Ala Wai Boat Harbor is one of the most popular places for small-boat activity on O’ahu, and yacht clubs in the harbor are the host for the famed transpacific yacht race. The harbor attendant controls the berthing and mooring facilities.
Marine supplies and complete repair facilities are availabe in the harbor including a sailmaker, radio repairs, and a marine railway that can handle craft up to 45 feet.
Prominent features:
Honolulu Harbor Entrance Light (21°17’45″N., 157°52’08″W.), 95 feet above the water, is shown from a white post on the SE point of the entrance channel. The flashing green light can be easily identified against the background of Honolulu lights.
Sand Island which borders the seaward side of Honolulu Harbor, is Government-owned and has been built up mostly from harbor dredging. The Coast Guard base is on the NE side of the island.
Aloha Tower a 193-foot cream-colored, square clock tower on Pier 10, is one of the most conspicuous objects in the harbor. The tall, square, twin white office buildings 300 yards E of Aloha Tower are prominent and provide an excellent reference to ships approaching the harbor by day. Punchbowl Hill 500 feet high and flat topped, is 1 mile inland from Aloha Tower. The horizontal blue lights of the Ala Moana Tower restaurant (21°17.8’N., 157°50.7’W.), 1.5 miles E of Honolulu Harbor entrance, are easily distinguished at night and provide an excellent navigation aid.
Honolulu Entrance Channelis marked by lights, buoys, and a 027.9° lighted range. The rear light and marker of the range is sometimes obscured when large ships are moored at Berth 8. Kalihi Channel is marked by lights, buoys, and a 007° lighted range.
Honolulu Harbor Entrance Lighted Buoy H (21°16’51″N., 157°52’48″W.) is 0.7 mile SSW of Honolulu Harbor Entrance Channel. The buoy has red and white stripes, with a red topmark, and is equipped with a racon. The buoy transmits an Automatic Identification System (AIS) signal.
The John H. Slattery (Sand Island) highway bridge over the harbor end of Kalihi Channel has fixed spans with a clearance of 14 feet.
All mariners are advised to monitor Honolulu harbor traffic movements on VHF-FM channel 12 at all times when approaching or transiting the waters of Māmala Bay. The speed limit in Honolulu Harbor is 5 knots for all vessels and tows and 10 knots for motorboats, and other small craft.
Honolulu is a customs port of entry.
Ala Wai Boat Harbor is 2.5 miles NW of Diamond Head Light. A dredged channel leads from Māmala Bay through the reefs to the basins inside the harbor. In 1967, the channel was dredged to 22 feet. Depths inside the harbor are 8 to 20 feet. The approach to the channel is marked by lighted buoys and the channel is marked by private buoys, daybeacons, and a 013°30′ lighted range. Mariners are advised to line up on the range before entering or exiting the harbor at night.
