How to Watch Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor is a must-visit for anyone visiting Oahu. It is a working Joint Naval and Air Force base with many visitors coming to pay their respects or simply find some comfort from the past.

Regardless of your interest in history, WWII or Hawai'i, you can't miss the Arizona Memorial and Battleship USS Missouri -- two of the most popular attractions at Pearl Harbor.

Ticketed Tours

There are a few different ways you can watch Pearl Harbor. One option is to take a tour from your hotel in Waikiki. This is a great way to get a comprehensive overview of the history of World War II and the role Hawaii played in that war.

The tour will pick you up from your hotel in the morning and take you to Pearl Harbor Bay. Upon arriving you will visit the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center where you will see exhibits that explain what happened during and after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

You can also pay a visit to the USS Arizona Memorial, the site where many American sailors and soldiers were killed. This is a very moving memorial and it is worth visiting. You can also purchase an audio tour that narrates the memorial and other attractions.

Another great option is to book a guided tour online in advance of your visit to Pearl Harbor. These tours are typically very affordable and allow you to avoid the crowds at the memorial. You can also purchase tickets to other attractions on Ford Island, including the Battleship Missouri Memorial Museum and the Pacific Aviation Museum.

These tours are a great way to see everything at Pearl Harbor in a day. However, be sure to plan ahead and arrive early in the day to avoid crowds and heat.

You can also purchase a Passport to Pearl Harbor, which will include entrance to the Arizona Memorial and a boat ride as well as admission to the USS Bowfin Submarine and the new interactive museum and the Pacific Aviation Museum. This will cost $72 per person and is a great option for those who want to experience all the main sites in a single day.

Self-Guided Tours

The best way to experience Pearl Harbor is with a tour. These tours usually include hotel pickup and transport, admission tickets to the USS Arizona Memorial, and professional narration. They also provide a great way to learn more about the site and how it shaped the history of the United States as a whole.

However, if you don't want to book a tour, there are still plenty of things to do at Pearl Harbor without spending extra money on tickets. First, you can visit the visitor center and its two free museums. The Road to War Museum and the Attack Museum are both great places to learn about the history of Pearl Harbor.

Second, you can take a self-guided walk along the waterfront and stop at a few exhibits that can give you a better understanding of the events that took place there. You can even stop at a few aircraft hangars to see the various types of airplanes that were used in the war.

Finally, you can also visit the Battleship Missouri Memorial and the Pacific Aviation Museum. The two of these attractions are worth a visit for their different displays, but you'll need to plan a full day to fully explore them.

If you're interested in learning more about how the war affected Hawaii, you can also try the Circle Island Driving Tour from Shaka Guide. This tour highlights various landmarks, including the USS Bowfin Submarine and the Pearl Harbor Visitors Center.

If you're a bit more interested in learning about the USS Arizona, there's a movie and boat ride that takes you to the memorial. This is the main attraction at Pearl Harbor and will take about 75 minutes to complete.

Exhibits

Pearl Harbor is a place where you can find a variety of ways to learn about the history of World War II. There are several different museums and exhibits that can help you understand how the attack on Pearl Harbor was a turning point in the war.

The Pacific Aviation Museum, located on Ford Island, features two hangars displaying aircraft that played an important role in World War II. The first, Hangar 37, displays restored US and Japanese planes and an award-winning 12-minute documentary called East Wind Rain. There are also fighter flight simulators if you feel like having a go yourself!

You can also see exhibits on other important battles in the Pacific as well as historic planes from the Korean War, Vietnam War and Gulf Wars. There are many aircraft to see, including Japanese Zeroes, B-25 Mitchells and P-40 Warhawks.

It’s recommended that you book a ticketed tour in advance to visit all of the museums, but there are a few free museums that can be visited on your own. These include the USS Arizona Memorial and Wayside Exhibition, which can be found along the walking path at the Pearl Harbor National Monument.

There’s also the USS Missouri Battleship, which is a historic ship that served in both World War I and World War II. You can also take a ride aboard the USS Bowfin, a submarine that served in both World Wars and other naval battles throughout history.

Aside from these main attractions, there are also a few other smaller museums around the park that offer unique perspectives on the Pearl Harbor story. These include the Wayside Exhibition, which offers small exhibits that will help you get a better idea of what life was like in Oahu during the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Audio Tours

When you visit pearl harbor, you can purchase an audio tour that will guide you through the sites and exhibits. These tours are available in many languages and include a map to help you navigate.

The USS Arizona Memorial Narrated Audio Tour is a great way to learn about the events that happened in 1941. It includes narration by Jamie Lee Curtis, historians and Pearl Harbor survivors. It takes you through the Visitor Center's two world-class museums, along the shoreline for the incredible "Path of Attack Tour," and it even translates the 23-minute documentary film in your chosen language (Italian and Russian translations are not currently available).

In addition to this narrated audio tour, you can also watch a compelling virtual reality experience that takes you deep below the waterline of the USS Arizona. You'll get to see the mammoth guns that were never fired in battle and the place where the remains of USS Arizona survivors are interred to join their shipmates in eternity.

Another exciting option at pearl harbor is to take a ride on the Bowfin Submarine. It can be a little claustrophobic, but the audio they provide with the cost of admission is great.

If you're in the mood for a more interactive experience, head over to the Pacific Aviation Museum on Ford Island. It's home to two World War II-era hangars that tell the story of the attacks on Pearl Harbor.

The National Park Service recommends that you bring comfortable walking shoes and light clothing, especially during the hot summer months when Oahu can be very humid. You can also bring a hat, sunglasses, and sunscreen. You may also want a raincoat since Oahu's weather can change quickly and sometimes even rain.

Getting There

On December 7, 1941, Japanese aircraft launched a surprise attack on the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor. This attack prompted the United States to declare war on Japan and brought World War II into full-scale combat for the first time.

After the attack, Pearl Harbor became a major base for the United States Pacific Fleet and remains a key part of the Navy's presence in the Pacific. Today, over 2 million visitors visit the site each year to pay their respects and commemorate the victims of the attack.

The best way to experience the Pearl Harbor site is to take a guided tour or self-guided trip. A guided tour will give you the opportunity to see and learn about all of the important aspects of this historic site and can make for an unforgettable experience.

A self-guided trip can be done on your own or as part of a group tour. Most tours include transportation to and from the site, and many of them also include admission to the USS Arizona Memorial.

To get to the USS Arizona Memorial, you'll need a ticket (not included in the Passport to Pearl Harbor). If you're visiting the site on your own, you can pre-book tickets or tours to the memorial. Or, if you arrive early in the morning, you can try to secure one of the 1,300 walk-up tickets available each day.

Once you've acquired your ticket, you can choose to go to the USS Arizona Memorial Theater and watch a 23-minute film on the history of the Pearl Harbor attack. Or, you can ride a shuttle boat out to the Memorial and walk among the ruins of the ship.