Free Things to do in Oahu with Kids
Here's our list of 45 free things to do on Oahu with kids! There's never a dull moment on Oahu!
Alan Castillo
4/30/20248 min read
Things to do in Oahu:
Looking for things to do in Oahu with kids? You don’t need to spend money to have a good time with your kids here on Oahu! Here’s a list of 45 FREE things to do that’s family/kid friendly, fun and adventurous! Just click on the name of the place to see more.
FREE admission. We usually go on the weekends when there’s free street parking and visit the museum. Walk around then eat our snack lunch in the sculpture courtyard. Once in a while they have weekends with fairs and kids can do arts and crafts type projects.
Hawaii Residents with ID during morning hours are Free, otherwise you need to pay. Check site for details. Nice place to see fish and snorkel.
There are 5 City & County of Honolulu Botanical Gardens on Oahu. 4 out of 5 are FREE!
When it’s high tide, this thing can blow like a geyser! So cool! Right before Sandy Beach.
Keiki Storytime at the Pearl City Hawaii State Library
The library is one of the best resources and it’s FREE! You can just kill time there looking around, read and borrow books, and watch storytime. We love Keiki Storytime with Aunty Taryn at the Pearl City library. If you go to the State Library website, you can find a storytime near you. Also don’t forget to visit the Downtown State Library. That’s the biggest one in the islands and is just so neat to walk around.
Friday Night Fireworks Show at the Hilton Hawaiian Village
Starts either at 745pm or 8pm, depending on the season. Just get there early and eat dinner. You can watch it from Ala Moana Beach Park. Sit along the walkway facing the Hilton. Or you can get closer and pay for parking at the boat harbor lot or Hilton itself.
Koko Head Stairs (Koko Crater Tramway)
It’s a 1048 steps stair climb up to the top, 0.7 mile, but the views are one of the most spectacular on the island when you get there. The trail has been refinished over the years so it’s really nice to what it used to be. I’ve seen kids up this before, but you’re going to have to take your time and it may be too difficult for smaller children where you would then need to carry them and that can be dangerous. Just be careful if you go. Challenging. Teens like to do this.
Honolulu Museum of Art’s Family Sundays
Check out their website for dates and times. Usually there’s music, entertainment, arts and crafts, and you can view the museum exhibits for FREE!
Usually the 1st Saturdays 9am-12pm. Different FREE projects monthly so check their schedule.
Parking is across the street and you need to pay, but the admission to the museum is FREE! They do have donation tip boxes throughout the museum though. Lot’s of history here as it was a real coastal fort artillery fortification. They have a lot of vehicles here too, a helicopter on the second floor, and lots of artifacts to see. A gift shop too.
You can walk the grounds of the arboretum. It’s FREE, though donations greatly appreciated and suggested. They have some nice trails to explore and different kinds of plants and trees. They have plant sales and classes here from time to time as well. Tranquil.
Just get in your car and drive around the island. Stop wherever and take pitstops and pictures. Eat your home lunch somewhere. Enjoy the sights around the island.
Residents are FREE to park. This place is sacred. It’s a place filled with mana (energy) as this was the deciding place of war for “The Battle of Nu’uanu 1795” where King Kamehameha ran his enemies off the cliff. This battle united Oahu under his rule of the Kingdom of the Hawaiian Islands.
FREE to walk around. This is a Latter Day Saint church on the North Shore in Laie. Very unique. It’s pretty big and tiered when you walk the grounds.
Drive all the way up St Louis Dr and you will come to Wa’ahila Ridge. It’s a nice picnic area and hike through the Norfolk Pine.
You can park on Manoa Rd and walk in so you don’t have to pay for parking. The falls trail has been redone and is much more easy to traverse your way up to the Falls. Manoa is so lush and cool. Spectacular waterfall when rains have fallen earlier.
2 mile length roundtrip up the mountain to the famous lighthouse with a breath taking view. There’s no restrooms here so go before you get there. It’s a paved trail, so nice to walk on but it climbs in elevation all the way to the top. The nearest restroom is at Makapu’u Beach.
Very cool museum! The kids will love it. Lots of history with the Honolulu Fire Department. Did you know that the Honolulu Fire Department was created by a King? King Kamehameha III. Did you know that there are 43 Fire Stations on Oahu? Reserve your tickets on Eventbrite.com
You can see the evolution of the Honolulu Police Department here.
Honolulu Fire Department Explorer Program
Sign your child up ages 14-20 for the Honolulu Fire Department’s Explorer Program if they have an interest in the fire profession. This is a great program and many fire fighters who went through this program actually ended up being in the fire department.
Honolulu Police Department Explorer Program
Sign your 14-20 year old up for the Honolulu Police Department Explorer Program if they have an interest in the law enforcement profession. This too is a great program for our future community helpers.
You can check out their calendar of events of where their next performance is and go watch for free.
This heiau is hidden behind the Windward YMCA. It’s a very special place. This is the biggest in height heiau on the island. Amazing!
