Car hire Honolulu

Introduction

Honolulu is the capital of the American state of Hawaii and the city where most visitors arrive and leave this tropical and heavenly archipelago. It's a busy city, where the 'Hawaiian feeling' is not easy to find. Most tourists therefore immediately travel on to more exotic places. Nearby Honolulu lies the busy Waikiki Beach with tall hotels and apartment buildings along the beach.

Population

Honolulu is a fairly large city, with over 1 million inhabitants.

Location

The city is located on the south coast of Oahu Island, which is not the largest island of the archipelago (that's Hawaii, after which the entire archipelago is named).The Hawaiian islands are situated in the Pacific Ocean; Honolulu lies almost 3800 kilometers west of the nearest point of the American mainland (Point Arena in California).

Economy

Tourism forms the main pillar of local economy. Annually, millions of visitors travel via Honolulu Airport to their holiday destination on the islands; many stay near the capital. The city is also an important trade hub between the East and the West and military defense plays an important role (the naval port Pearl Harbor lies just west of Honolulu).

Airports

Honolulu International Airport is situated directly west of the city, about 10 kilometers from the center. It's easily reachable by rental car via the I-H1 West. From Waikiki Beach it's best to take Ala Moana Blvd and Nimitz Highway, to avoid Honolulu's busy center.

Public Transport

City transport in Honolulu is simply called The Bus and is efficient. The bus company also maintains connections with other places on Oahu and there's the so-called Circle Island Route, a fun way to see the entire island.

Traffic and Parking

You wouldn't expect this on a tropical island but traffic in Honolulu (and basically along the entire south coast of Oahu) is extremely busy. Morning and evening rush hour are among the busiest in the entire United States! There are also a lot of one-way streets. There are several parking garages to park your rental car, but they are fairly expensive. One of the cheapest is Harbor Court Parking on Bethel Street.

Hotels

Honolulu offers a huge choice of accommodations; most hotels are near Waikiki Beach. Honolulu draws tourists all year round; the quietest months are April, May, and September through November. If you want to visit Honolulu from December through March, we recommend booking your hotel room well in advance.

External Sources

For more information about Honolulu, we recommend Google and the following sources:

• Wikipedia, Honolulu
• Official website Honolulu
• Tourist Information Honolulu & Hawaii