At the top of our Hanauma Bay Reservation tips list is a fairly straightforward suggestion. When possible, we recommend using a desktop or laptop. When navigating the mobile online reservation website, we have found the mobile reservation system to be somewhat glitchy and less accessible than the desktop version. Of course use a mobile device if it is available and convenient but in the case that you have a computer handy, we definitely suggest you use the latter option. 

Next on our list of Hanauma Bay Reservation tips is one that is simple but too important to pass up. On multiple occasions, when using the online reservation system, we noticed the website slowing down as soon as reservations opened and site traffic picked up.  There are A LOT (and we mean A LOT) of people trying to book reservations at the same time.  As we’ve mentioned in our previous post “7 steps to navigate the online reservation system”, upon selecting a time slot, there is no guarantee that your spot will be held until you’ve reached the final confirmation window. A slow internet connection could mean getting booted from your reservation at any time during the booking process.

If you plan on making Hanauma Bay reservations through the online system, we recommend that you be on the website at least 10 minutes before 7:00am (HST).  This will allow you to check your internet connection, ensure you are in the right place on the website and help you to feel ready as soon as the 7:00am (HST) time hits. Out of all of our Hanauma Bay Reservations tips this may seem a bit EXTRA, but we promise you there are thousands of people vying for the same spot as you and it never hurts to be just slightly more prepared!

This one is pretty common sensical but is still at the top of our Hanauma Bay Reservation tips. Being prepared with the time slot of your choosing ensures that you will know exactly where to go when the clock strikes 7.  Another tip we gave in a previous post was to track time patterns over the few days or week prior to your reservation to see which time slots tend to be in low-demand vs. the high-demand time slots that everyone will be targeting. This will help you to choose a booking that won’t be gone in .32 seconds (yes they can go that fast!) and will greatly increase your chance of a successful booking.

Well, we know it can’t possibly be at 7:00:00 SHARP, but as close to it as you can, refresh your web browser screen.  You should already be on the Hanauma Bay Reservation website and should therefore only require a quick click of the refresh button. The website will not automatically self-refresh so waiting on the site at 7:00am will not guarantee the available reservation times will show up. By the time you figure this out, you may have missed your opportunity.  Trust us, of all the Hanauma Bay Reservation tips we’ve offered, this is the one you’ll want to follow!

Probably the most important of our Hanauma Bay Reservations tips is to ensure you have all your personal information ready to input into the system. This includes:

• First and Last name (middle name is not required)
• Email address where you plan to have your confirmation sent
• Phone number (also not required)
• Type and quantity of tickets you plan to reserve
• Credit card information
• If possible, have your credit card number ready to be copied and pasted. This will ensure you don’t make an error and you will avoid wasting precious time inputting your CC number into the system.

The last but definitely not least of our Hanauma Bay Reservation tips is that just as the website warns, tickets sell out lightning fast. In our experience, all tickets were sold out by 7:05am.  This means you will likely have ONE shot at reserving your time. When we tried going back into the system 2 minutes after making the first reservation, we repeatedly got kicked out with the notice “All tickets have sold out” even if the reservation page was showing available tickets. (SERIOUSLY, 2 minutes!!)  Get in, fill in your information and finalize your booking in as little time as possible.

Remember, even if you’ve made it into the booking page, your spot will NOT be held during the reservation process. There is absolutely no guarantee until you’ve reached the prized Confirmation Page! You’ve got this, good luck!