OAHU SNORKELING GUIDE
OAHU'S BEST SNORKELING SPOTS
Snorkeling trips at Living Ocean Tours depart daily from Kewalo Basin Boat Harbor located conveniently adjacent to Waikiki Beach. Join us for a 2 hour snorkeling excursion to Waikiki’s Turtle Canyons. Our expert guides will be with you in the water to point out all the interesting marine life and lend a helping hand if needed.
We provide all equipment including snorkeling flotation vests, masks, fins and snorkels. Prior to entering the water our crew will give a brief lesson with some tips on how to use the snorkeling equipment and describe some of the marine life that we expect to see in the water.
What sets our trips apart from other snorkeling tours in Waikiki is the knowledge of our crew for our local marine life and our passion for teaching our guests how to get comfortable snorkeling while respecting our local environment. We have about a 95% success rate at finding the Hawaiian Green Sea Turtles on our snorkeling trips, but you will enjoy observing and learning about many more of our local species of tropical fish, many of which are found only in Hawaiian waters. Read on for great snorkeling tips for diving in Oahu.
Hanauma Bay
Hanauma Bay is constantly some of the best snorkeling in Oahu for snorkelers of all ages and skill levels. The beautiful beach offers sand and grassy areas as well as some shade for relaxing. There are shallow areas on the inner reef as well as deeper areas further out with some of the best coral reefs on Oahu.
Hanauma Bay has restrooms, information desks, snorkel rentals and lockers available on the beach. “Hanauma Bay” means “curved bay” and it is well protected from wind and waves year round. Snorkeling Oahu ranks this some of the best snorkeling in Oahu on any given day.
Sharks Cove
This is North Shore Snorkeling Site that is only accessible during Summer months. The underwater lava formations create beautiful scenery for snorkelers. The shallow inside of the bay is great for beginners and the deeper waters offer swim through lava tubes and larger fish for the advanced snorkelers.
Electic Beach
Electic Beach, also known as Kahe Point Beach Park, is located on the west side of Oahu near Ko’Olina. They entry to the site is from a sandy beach right next to the outflow from an electric power plant. The warm water that flows out from the pipe attracts an amazing amount of marine life. This site offers extremely clear water as long as the surf is not up.
During summer months this is one of the best snorkeling spots in Oahu due to the clear water and abundance of marine life. It is a fairly deep site with no lifeguards on the beach so it is only recommended for strong swimmers.
Waimea Bay
This is another North Shore snorkeling spot and beautiful beach. There is only a small parking lot here so as long as you get there early and find parking the beach will never be crowded. Showers, restrooms and picnic tables are available on the beach.
Waimea Bay Big Wave Surfing
In the winter during a large swell this is the spot of some of the most famous big wave riding in the world. The world famous Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational is held here only on years that the surf gets large enough to host the competition. The surf must be at least 20 feet Hawaiian size, meaning that the faces of the waves are 40 feet tall! Even if you cannot go snorkeling here it is definitely worth stopping by and checking out the big surf of Oahu in the winter.