Honolulu and Waikīkī

Waikīkī was a marshland with a royal retreat before it became a wall of hotels, and it remains the most famous beach in the Pacific for a reason: gentle rolling surf breaking a long way out, which makes it the best place anywhere to learn to stand on a board, in the place where Duke Kahanamoku carried surfing back into the wider world in the early twentieth century. Behind the beach is a dense resort strip; above it rises Lēʻahi, better known as Diamond Head, an extinct tuff cone whose crater rim is climbed by a stepped trail for the view back over the city. Beyond, Oʻahu offers rainforest valleys, the Nuʻuanu Pali lookout with its ferocious updraft, and the north shore's enormous winter waves.

What you actually see

• Learning to surf - the long gentle break that made Waikīkī famous.
• Diamond Head - the crater rim trail and the view over the city and coast.
• The Nuʻuanu Pali lookout - the cliff viewpoint and its permanent gale.
• The north shore in winter - some of the biggest rideable surf anywhere, an hour away.

When to go

Year-round; April to October is drier and calmer on the south shore, while the north shore's giant surf runs from November to February. Whales pass between December and April. Waikīkī is busy all year, with peaks around the winter holidays and summer.

Honest expectations

Waikīkī is a dense resort strip and not remotely a quiet tropical beach; those looking for that should base elsewhere on the island or another island entirely. Prices for food and accommodation are high, and parking is expensive and scarce. Reef-safe sunscreen is required by law. The north shore in winter is for expert surfers only and drownings occur.

Nearby

The north shore and Hale'iwa are an hour away; the other Hawaiian islands are short flights.