Hanauma bay snorkel: 1. Book early: booking opens 48 h ahead. Be ready to go to website and book exactly at that time. There are like 400 total spots around 30-40 every 10-15 min and they go fast. $25 2. Come early. For my 7:10 booking I was there 6:30 3. Earlier you come less the rush and more the fish 4. Parking for 300 spots opens 6:45 and line forms around 6:30 am and they go fast 5. $3 cash for parking 6. Leave extra time to adjust to their “rules” and system 7. So first you park, then you show your ID and confirmation email to check in. Then you hear verbal instructions for 10 min, then watch video 10 min then take tram down to beach. All good is upstairs. All rentals and showed are downstairs 8. Most people need 60-90 minutes then you are exhausted. You can take a break and relax on beach and go again or call it a day. 9. The water is pretty clear though not the clearest I’ve seen; I’m part it depends on the tides. It’s not perfectly calm but decent. 10. There are plenty of fish but not as great as some of the so called “best” snorkeling places. 11. You don’t really need tour companies unless you don’t want the hassle of booking yourself and driving and parking.

A wonderful day of swimming, snorkeling and watching nature. Monk seal came on beach and the biologist was very good at explaining the monk seal’s place in the local ecosystem. Adults and children were enthralled by the explanations.

Came here 21 year ago and it's sad to see the difference. Still a pretty good spot to see wildlife but it's clear that tourists have been stomping all over the reef. Park should consider kicking people out if they stand on the reef or obviously don't have the swimming ability. This morning, I witnessed a woman barrel through coral, breaking chunks off while aggressively kicking it to try to stand. If you can't swim, don't. The park should also check to see if the visitors actually speak English before showing the video. Half the room didn't, wasn't paying attention, and promptly began destroying the reef within minutes of getting in the water. Unbelievable. Also they were fishing... Seriously? The welcome video should also clearly call out what a reef looks like (maybe they think it's rock?) The video is too cute, maybe show some sliced up legs and feet from standing on reef? In my opinion, the price of admission should be raised to fund more strict enforcement to protect the reef.

I found the snorkeling at Hanauma Bay to be excellent with hundreds of fish seen. However, the coral has suffered over the years from all the visitors to the bay and needs to be better protected and it does remain worrisome whether this will remain a good snorkeling spot in the future. In an attempt to limit the number of visitors, there is a rather complicated reservation system in place. You must go to the Honolulu Parks and Recreation website and reserve an entry time between 6:45am and 1:30pm. These spots become available only 2 days in advance at 7am local time and they are usually gone within 5 minutes. I would suggest practicing on the site in advance until you are comfortable with how the process works. The Nature Preserve is also closed every Mon and Tuesday. $25 entry but you can stay as long as you want after entering until closing at 4pm. Parking ($3) can be challenging, and you are not guaranteed a spot even if you have a reservation. For this reason, reservations early in the day are best. There are lockers for rent to keep your cellphone, wallet and other valuables. You can also rent snorkeling equipment, but I like bringing my own gear including an inflatable snorkel vest being not a good swimmer. If this your first trip to Oahu, I think this is a must do experience, but it does require advanced planning.

This is an experience you won't want to miss. Yet, after a few failed attempts, I finally was able to get a reservation. The key is having the reservation site loaded ahead of time and refresh right at the time. It may take a few days to finally get one!

This is a nice place for families to go. The water is a bit murky and not a lot of fish and no good coral unless you go out beyond the buoys. I don't recommend that unless you are a great swimmer with good fins. The current coming back in was dicey. Make sure you make your reservation at 7am 2 days before you go. The slots fill up fast. We've been here at least 4 times.

We went early in the morning with a reservation for a truly spectacular snorkeling experience. I hadn't been snorkeling at Hanauma in many years and it was as beautiful as ever, maybe more so as the early morning meant we had it mostly to ourselves. I highly, highly recommend this.

Great time, lots of different species of fish. Didn’t see any turtles. Had to wait a bit in line but was able to get in earlier than our reservation because there was space available. Overall nice clean area. The water started to get a bit choppier later in the day, water is quite shallow, so nice easy snorkel.

We tried for two days to get reservations right at 7:00 am when tickets dropped but could never get the website to load unfortunately. Demand is high! There are walk in tickets available for every time slot, not many though. We arrived at Hanauma Bay at 6:30 am and waited in our car, outside the park on the road, to enter at 6:45 am. You will see all the white tour vans sitting out on the road waiting as well. There is someone sitting on a bench with a blue umbrella, that person hands out walk in tickets (you still need to pay at the window when your reservation time arrives). Six of us were able to get walk in tickets for 8:00 am thankfully. Love the snorkeling and saw many different types of fish. Staff are all very helpful. The tram up and down the hill is very handy. Food is expensive, but choices are limited. Highly recommend for a great beach day!

Amazing. A really beautiful place to snorkel and experience marine life how it's meant to be and not in captivity. Calm, crystal clear waters, suitable for kids too. Even if you just stand in knee hight you will experience an amazing array of fish. All snorkelling equipment is available to hire, including life jackets at a reasonable price. There is car parking, but we got an Uber, so I'm unsure of the price.