Located in Kailua. 2.9 miles out and back trail. Bring the kids bikes and go for a ride. Lot’s of walkers too so be careful. Nice peaceful scenery.
Waikiki International Market Place
This is such a beautiful place to walk around. Nice shops. Cool water play areas. Monthly Stargazing events from the rooftop, hula shows, and island musicians play here. Check their events calendar for free shows.
We play here often! There are 4 lagoons to play in. Parking is free and can get scarce so go early.
Free admission. We like to come here to look at all the different animals up for adoption. Walk through the dog kennel area and go play with the kittens in the cat house. Who knows? you might pick up a friend. Sometimes there’s adoption specials as well if you do decide to adopt a friend. We just go to look.
Right past the Sunset Fire Station on the left, across of Foodland. This is a marine conservatory. Really cool place to explore and swim.
Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center
The Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center has cultural classes for free. They have lei making, weaving, adult hula, keiki (children) hula, and ukulele lessons. Visit their events schedule and show up to the Royal Grove. Limited seating so get there early.
Free Ukulele lessons with the Ukulele Project Hawaii
Every 2nd Wednesday at 5 pm at Ka Makana Ali’i Center Stage. Bring your ukulele and download the song sheet from the website.
Lot’s of war artifacts here at this museum on Schofield Barracks. You would need a Day Pass by checking in and registering with you ID and vehicle registration if you don’t have base access.
This place has limited parking at a dead end of a neighborhood, but if you get to walk out to the point, you will see that rock formation out in the water. Hawaiian legend has it that it is the head of a giant mo’o (lizard). Do you see his eyeball? Be careful walking on the rocks. They are sharp.
Pearl Harbor National Memorial Park
You can go to the park for free but you will need to pay for the attractions you want to go on. But you can walk around all the other free things there and the gift shop.
The loop trail is 4.8 miles long. When I take my kids here we just walk until they want to stop and turn around. There’s a gazebo at the entrance we like to eat our lunch at. Next to that is a heiau you can look at too. Pretty neat. Nice views on the hike if you go. We take Christmas pictures here too among the trees.
I bring the kids here to watch the airplanes take off and land from the reef runway. We bring snacks and sit in the bed of my truck. Bring an umbrella for shade if you need. It can get hot like sunburn kind hot.
If you’re a Hawaii Resident with a Hawaii ID, you get free admission and parking. View of Waikiki at the top. There’s 2 ways to get to the top: up the 99 stairs or to the left up a more gradual accent. Bring water.
We like to do everything here. Lot’s of parking. There’s restrooms but not always the cleanest. But the grounds here is huge. We go to the beach, play in the sand, go fishing off the wall, picnic with friends, ride our scooters and bike on the bike path, go jogging for exercise, and watch the Friday night Hilton Fireworks show from there. There’s also a lagoon on the Magic Island side. Do you know why it’s called Magic Island? Because the whole thing is manmade and popped out of nowhere at one time. Pretty cool!
Every December you can check out the Honolulu City Lights at Honolulu Hale. They also have a Christmas tree decorating contest inside the building, food and ride vendors on the grassy area outside the Honolulu Hale, and plenty grounds decor.
You will find this beach right past the Sea Life Park exit but before the Ocean Institute dock. A lot of beginner surfers come ride the waves here, and the little ones go play in the tide pools. Good exploration.
Click the link for some skate parks around the island and grab your board, scooter, roller skates, or bike and go!
Explore Central Oahu Regional Park
This park is huge! Such a great place to ride long bike rides. They hold many sports tournaments here. People from around the world come to play competitions here. They have numerous baseball fields, soccer fields, tennis courts and an Olympic training size pool. The kids can play at playground jungle gyms too! Don’t forget to bring your sun screen and lunch!
Sign your kids up for free Department of Parks & Recreation Classes
Check out the Activities section to sign your child up for Free classes.
Watch A Surf Event on the North Shore
Go check out this link to see upcoming surf events, then go take a day trip out to the North Shore and watch the surf events live.
Windward Mall is the most kid friendly mall on the island I would say. It has an indoor playground for little ones. I used to take my kids here when they were smaller. Aside from that we like to eat our home lunch here on the bench and people watch. We walk around and window shop Fun Factory, the Pet Store, and Ross Department store. Sometimes they have concerts/shows on the weekend. We just walk around to get out of the house and into some nice air conditioning. Especially in the summer time when it’s hot!
Check out @oahufamilyfun on Instagram for updated daily events and activities
I post all kinds of Oahu events and activities. They are updated daily in my stories and highlight links. There’s usually fairs, or free community events, maybe a parade, arts and crafts, free trials, exhibitions, entertainment and more! Follow my page for upcoming events.
Hope you enjoyed this Things to do on Oahu list and you now have something fun to do that’s FREE! Save your money! We can still have plenty of fun! Don’t forget to bookmark and share this blog with your friends and family! Aloha!
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