Makapu’u Lighthouse Downhill Trail Hiking & Halona Blowhole Sightseeing Tour
Makapuʻu Point is the southeasternmost point of Oahu and it was back in 1888 that plans for a lighthouse were first discussed, but it was not until 1909 that it was eventually built. With a brick tower constructed on a masonry basement, the white cylindrical tower has a red lantern roof and gray trim. At the time of its construction, the lens in the lighthouse was the largest in the United States, originally a hyper-radiant Fresnel lens displayed at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
Watch humpback whales, hang gliders and the beautiful Pacific, all from the one location!
The setting for the lighthouse is stunning, with magnificent views of the surrounding countryside as well as the Pacific Ocean and the islands of Moloka‘i and Lana‘i. In the winter months of November through April the location is also popular with whale watchers as it is the breeding season for the humpback whale and this is one of the best vantage points on Oahu. Beyond that, the lighthouse is also stationed on an extremely popular launching pad for hang gliders.
This is a leisurely hike – perfect if you are not a fan of hills!
To get to the Lighthouse, you simply book your place on the shuttle tour that will collect you from your hotel in Waikiki or Honolulu and take you all the way to the beginning of the hiking trail’s path. From there it is downhill all the way, literally, as you descend over 500 feet while you comfortably negotiate the two-mile tarmac pathway which takes approximately an hour and a half to complete, with plenty of stop-off points on the way to take as many photos as you would like.
Ever seen a blowhole in action?
Once the hike has been completed, the shuttle bus will then take you on a short 15-minute journey to coast and the famous Halona Blowhole. The setting is very dramatic with the waves of the Pacific Ocean crashing over the rocks and also forcing water up through the blowhole to heights of approaching 50 feet!
Still time to do more during the day
The beauty of the Makapu’u Lighthouse sightseeing tour is that from pick-up to drop-off, it takes up just four hours, and the hourly pickups begin at 7 a.m. and stop at 9 a.m., so with the earlies start you’ve got the opportunity to work up an appetite for a late breakfast early lunch in town, or if you want to start a little later, then maybe you will have worked up a sufficient thirst to treat your self to a cocktail and snacks on one of the local Waikiki bars. Then you still have the whole afternoon to do something totally different, like using the Waikiki hop-on, hop-off Trolley to explore more of what Waikiki has to offer.
If you are planning to come to any of Hawaii’s beautiful islands, at Lea Lea Tours we are always keen to ‘cherry pick’ the very best of tours available. We strongly recommend you book your tickets as soon as possible for the Holiday Lights Tour as it is remarkably popular, and you will soon discover why and if you would like to find out more about any of our other recommended tours as well, please feel free to get in touch with us at any time.