Today is Day 3 in Hawaii and we are hiking the Diamond Head Summit Trail on Oahu. Along with our daughter and friends Lisa and Jack, and their kids, we are tackling Hawaii’s famous landmark. See everything you need to know before visiting Diamond Head in Hawaii!
Make sure to check back regularly for all of our adventures in Hawaii at: Destination – Hawaii.
Planning Diamond Head Summit Trail and More
You’ll probably see Diamond Head before you land in Honolulu. The prominent volcanic cone known to Hawaiians as Lēʻahi, is an iconic landmark and a popular hiking destination. And like many popular spots in Hawaii, you have to make reservations in advance. The Diamond Head Summit Trail is located within Diamond Head State Monument. And you can book up to 30 days in advance at: gostateparks.hawaii.gov/diamondhead.
Since we’re staying close by, we aim to go early. You can reserve entry for $5.00 per person. If you plan to bring your own vehicle, you’ll have to pay an additional $10.00 for parking. If you choose both, you are given 2 hour windows starting at 6:00AM and going until 4:00PM. I forgot to book right at 30 days, but remembered a week later. And I was still able to book the 8:00AM-10:00AM slot. However a week later that slot was gone, so book early to get your preferred time. Whatever time you choose, remember you have to arrive within the 1st 30 minutes of your booked time. Also note there are some temporary closures going on, so it’s always good to check their website first.
The Diamond Head Summit Trail is a 1.6 mile round trip moderate hike. There’s 564 feet elevation to the summit, and it generally takes 1-2 hours to complete. Much of the hike is on a concrete walkway, but there is a portion that goes through a 225-foot tunnel. Though it is lit, we’ll bring our head lamps for extra light. Other than the tunnel there’s limited shade, so we’ll plan to apply sunscreen first and bring plenty of water. We’ll see how long it takes, because we want to stop by their visitor center before leaving.
Arriving at Diamond Head State Monument
We are staying at Becky’s Aunt’s house only 5 minutes from Diamond Head. If you’re staying in Waikiki, the entrance is on the other side, but still very close. So, we leave just before 8:00AM to get there when our booking window starts. After we turn in for the park, we are surprised to see a tunnel.
When we approach the light is green, so we go through the 1-way tunnel. Traffic can only go through one way at a time, though it is fairly short. And on the other side, you are officially inside the Diamond Head crater. Shortly thereafter is the entrance booth with about 5 cars in front of us waiting.
Once it’s our turn, we show them our reservations, and proceed into the parking lot. We see the Diamond Head Visitor Center at the end of the lot, and find a parking spot really close. So far, so good. We’ll stop at the visitor center on the way back down after we hike the Diamond Head Summit Trail.
Starting the Diamond Head Summit Trail
Just like the trailhead map says, there are restrooms right at the trail start. And there are none at top. So, we all take turns before the hike. It’s always smart, especially with kids.
The Diamond Head Summit Trail starts on an easy paved path. This section is relatively flat and surrounded by tall grass and trees. There’s many people on the trail already, but so far plenty of room. And in about 10 minutes, we hit the switchbacks.
As these switchbacks wrap upward to the summit, there is a railing the whole way providing safety from drop-offs. Though the paved path has becomes rocky. It is best to have sturdy shoes for this trail for sure. The other thing we notice are the amazing views.
At one point, I look back to see the buildings where we started the trail. And I can see the rim of the crater, and even the tunnel we drove through to get here. I can also start to see beyond the crater walls, including our 1st glimpses of the ocean.
About 15 minutes of going up the switchbacks, we stop at a lookout. And here we get even better views of the ocean. And there are 2 extensions you can walk out on to take great pictures.
A couple minutes later, the young kids find a bench and take a rest. They’ve been complaining most of the way though the switchbacks. But what they don’t realize is we’re about to go up 74 steps.
The Tunnel on the Diamond Head Summit Trail
The 74 steps have yellow paint to easily see them as we ascend up to a tunnel through the mountain. And rested for a few minutes, the kids are ready to tackle the stairs and head inside.
The stairs get narrower as we make it to the entrance. Though, the railing on the stairs continues inside the tunnel. It looks dark inside, but I’m prepared.
Though the tunnel is lighted, I am prepared for it with a headlamp. I had heard it gets a little dark, so better safe than sorry. And even though we can see lights on the ground under the railing, it gets dark in some spots. One person passing us even commented I was smart for bringing my own light.
We go single file through the narrow tunnel, though there is plenty of head room. But when others pass us coming down, it makes it tight in spots. Once out the 225 feet long tunnel, we see a sign.
Loop Trail to the Summit
When we exit the tunnel we see a sign for the loop trail to the summit. It recommends going left rather than going up another 99 steps to the right. So, we head left.
Though this is supposed to be a loop trail, we see many people passing us. And when we get to the base of some metal stairs, the kids take another rest.
We ask the kids what they thought of going through the tunnel and the trail so far. They’re response is a double thumbs down. But they haven’t even seen the summit yet! Just past the bench is a big lookout, and this time we get spectacular ocean views.
This lookout not only has room for lots of people. But it has expansive views looking back and out to the ocean. The bright blue and turquoise waters are mesmerizing. But, we still have farther to go.
