Getting Around

By Car
Oahu residents own 600,000 registered vehicles, but they have only 1,500 miles of mostly two-lane roads. That's 400 cars for every mile, a fact that becomes abundantly clear during morning and evening rush hours. You can avoid the gridlock by driving between 9am and 3pm or after 6pm.

Rentals--Hawaii has some of the lowest car-rental rates in the country. The average nondiscounted, unlimited-mileage rate for a 1-day rental for an intermediate-size car in Honolulu was $45 in 2003; that's the lowest rate in the country, compared with the national average of $53.50 a day. To rent a car in Hawaii, you must be at least 25 years of age and have a valid driver's license and credit card.

At Honolulu International Airport, you'll find most major rental-car agencies, including Alamo (tel. 800/327-9633; www.goalamo.com), Avis (tel. 800/321-3712; www.avis.com), Budget (tel. 800/935-6878; https://rent.drivebudget.com/Home.jsp), Dollar (tel. 800/800-4000; www.dollarcar.com), Enterprise (tel. 800/325-8007; www.enterprise.com), Hertz (tel. 800/654-3011; www.hertz.com), National (tel. 800/227-7368; www.nationalcar.com), and Thrifty (tel. 800/367-2277; www.thrifty.com). It's almost always cheaper to rent a car at the airport than in Waikiki or through your hotel (unless there's one already included in your package deal).

Most of the local, "Rent-A-Wreck"-type car-rental companies have gone by the wayside on Oahu. However, one reliable, affordable, and accessible company remains: Tradewinds, 2875-A Koapaka St., Honolulu (tel. 888/388-7368 or 808/834-1465; www.tradewindsudrive.com), a small, family-run company with a fleet of some 300 cars. Book in advance. Hawaii is a no-fault state, which means that if you don't have collision-damage insurance, you are required to pay for all damages before you leave the state, whether or not the accident was your fault. Your personal car insurance back home may provide rental-car coverage; read your policy or call your insurer before you leave home. Bring your insurance identification card if you decline the optional insurance, which usually costs from $12 to $20 a day. Obtain the name of your company's local claim representative before you go. Some credit-card companies also provide collision-damage insurance for their customers; check with yours before you rent.

Easy Riding on Oahu--If your dream is to go screaming down the highway on the back of a big Harley Hog, here's your chance. Cruzin Hawaii Motorcycles, 1980 Kalakaua Ave. (at Kuhio Ave., next to Tony Roma's), Waikiki (tel. 808/945-9595), has a range of bikes starting at $79 (insurance is included in the price). Also try Thrifty's, 1778 Ala Moana Blvd., Discovery Bay Plaza, Honolulu (tel. 808/971-2660), which has brand-new Harley Fat Boys, Wide Glides, and Heritages starting at $139 a day (includes helmet), or Coconut Cruisers, 2301 Kalakaua Ave., across the street from the International Market Place, Honolulu (tel. 808/924-1644), which has a range of bikes from $160 to $240 a day. You must have a valid motorcycle license to rent a bike.

Driving Rules -- Hawaiian state law mandates that all car passengers must wear a seat belt, and all infants must be strapped into car seats. The fine is enforced with vigilance, so buckle up -- you'll pay a $50 fine if you don't. Pedestrians always have the right of way, even if they're not in the crosswalk. You can turn right on red from the right lane after a full and complete stop, unless there's a sign forbidding you to do so.

Main Streets & Highways
Navigating around Oahu is actually easy -- there are only a few roads that circle the perimeter of the island and a handful that cut across the island.

Finding Your Way Around, Oahu Style--Mainlanders sometimes find the directions given by locals a bit confusing. Seldom will you hear the terms east, west, north, and south; instead, islanders refer to directions as either makai (ma-kae), meaning toward the sea, or mauka (mow-kah), toward the mountains. In Honolulu, people use Diamond Head as a direction meaning to the east (in the direction of the world-famous crater called Diamond Head), and Ewa as a direction meaning to the west (toward the town called Ewa, on the other side of Pearl Harbor).

So, if you ask a local for directions, this is what you're likely to hear: "Drive 2 blocks makai (toward the sea), then turn Diamond Head (east) at the stoplight. Go 1 block, and turn mauka (toward the mountains). It's on the Ewa (western) side of the street."

To & From the Airport -- The main thoroughfare that runs from the airport to Honolulu and Waikiki is the H-1 Freeway. The H-1 also runs in the opposite direction to Pearl Harbor and Ewa. The artery that runs from the airport to Honolulu and Waikiki is Nimitz Highway (which has stoplights). In downtown Honolulu, Nimitz Highway becomes Ala Moana Boulevard.

Honolulu -- The myriad of one-way streets in Honolulu can be confusing and frustrating. If you want to travel in the Diamond Head direction, King Street is one-way going toward Diamond Head. Beretania Street is one-way in the opposite, or Ewa, direction. In the mauka and makai direction: Punchbowl and Bishop streets run toward the ocean (makai), and Alakea and Bethel streets run toward the mountains (mauka).

