Historical Honolulu: Downtown Driving Tour from Pearl Harbor to Tantalus Lookout
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About the Tour
About the Tour
Take in Honolulu’s history and sights on a three-and-a-half mile driving tour that begins outside the Pearl Harbor National Memorial. It’s a must-visit site that’s home to the USS Arizona Memorial, the USS Missouri battleship known as Mighty Mo, the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum and the USS Bowfin Submarine Museum. As we leave Pearl Harbor and make our way through Downtown Honolulu and the mountains above it, I’ll show you some sites that most visitors don’t find on a traditional city tour, including Punchbowl Cemetery, a military burial site often called the Arlington of the Pacific. There you‘ll hear stories about World War II Heros and the Honolulu Memorial. Unlike on a traditional tour, you can even stop and pay your respects on foot.
From there you’ll learn about Hawaiian warriors and royalty as we head past the Queen Emma Summer Palace on our way to the Nu‘uanu Pali Lookout at Koʻolau Mountain. We’ll then tour Downtown Honolulu where I’ll tell you the history of the Hawaiian Kingdom, and even some fun television trivia. While traveling around the city, you’ll have the opportunity to see the Iolani Palace and the Kamehameha Statue where our Historical Honolulu Walking Tour conveniently starts. Throughout the day, you’ll have opportunities to indulge in some retail therapy or a tasty meal. And if you take the tour on a Wednesday, Saturday, or Sunday, you’ll be able to enjoy the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet, Hawaii's biggest open air flea market. We’ll make plenty of recommendations on our way to Tantalus Lookout in Puu Ualakaa State Park. A local favorite is the uniquely named Itchy Butt Chicken, a mountain-top eatery that was featured in Elvis Presley’s Blue Hawaii, which offers absolutely gorgeous views at sunset.
Set aside at least two hours for this drive but, if you’re planning on touring Queen Emmaʻs Summer Palace, Iolani Palace, or taking the Downtown Historical Walking Audio Tour, then add another 2.5 hours to get the most out of the experience. Don’t forget to plan time for lunch, and make sure to check out the hours of operations and make any reservations in advance.
Kapena shows you around his neighborhood on this historical excursion. In fact, you actually drive right by his house next to Queen Emmaʻs Summer Palace. Born and raised on O’ahu, Kap (as his friends call him) is a professional tour guide and entertainer.
Donʻt forget about the free and fun scavenger hunts and quizzes that accompany every tour. There are Easy(ish) 10 Question versions and Hard(er) 25 Question extras to enjoy. Now you donʻt have to worry about pulling the kids off their phones to enjoy the day!
Tour Producer
Tour Producer
Audio Tour Hawai'i : AT.Hi
Audio Tour Hawaiʻi, or AT.Hi for short is presented by Haliʻa Private Tours, a 5 Star Hawaii private tour company. The goal is to provide accurate information from reliable sources while bringing professional tour guides' fun and local insight.
Audio Tour Hawaiʻi helps ensure you enjoy your vacation to the islands and stay safe and respectful. AT.Hi includes favorite spots from traditional sightseeing tours with spots you can only access via rental car.
You are sure to love exploring the islands with GPS, VoiceMap, and Audio Tour Hawaii or AT.Hi as your guides. Who knows, you may even want to do a private tour as well.
Preview Location
Preview Location
Location 59
Chief/Girlfriend Pali Story
View locations and route
How VoiceMap Works
Major Landmarks
Major Landmarks
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Itchy Butt Chicken
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Tantalus Scenic Lookout
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Pearl Harbor National War Memorial
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Aloha Stadium
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NEX
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Nicoʻs Pier 38
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Punchbowl National Cemetery
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Queen Emma Summer Palace
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Nuuanu Pali Lookout
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Kamehameha Statue
Getting There
Getting There
Route Overview
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Start location1 Arizona Memorial Pl, Honolulu, HI 96818, USA
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Total distance49km
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Final location2357-2777 Round Top Dr, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
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Distance back to start location13km
Directions to Starting Point
Pearl Harbor Visitor Center: 1 Arizona Memorial Pl, Honolulu, HI 96818
Once you turn onto Arizona Memorial Place you make a right at the stop sign at the bottom of the hill. The first parking lot is nearly always full, for that reason, we have placed the GPS trigger in the second and third parking areas. The story by Audio Tour Hawaiʻi is designed for after your visit to the Memorial. Make sure the first story has played completely before exiting the parking lot.
Show Directions
Tips
Tips
Places to stop along the way
- Pearl Harbor Attractions (Reservations/Tickets Not Included) : Arizona Memorial, Battleship Missouri, Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, Bowfin Submarine
- Shopping Options : Pearl Harbor Memorial Gift Shops, Aloha Stadium Swap Meet (Wed, Sat, Sun), NEX (Military ID), Palace Gift Shops
- Food Options : Aloha Stadium (Wed, Sat, Sun), NEX, Big Kahuna Pizza, Nicoʻs Pier 38, Itchy Butt Chicken
- Historical Options: ʻIolani Palace, Queen Emma Summer Palace, Punchbowl, National Cemetery, Downtown Honolulu Walking Audio Tour
- Scenic Lookout Options: Nuuanu Pali Scenic Lookout, Tantalus Scenic Lookout Finale (Sunset HIGHLY Recommended)
Pearl Harbor National Memorial includes the Arizona Memorial, Battleship Missouri, Aviation Museum, and Bowfin Submarine. Each attraction has itʻs own admission and hours. The Arizona Memorial is the most popular and tickets should be booked in advance.
The NEX, Nicoʻs at Pier 38, and Itchy Butt Chicken all have specific hours and prices. The NEX and Nicoʻs have restrooms. Itchy Butt is takeout only and does not.
ʻIolani and the Queen Emma Summer Palace offer tours that should be booked in advance. We also offer a Downtown Historical Walking Tour which is a perfect addition to this tour.
While we highlight restrooms and parking areas along the way, they may be closed for a variety of reasons like power outages or inclement weather. Please check local weather sources before beginning your tour.
Parking and traffic in Downtown Honolulu can be frustrating. Please be patient, courteous, as well as follow and read any and all signage. However, a good way to avoid busy parking lots is taking this tour on a weekend. Downtown is virtually empty and you can visit the Swap Meet, which is open Wednesday morning too.
Best time of day
The Arizona Memorial is always best to visit in the morning, but afternoon tickets are often easier to get. The Pearl Harbor National Memorial also hosts the Battleship Missouri, Aviation Museum, and Bowfin Submarine. After visiting Pearl Harbor, begin the GPS-guided audio tour of Downtown Honolulu that typically accompanies a traditional sightseeing tour. For guests that want to end their tour watching a sunset, that happens at about 6 pm in the winter and about 7 pm in the summertime.
You want to be heading out of Downtown up the mountain to the last stop about an hour prior to that, if not a little earlier. No matter what, to avoid traffic during the tour, you are going to want to leave Pearl Harbor by about 2 pm on the weekdays. However, if you can, we recommend visiting Pearl Harbor on a Wednesday, or better yet, Saturday or Sunday. That way you can visit the Aloha Stadium Swap Meet as well, youʻll want to save about an hour and a half for that.
Precautions
Traffic can be brutal in Downtown Honolulu and the surrounding areas on weekday afternoons so we recommend beginning the tour by 2 pm if you want to avoid that. We designed the route to reduce turns, lane changes, and highway merges but please use caution, especially in high traffic areas.
This tour DOES NOT include tickets or narration inside of the Memorial, the National Park Service, and attractions have site-specific audio tours you can enjoy.
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