ALOHA!
The Diamond Head hike is one of the most popular Oahu hikes!
You will be hiking the Diamond Head Summit Trail.
If you’ve done even just minimal research on planning your trip to Oahu, then you are sure to have seen Diamond Head in pictures.
The Diamond Head crater is one of the most famous icons of Oahu… and Hawaii!
Diamond Head is one of Hawaii’s most famous landmarks.
I’ve done the Diamond Head hike, and here’s what you need to know!
If you are staying in Waikiki, there’s a good chance you will see Diamond Head at one point or another. (Although, because of the formation of the Waikiki Beach shoreline, you can’t see Diamond Head from every spot of Waikiki Beach… but if you are staying at Hilton Hawaiian Village for example, you will be swimming with views of Diamond Head!)
And, if you are sitting on the correct side of the plane when you fly into Honolulu Airport, you might even see the iconic Diamond Head crater from above!
So basically, Diamond Head is an icon of Hawaii.
Can you hike to the top of Diamond Head?
Yes, it’s possible to hike to the top of the Diamond Head summit!
You cannot drive to the top of Diamond Head.
Hiking is the way to get to the top!
You can hike Diamond Head on your own!
You can go inside the Diamond Head crater.
And once you are inside the crater, you can hike to the top of the Diamond Head crater.
This is one of the best things to do on Oahu.
👆 You can go inside Diamond Head crater. When you first go inside the Diamond Head crater, you will arrive at the bottom of the crater which is a grassy area. The highlight of going inside the Diamond Head crater is hiking to the top of Diamond Head!
Side note!
Things to buy on Amazon for your adventures!
I am an Amazon Associate. I may earn a commission.
- Lightweight quick-dry hiking shorts (comfortable shorts that are good for movement!)
- for women: hiking shorts | for men: hiking shorts
- Lightweight quick-dry hiking pants
- for women: hiking pants | for men: hiking pants
- capris for women
- Some of the best outdoor travel brands:
- When you fly: If you have an iphone, you can put an airtag tracker in your luggage so you can better keep track of it! Buy just one, or buy a pack of 4. (Read the reviews!) This also makes a good travel gift!
🌴
Top Oahu tours
Read the reviews at partner website Viator!*
Things you might want to pack for your Hawaii vacation
Read the reviews on Amazon! I'm an Amazon Associate.*
- For women: Search for a rash guard for swimming and you won't have to worry as much about putting on sunscreen!
- Search for a rash guard for men
- Water shoes for snorkeling if you won't be wearing fins, or just generally for the beach!
- Cheapo waterproof phone case so you can capture pictures of colorful fishies swimming underwater!
- I always have a camera float attached to my phone case that I put around my wrist
- Snorkeling set: mask and fins
- Fins allow you to propel further faster (aka see more in less time and energy!)
- Go cheap if you accept that you need to come up for air frequently: regular swimming googles. They are not as fashionable but if you get swimming goggles, make them the clear kind so you won't be seeing dimmed colors of the colorful fishies!
- If you are able, I recommend trying out the mask at your local lake (in summer) or pool so you will be good to go in Hawaii when there's actually stuff to see!
- Travel-friendly turkish towel for the beach (lightweight compared to regular beach towels)
- For women: Teva walking sandals (one of the best sandal brands for the outdoors, perfect for lots of walking around outside - that's not a lava field!)
- For men: Teva sandals
- For women: Merrell hiking shoes (one of the best outdoor shoe brands)
- For men: Merrell hiking shoes
- For more ideas, do a search for hiking clothes or swimming clothes!
*As a Viator partner and Amazon Associate, I may earn a commission.
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More need-to-know about doing the Diamond Head hike!
The Diamond Head hike is one of the most popular hikes on Oahu.
The Diamond Head Summit Trail is in the Diamond Head State Monument which is a State of Hawaii heritage site.
Officially, the Diamond Head Summit Trail is listed as 1.6 miles round trip.
That makes it less than a mile to get to the top of the Diamond Head crater.
But that less than a mile is up, up, UP!
So be prepared to work hard for the epic views of Waikiki!
Hawaii State Parks recommends that you give yourself 2 hours to complete the Diamond Head Summit Trail.
You need a reservation to climb Diamond Head.
You need to make a $5 Diamond Head reservation before you go.
Here is the official Diamond Head reservation website.
As of September 2022, you can buy Diamond Head tickets 30 days in advance.
Read more official info about the Diamond Head State Monument.
Diamond Head tickets are limited, but it will be easier to buy tickets if you are going to Diamond Head without a car.
If you are renting a car, a $10 Diamond Head parking ticket also needs to be purchased, and parking spots are even more limited. So that’s why tickets without parking will be easier to buy.
Diamond Head is close to Waikiki, so it’s reasonable to get to Diamond Head without a car.
Going by Oahu bus or trolley does require a little bit of extra walking, but you can just think of it as part of the hike! Maybe it’ll be an extra 10 to 15 minutes of walking to get to the start of the Diamond Head Summit Trail.
👆 You will walk through a tunnel to get to the start of the Diamond Head hike!
Figuring out which bus to take on Oahu is easy! Just consult google maps!
To further ease your mind about riding the bus, see the visual: How to take the Oahu bus!
👆 There is a bus stop near Diamond Head. The Oahu bus will drop you off right outside of the Diamond Head crater.
If you plan on taking the bus a few times while you are on Oahu, then you might want to buy a HOLO card before you take the bus to Diamond Head.
This card is not necessary since you can pay the bus fare in cash once you get on the bus (exact change), but it will make things easier.
The HOLO card is basically a cash card that will serve as your Oahu bus pass.
You can load it up with cash, or you can load it up online with your credit card.
But first you need to buy the HOLO card in person. You cannot buy this on the bus.
You can buy a HOLO card at any ABC Store in Waikiki.
You will need minimum $5 cash to get started ($2 for the card + $3 minimum bus fare), and then you can load the rest online. (Or, you can just pay in cash however much you want to load up the HOLO card!)
See more about the HOLO card for the Oahu bus.
And that’s a bit about the doing the iconic Diamond Head Summit Trail!
See more for planning your trip to Diamond Head and beyond:
- How to take the Oahu bus
- Things to do in Waikiki for VIEWS!
- Best things to do in Oahu
- What to pack for Hawaii
HAPPY HIKING TO THE DIAMOND HEAD CRATER SUMMIT!
Plan your Oahu hiking day!
- Best Oahu hikes
- Diamond Head hike
- How difficult is the Diamond Head hike?
- How to get to Diamond Head from Waikiki
- South Shore Grill (food after Diamond Head!)
- Queens Beach snorkeling (post-hike nearby snorkeling!)
- Things to do in Waikiki (post-hike ideas!)
- Lanikai pillbox hike
- How to get to the Lanikai pillbox trailhead + parking
- Bus to Lanikai pillbox hike
- Lanikai Beach (post-hike nearby beach!)
- Kailua Beach (post-hike nearby beach!)
- Kailua Beach to Lanikai Beach walk
- Things to do on the east side of Oahu (post-hike ideas!)
- Ehukai Pillbox hike
- Things to do on the North Shore (post-hike ideas!)
- Best Oahu waterfalls
- Waimea Falls Trail
👇 Explore the Waikiki map on google maps!
See the list:
- Things to do on Oahu (for VIEWS!)
- Things to do in Waikiki (for VIEWS!)