Oahu - Hanuama Bay

http://www.hanauma-bay-hawaii.com/

Hanuama Bay was one of my favorite spots. It was the only real beach time that we spent, and that was by choice because just laying around on the beach is boring for us. However, the water is fine.

The temperature was good of course, but there is also the issue of geography. The bay has outer arms that curve around protectively, so it is a much gentler experience than swimming in open ocean would be. You don't have to be a great swimmer to get around fairly well.

That effect may also be helped by the reef within the bay, but that also provides the main attraction, in terms of the variety of sea life that you can view. I admit that despite having an underwater camera I did not get a lot of great pictures, because fish move really quickly and I am not skillful, but I still got to see them.

Snorkeling equipment can be rented on the beach, and one thing that I appreciated was that they had masks that corrected for nearsightedness.

There were not concessions on the beach, so vendors outside made a big deal of that, and we did buy water at inflated prices because of that, but once we got inside the center there was a small store. It is more that once you walk down the path to the beach there is nothing to buy. It is probably just better to come with water and snacks.

There were several really friendly pigeons that you are asked not to feed. I suspect they do get fed sometimes, just based on how close they come, but certainly giving them reason to be more aggressive is not advisable.

I recommend getting an early start, because it gets very hot as the day progresses, and we did get some sunburn. And I definitely recommend going, because it is beautiful and the swimming is good.