herself in the cultures she is visiting. Lindsay has also lived in Newfoundland and currently resides in Houston, TX with her husband, two boys and amazing dog Millie. Always looking for an adventure, Lindsay and her family have visited much of the Caribbean, Mexico and the Hawaiian Islands. One of Lindsay’s favorite family vacations is visiting Orlando to enjoy Disneyworld and Universal Studios. Few things make her as happy as sporting mouse ears down Main Street or casting spells in Diagon Alley.Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.