Honolulu in 5 Days on a Budget (With Daily Costs)
Five days: the 3 reservations, plus a museum and a luau
Five days keeps the 4-day plan’s full set of reservations, Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head, Hanauma Bay, and adds breathing room: a museum morning, a second beach afternoon, and one splurge night at a luau. It’s the first day count in this family where the itinerary stops feeling rushed. Need more time still, the 6-day and 7-day plans add a downtown/shopping day and a slower departure.
Book these before you go
- Reserve Pearl Harbor on recreation.gov , up to 56 days out, about a $1 fee.
- Reserve Diamond Head entry on gostateparks.hawaii.gov , up to 30 days out, $5/person plus $10/vehicle parking.
- Reserve Hanauma Bay , only 2 days out at 7am HST; closed Monday and Tuesday.
- Book the Queens Waikiki Luau on Viator , the budget pick among Waikiki luaus, starting around $139; popular nights sell out.
- Check Waikiki hotel rates on Booking.com before you land.
| Day | Focus | Reservation | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arrival, Waikiki Beach, sunset hula show | None | $0 beyond transfer and hotel |
| Day 2 | Pearl Harbor, downtown Honolulu | Pearl Harbor, 56 days out | About $1-8 in fees, plus food |
| Day 3 | Diamond Head hike, Ala Moana | Diamond Head, 30 days out | $5-15, plus food |
| Day 4 | Hanauma Bay, Kaka’ako | Hanauma Bay, 2 days out | $25-28, plus food |
| Day 5 | Bishop Museum, second beach day, luau | Luau, book ahead | $34-39 museum, $139-plus luau |
Day 1: land in Waikiki and keep it free
Fly into HNL, take TheBus routes 20 or 303 for $3 on a HOLO card, and check into a Waikiki hotel, budgeting for resort fees ($45-61/night) and self-parking ($45-75/night) up front. Spend the afternoon on Waikiki Beach, free, with reef-safe sunscreen required by Hawaii law, and catch the free hula and torch-lighting show at the Kuhio Beach hula mound at sunset.
Day 2: Pearl Harbor and downtown Honolulu
Arrive an hour before your reserved slot; the memorial program is free, runs 45 minutes, and only the recreation.gov booking and the $7/day NPS parking charge cost anything. Walk the free grounds of Iolani Palace, then into Chinatown for a plate lunch, $12-18.
Day 3: Diamond Head hike and Ala Moana
Hike Diamond Head early: $5/person plus $10/vehicle parking, 1.5-2 hours round trip, reserved up to 30 days ahead, or skip the parking fee via TheBus. Cool off at Ala Moana Beach Park, then browse Ala Moana Center; a poke bowl runs $12-18.
Day 4: Hanauma Bay and Kaka’ako
Book Hanauma Bay the moment your dates are fixed, since the window opens only 2 days ahead at 7am HST: $25/person 13 and older plus $3/vehicle parking, closed Monday and Tuesday, last entry 1:30pm. Spend the afternoon in Kaka’ako’s street art and waterfront park, with a malasada stop at Leonard’s Bakery, $1.75-4.
Day 5: Bishop Museum, a second beach day, and a luau
Spend the morning at the Bishop Museum, $34-39 adult, the best single stop in Honolulu for Hawaiian history and culture beyond what a beach day teaches you; add the planetarium for about $3 more. Use the afternoon for a second, more relaxed Waikiki beach session, since days two through four have all been reservation-driven. In the evening, go to a luau: the Queens Waikiki Luau, the budget pick among Waikiki’s shows, starts around $139 and includes a buffet dinner plus hula and fire-knife performances.
Is the Bishop Museum worth $34?
For a first Honolulu trip, yes. It’s the one stop on this itinerary that explains the history behind everything else you’ve seen, Pearl Harbor’s context, Iolani Palace’s monarchy, the hula you watched on the beach, and at $34-39 it costs less than a single luau ticket while running most of a day if you take it slowly.
Which luau should you book?
The Queens Waikiki Luau is the straightforward budget answer at around $139, cheaper than most Waikiki competitors while still covering a full buffet and a Polynesian dance program. If price matters less than spectacle, Rock-A-Hula’s bigger production runs more, but book either one at least a few days ahead; weekend dates sell out first.
Book the luau alongside your other three reservations, not as an afterthought; the best dates go first. For the fuller list of Honolulu’s cheap and free options that fill the gaps around this plan, see the budget guide .