Hiking the Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi
Distance: 1.9 miles / 3.1 km
The Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail on the east side of Oʻahu is a fun local and visitor favorite that leads down the steep cliffs of Makapuʻu Point to some of the most beautiful turquoise-blue tide pools on the island, comparable only to the tide pools along the North Kaʻena Point Trail.
It is for these reasons that the Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail is one of my personal favorite Oʻahu sunrise hikes, as first light hitting the turquoise-blue water early in the morning is truly something special to experience!
Now, this all goes without saying that even though the Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail begins on the relatively easy Makapuʻu Lighthouse Trail, the hike down to the tide pools is more challenging in comparison.
Given this reality, the loose and rocky Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail is absolutely beyond some people’s ability. There’s truly no nice way to say it. However, as long as you come prepared for this off-trail adventure with good footwear—like my personal favorite trail-running shoes below—the hike to the Makapuʻu Tide Pools can be a fun and often uncrowded Oʻahu adventure!
Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trailhead Parking
There is a parking lot right before the trailhead, but finding parking can be tough on any day of the week, unless you start early in the day.
This is especially true midday on weekends, and you may need to park up to 0.5 miles (0.8 km) away on the highway if you arrive at its busiest.
Out of caution, consider the Makapuʻu Point Lighthouse Trailhead to be a high-crime area for petty theft, meaning you should never leave visible bags or anything valuable in your car.
Google Maps Directions: Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trailhead
My Hawaiʻi Hiking Checklist
Hiking the Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail
The trail begins on the paved path at the far end of the parking lot and continues on this path for a little over about 0.7 miles (1.1 km) before branching off on the tide pools trail.
In total, the trail gains about 300 ft. (91 m) of elevation from the trailhead to the split and then descends down to sea level where the pools are.
Makapuʻu Lighthouse-Kaʻiwi Shoreline Junction
This dirt path that branches away from the paved trail on the right is the beginning of the Kaʻiwi Shoreline Trail and the fastest route to get down to Alan Davis Beach.
Personally, I think that the Kaʻiwi Shoreline Trail makes for a nice little walk down to a fairly quiet Oʻahu beach, but I don’t think that the 0.5-mile (0.8 km) walk to Alan Davis would be a great spot for young kids, as there are much better kid-friendly beaches around the island.
Read My Separate Post: Kaʻiwi Shoreline Trail
Makapuʻu Tide Pools-Makapuʻu Lighthouse Junction
The photo below shows where the Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail splits off from the Makapuʻu Lighthouse Trail.
That being said, I again want to stress that the Lighthouse Trail and the Tide Pools Trail are not of the same difficulty, as the trail meanders down a loose and rocky path for about 370 ft. (113 m) of elevation from the paved trail to the tide pools below.
With that in mind, the Makapuʻu Tide Pools Trail is not a kid-friendly hike.
Read My Separate Post: Makapuʻu Point Lighthouse Trail
In general, keep meandering to the left as you make your way down to stay on the easiest path.
Makapuʻu Tide Pools
In the pools, watch where you step to protect yourself from the sea urchins, as they can be very easy to miss!
On a different note, I unfortunately witnessed a woman take a hard fall on the rocks because she was walking with sandals on. That being said, here, more than anywhere, I generally find it easiest to walk barefoot because it feels easier to keep your footing.
Hiking Back
On the hike back, look for these little trail markers, as they generally indicate the easiest and best way to make your way back up the cliffs to the paved Makapuʻu Lighthouse Trail.
Native Plants on the Makapuʻu Trail
Unfortunately, a low-elevation trail like this one is almost always covered in non-native and invasive plants. However, if you know what to look for, you can find native Maʻo, ʻUhaloa, Milo, and Pāʻū o Hiʻiaka.
If you would like to learn more about identifying these native Hawaiian plants and tons more on trails and beaches around the islands, check out my separate post. I wrote it to help others learn about native plants from around Hawaiʻi.
Read My Separate Post: Native Hawaiian Plant Guide