There are three parallel main streets in Waikiki: Kalakaua Avenue (which is one-way going toward Diamond Head and eventually fronts Waikiki Beach), Kuhio Avenue (1 block mauka of Kalakaua Ave., which has two-way traffic), and Ala Wai Boulevard (which fronts the Ala Wai Canal and runs one-way in the Ewa direction).
Around Oahu -- From Waikiki, Highway 72 (the Kalanianaole Hwy.) takes you around Makapuu Point into Kailua and Kaneohe. From Kailua and Kaneohe, Highway 83 (the Kamehameha Hwy.) takes you around the North Shore to Haleiwa, where it is still called the Kamehameha Highway, but the number of the highway changes to 99, and then cuts through mid-Oahu past Schofield Barracks and Wahiawa, and swings out to Pearl City.

On the leeward coast, H-1 Freeway becomes two-lane Highway 93 (the Farrington Hwy.); after Makaha, the number changes to Highway 930, but it is still called Farrington Highway all the way out to Kaena Point. Although you cannot drive around Kaena Point, Farrington Highway (still called Hwy. 930) picks up on the north side of the point and goes through Mokuleia and Waialua.

Across Oahu -- Highways that cut across the island are Highway 99 , the Likelike Highway (also called Hwy. 63, which goes from Honolulu to Kaneohe), and the Pali Highway (also called Hwy. 61, which goes from Honolulu to Kailua). The H-3 Freeway, which starts at Pearl Harbor, is the fastest way to get to Kaneohe and Kailua.

Street Maps--One of the best general maps of the island is the Map of Oahu, cartography by James A. Bier, published by the University of Hawaii Press, available at bookstores or online at www.uhpress.hawaii.edu.
For a more specific street map, the best one we have found is TMK Maps: Oahu Streets and Condos, published by Hawaii TMK Service, Inc. (tel. 808/536-0867).

By Bus
One of the best deals anywhere, TheBus (tel. 808/848-5555, or 808/296-1818 for recorded information; www.thebus.org) will take you around the whole island for $2. In fact, on a daily basis, more than 260,000 people use the system's 68 lines and 4,000 bus stops.

TheBus goes almost everywhere almost all the time. The most popular route is no. 8 (Waikiki/Ala Moana), which shuttles people between Waikiki and Ala Moana Center every 10 minutes or so (the ride is 15-20 min.). The no. 19 (Airport/Hickam), no. 20 (Airport/Halawa Gate), no. 47 (Waipahu), and no. 58 (Waikiki/Ala Moana) also cover the same stretch. Waikiki service begins daily at 5am and runs until midnight; buses run about every 15 minutes during the day and every 30 minutes in the evening.

The Circle Island-North Shore route is no. 52 (Wahiawa/Circle Island); it leaves from Ala Moana Shopping Center every 30 minutes and takes about 4 1/2 hours to circle the island. The Circle Island-South Shore route is no. 55 (Kaneohe/Circle Island) and also leaves Ala Moana every half-hour and takes about 3 to 4 1/2 hours to circle the island.

You can buy a Visitors Pass for $20 at any ABC store in Waikiki (ABC stores are literally everywhere in Waikiki). It's good for unlimited rides anywhere on Oahu for 4 days.

Warning--Recently, visitors waiting for a bus along the North Shore have been attacked and robbed in broad daylight. You might want to consider splurging on a rental car to visit the North Shore.

By Trolley
It's fun to ride the 34-seat, open-air, motorized Waikiki Trolley (tel. 800/824-8804 or 808/593-2822; www.waikikitrolley.com), which looks like a San Francisco cable car. It loops around Waikiki and downtown Honolulu, stopping every 40 minutes at 12 key places: Hilton Hawaiian Village, Iolani Palace, Wo Fat's in Chinatown, the State Capitol, King Kamehameha's Statue, the Mission House Museum, Aloha Tower, Honolulu Academy of Arts, Hawaii Maritime Museum, Ward Centre, Fisherman's Wharf, and Restaurant Row. The driver provides commentary along the way. Stops on the new 2-hour fully narrated Ocean Coast Line (the blue line) of the southeast side of Oahu include Sea Life Park, Diamond Head, and Waikiki Beach. A 1-day trolley pass -- which costs $20 for adults, $14 for kids age 12 to 18, or $10 for children under 12 -- allows you to jump off all day long (8:30am-11:35pm). Four-day passes cost $45 for adults, $31 for kids age 12 to 18, and $15 for children under 12.

By Taxi
Oahu's major cab companies offer island-wide, 24-hour radio-dispatched service, with multilingual drivers, air-conditioned cars, limos, vans, and vehicles equipped with wheelchair lifts. Fares are standard for all taxi firms; from the airport, expect to pay about $25 to $30 (plus tip) to Waikiki, about $18 to downtown, about $40 to Kailua, about $40 to Hawaii Kai, and about $85 to the North Shore.

Try Aloha State Cab (tel. 808/847-3566), Charley's Taxi & Tours (tel. 808/531-1333), City Taxi (tel. 808/524-2121), Royal Taxi & Tour (tel. 808/944-5513), Sida Taxi & Tours (tel. 808/836-0011), Star Taxi (tel. 808/942-7827), or TheCab (tel. 808/422-2222). Coast Taxi (tel. 808/261-3755) serves Windward Oahu; Hawaii Kai Hui/Koko Head Taxi (tel. 808/396-6633) serves East Honolulu/Southeast Oahu.

There is a discount taxi service, offering a fixed-price fare of $22 (up to five passengers) to Waikiki, with no additional charge for baggage, from Star Taxi (tel. 800/671-2999 or 808/942-STAR). You must book it in advance.