While Oahu can only claim to being the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands, it is able to boast some of its best-known destinations, including Honolulu, the state capital. Fittingly known as the ‘gathering place,’ Honolulu is also the state’s largest city, providing a home for a majority of the island group’s population.
The incredible melting-pot of cultures calling Honolulu home makes it a fascinating place to visit, combining indigenous Hawaii, western, and eastern (and at Waikiki, surfer) cultures in equal measure. But step away from the thriving streets of the capital and you’ll go from modern to historic in just a few short miles.
Central Oahu is the location of Pearl Harbor, a destination no history lover will want to miss. Its monuments and museums are the obvious place to learn more about the Japanese attack on the naval base which dragged the United States into the Second World War.
Further north, the Hawaii Plantation Village and Wahiawa Botanical Garden highlight the important role – and of course beauty – of flowers and plants to the history and culture of Oahu. The area is still rich in pineapple plantations, with those such as the Dole Plantation open to visits from the public.
Equally rural is Oahu’s Leeward Coast, lying west of Mount Waianae and claiming a drier and sunnier climate than much of the rest of the island. Its sandy beaches have become the location of many of the top resorts on the island as a result.
Despite the fame of Waikiki, one of Honolulu’s districts on the southern coast of Oahu, it’s the seven miles of sand of the island’s North Shore region that the world’s surfers look to for their next run along the waves. Summer is a great time for beginners to give the sport a go, while the winter sees breakers rolling in that are probably best admired from afar, the only time you’ll hear us say that when discussing Oahu and the other Hawaiian Islands.
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Big Island of Hawaii / Kauai / Lanai / Maui / Molokai
