Oahu Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor in Honolulu is one of the most famous harbors in the world and the most popular Oahu attraction. This is due to Pearl Harbor being the site of the USS Arizona Memorial. More than 1.5 million people visited the USS Arizona Memorial last year, paying tribute to the 1,177 crew members who lost their lives December 7, 1941.

Pearl Harbor tours are available that take visitors to the USS Arizona Memorial and the nearby "Mighty Mo" Battleship Missouri, USS Bowfin Submarine Museum & Park, and Pacific Aviation Museum.

Some of the Pearl Harbor memorial tours include visiting the Battleship Memorial, the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl Crater (located in the verdant hills above Honolulu), and of course the USS Arizona Memorial.

Pearl Harbor tours range greatly in their offerings. Most Pearl Harbor tours, as the memorial tours, feature the USS Arizona Memorial. Some take visitors behind the scenes to Pearl Harbor's three military bases. The Pearl Harbor Duck Tour takes you on a WW II amphibious vehicle by land to Pearl Harbor, and then drives you straight into the ocean for a view of the Honolulu coastline. 

Tours of the USS Arizona Memorial allow visitors to experience history through the national memorial's program tour, museum, and wayside exhibits. The first stop on the USS Arizona Memorial Tour is the Visitor Center with its shoreline exhibits including the museum and Remembrance Circle. The guided tour of the USS Arizona Memorial then begins with a 23-minute documentary film depicting the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The film is followed by a short Pearl Harbor boat trip to the USS Arizona Memorial. When the USS Arizona sank, it held 1.4 million gallons of fuel; over 60 years later, approximately two quarts a day continues to surface from the ship. Pearl Harbor Survivors refer to the oil droplets as “black tears.”
 
The story of Pearl Harbor is well alive in the memories of those who witnessed the attack, and there are Pearl Harbor survivors who volunteer at the USS Arizona Memorial, telling their stories to the visitors and providing a living history
of the Pearl Harbor attack.

After visitors return to land they can take time visiting the exhibits. While viewing the exhibits visitors who rent headphones can listen to a one-hour audio tour in which Pearl Harbor survivors recall the events of December 7, 1941. This riveting narration is led by Ernest Borgnine, an Academy Award winning actor and US Navy WWII veteran. 

When Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japanese Fleet, catapulting the United Sates into World War ll, Hawaii was a U.S. territory. Many Hawaiians, as well as Japanese living in Hawaii, fought side-by-side as Americans. The National Park Service has operated the USS Arizona Memorial since 1980, under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Navy.

Tickets to the USS Arizona Memorial are distrubited on a first come first serve basis. The Memorial receives over 4,000 visitors a day, except for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day, the only three days it is closed. This can sometimes translate into standing in line for hours and missing opportunities to enjoy the rest of Oahu while on your vacation. Taking a guided tour to the Memorial eliminates the chance of not getting in, decreases your wait time and affords you the opportunity to see and experience more.

There is no minimum age requirement at the Memorial. Out of respect there are some restrictions on what can be worn on Pearl Harbor tours. For example, those wearing profane T-shirts will not be admitted. Also for security reasons, certain items, such as handbags, fanny packs and backpacks are not allowed. Your tour guide will give you details so that you are assured admission.

Dress for warm weather. In Honolulu, home to Pearl Harbor, daytime temperatures average in the upper-80s (°F) in the summer to around 80°F in the winter. Trade winds keep everyone comfortable, and nighttime temperatures can be about 10 degrees cooler. Pearl Harbor is located on the south shore of Oahu where it is typically sunny year-round.

If you are planning to take a Pearl Harbor tour be sure to book well in advance.