Military Bunker at Diamond Head Summit
As we go up the metal stairs, we see a lot of people coming back down. Though before we reach the summit, we see a path to our left we take first. We pass a small helicopter pad, before we see an old military bunker. This fortified structure is also known as a pillbox, and there are many on Oahu.
Once we get to the end of the fence, we have to duck down to get in the bunker. And the area opens up inside to an open room with walls and a concrete floor.
There’s plenty of space to spread out and view the open water. This viewpoint would allow the U.S. military expansive views of any approaching ships. Though today, we just see a sailboat floating in the breeze on the beautiful ocean waters.
Another thing we see from here is the Diamond Head Lighthouse below us on the shoreline. The current lighthouse built in 1917 is on the National Register of Historic Places. And it now serves as home to the Commanders of the Fourteenth Coast Guard District.
Everyone decides to leave the bunker, while I head through a passageway in the back of the room. It leads to a spiral staircase, which goes down a couple levels to a hallway. At the end of the hallway are the 99 steps we’re supposed to descend on. Though we head back out to go up to the summit lookout first.
At the Diamond Head Summit Lookout
After some more metal steps, we make it to the Summit Lookout. We had to ascend 560 feet in less than a mile to reach here. Though the summit is actually 762 feet above sea level. And the views are even more amazing.
There are multiple levels of viewpoints at the summit with views all around. If we look right we can see another pillbox on the crater rim and beyond Waikiki Beach. So, what does our daughter think?
What is that a thumbs up?!? We’ll take it! It took us under an hour to get to the summit, so now’s the fun part. We’ll see how long it takes us to get down.
As we head down the stairs for the summit lookout, we still get great views all around. Though at the bottom of the stairs, we turn right to go back to the bunker.
Descending Diamond Head Summit Trail
Once inside the bunker, we head to the back to go to through the passageway to the spiral staircase. And even though it goes up, it’s closed off. So, we have to go down.
The kids are starting to realize how cool this. They love the spiral staircase and at the bottom it opens up to a secret tunnel. To the right is closed off, so we can only go left toward an opening. And at the end is the 99 steps down to the loop start.
Going down is so much easier than if we went up these stairs. And at the base is the loop sign where we started, and the tunnel entrance. Though it shows descending these stairs on the loop trail map, it doesn’t say anything about the bunker. And it appears many people totally miss it and just walk back down. But it’s our secret exit, which makes it even more exciting, especially for the kids.
We head through the tunnel with the headlamp on, which seems even more helpful on the way back down. And once through we don’t even care we have to do another 74 steps down. In fact the switchbacks seem much easier too. But half way through them, we see a paramedic running past us heading toward the summit. And when we finish the switchbacks, we pass an emergency vehicle parked just off the paved path.
But luckily, we didn’t have any issues. Though the kids complained on the way up, they enjoyed the views at top and going through the bunker. And no problem going down. We completed the Diamond Head Summit Trail in almost exactly 1.5 hours.
Helicopter Rescue
But before we head to the visitor center, we see a helicopter in the open field by the parking lot. There’s a crowd of people watching safely from a distance. We see some police and emergency personnel and ask what’s going on.
We find out that a man got overheated on the trail, and they’re flying up to get him. So, the little helicopter pad we saw up top really does get used. And apparently this is common. We hear about others that take no water in the middle of the day, or wear flip-flops and bathing suits. And then we see the helicopter take off and zoom up toward the summit. So, we head to the visitor center.
Diamond Head Visitor Center and Rewards
The visitor center is basically a small outdoor store which has all the things you might want. You can also get some information and brochures. Though we get our typical stickers and fridge magnet.
As we’re finishing up, we see the helicopter come back and land. We see a man walk out, and he seems fine after getting some water. Lesson here – don’t try to do this hike without water, even early in the morning. As we leave the visitor center, we see a sign for free samples for Dole whips. Our daughter asks if she can go. It’ll be our reward for doing the hike.
Across the street, there’s a paved path that leads to a covered picnic pavilion. And just past it are 2 food trucks. So we head up to the 1st one to ask for free samples. Our daughter decides to get a Dole whip.
After her dole whip, I take her to the picnic tables before I head back to the other food truck. Here I see a sign for all kinds of Hawaiian shave ice. And Becky and I decide to share one. We get the “Hawaiian” with pineapple and mango flavors topped with coconut whipped cream and Li Hing powder. It’s a great way to end our time here.
Summary of Diamond Head Summit Trail and More
We spent about 2.5 hours total at Diamond Head today. Though the Diamond Head Summit Trail itself only took us 1.5 hours to go up and back down. There were amazing views throughout the trail and we got to go through a tunnel. And if that wasn’t cool enough, we went through the bunker down the spiral staircase to the “secret” exit! Afterwards we saw a rescue helicopter and shopped at the visitor center before heading across the street for our rewards.
The key for our successful day was being prepared with reservations, water, sunscreen, a headlamp and proper footwear. And though there were some challenging spots, we accomplished Diamond Head together. And it’s only 10:30AM! Not it’s time to relax back at Aunt Carolyn’s pool…
Make sure to check back regularly for all of our adventures in Hawaii at: Destination – Hawaii.