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Oahu North Shore Tour: Waimea Waterfall & Pipeline Beach

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/15

Duration8h

GroupUp to 23

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

What you actually see on Oahu's windward side in one loop

You get picked up from your Waikiki hotel and driven around the entire windward side of Oahu in one loop: Diamond Head viewpoint, Halona Blowhole, Makapuu Lighthouse, Mokolii Island, a macadamia nut tasting, North Shore lunch (cash required), Sunset Beach, and Waimea Valley with its waterfall and botanical gardens. Admission to Waimea Valley is included. The tour ends with a Dole Whip stop and returns you to your hotel by evening.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stop at Diamond Head viewpoint
Pass by Hanauma Bay
Visit Halona Blowhole
Pass by Makapu’u Point cliffs
Taste at Tropical Farms Macadamia Nut Shop
View Chinaman’s Hat island
Lunch at local North Shore restaurant
Visit North Shore tropical fruit stand
Pass by Sunset Beach (Banzai Pipeline)
Explore Waimea Valley and waterfall
Stop for souvenirs and Dole Whip at Dole Plantation
Visit Pali Lookout for panoramic views

The Experience

There's something about standing at a lookout where the wind nearly pushes you backward and the whole windward coast spreads out below — that's the feeling that stays with you after the Pali Lookout, and it's the reason this tour opens the way it does. The North Shore Beach Bus picks you up from your Waikiki hotel and heads straight to Diamond Head's eastern slope, where Hanauma Bay sits in the distance like a postcard you didn't know you needed. From there the route swings around the southeastern edge of the island, stopping at Halona Blowhole where lava tubes from Koko Head's crater send water shooting up when the swell cooperates, then climbing toward Makapuu Lighthouse with views of Rabbit Island (Manana) sitting offshore like something from a film set.

The drive along the windward side is where the tour really opens up. You'll pass Mokolii Island — Chinaman's Hat — framed against Kualoa Valley, the same backdrop used in Jurassic Park, and then stop at a macadamia nut farm under banyan trees for a tasting of Kona coffee and Hawaiian chocolate. Lunch happens at a local spot on the North Shore where the garlic shrimp plate is the thing everyone orders, though vegetarian and non-shellfish options exist if you need them — and you'll need cash. After that comes a fruit stand with ice-cold coconuts and fresh mangos, then Sunset Beach itself, where you can walk the sand and watch the winter swells (30 to 40 feet, October through January) break offshore. The stop is conditional on road conditions and the driver's call, but on a clear day it's the kind of beach that makes you understand why people move to Hawaii.

Waimea Valley is the anchor of the afternoon. Admission is included, and the gardens span plants from the Ogasawara Islands, Central and South America, Fiji, and Guam — a botanical collection that feels less like a curated museum and more like someone's ambitious dream of what could grow in one place. The waterfall is swimmable (lifeguards are there, life jackets required), and the walk through the valley takes you past rare and endangered Hawaiian plants. The tour wraps with a stop at Dole Plantation for the Dole Whip — the pineapple soft serve that exists nowhere else except Disney parks — and a final push back over the Pali Lookout, where those same strong winds hit you again on the way down. The whole day is narrated, so you're not just seeing the landmarks; you're getting the history of each one.

What’s included

Your day includes hotel pickup and drop-off from Waikiki, a fully narrated tour visiting Diamond Head, Halona Blowhole, Makapuu Lighthouse, Mokolii Island, a macadamia nut farm tasting, Sunset Beach, and Waimea Valley with its botanical gardens and waterfall.
Admission to Waimea Valley is included.
Lunch at a North Shore restaurant (cash required), a tropical fruit stand, and a Dole Plantation stop for souvenirs and Dole Whip are on the itinerary but paid separately.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by NORTH SHORE BEACH BUS

Is this one for you?Right for travelers staying in Waikiki who want to see the windward side and North Shore in one day without renting a car or planning stops themselves. The full loop means a long day out — you'll be gone from morning to evening — which is exactly what lets you fit this much into a single departure.