About the location
With 6 possible islands to visit, each a completely unique experience, you need a plan to find the best places to take photos. Browse the existing photo spots or read our photography guide below to make sure you leave Hawaii with some of the best snapshots imaginable.
No Hawaiian island is like the other. Active photographers come here to hike, like the Moanalua Ridge Trail which brings you to the famous Haiku Stairs on Oahu island. Walking on the stairs over the mountain ridges is forbidden and will result in a hefty fine, but you can walk up to them and take photos.
Stay on Oahu and hike to the peak of Crouching Lion for a sweeping view of the curved Kahana Bay. The white sands of the beach with the mosaic of green and turquoise in the waters and the lush forested mountains make a postcard-worthy picture. The Nu‘uanu Pali Cliffs are best photographed from an amazing lookout that can be driven to (there is a parking fee).
On Maui island, Ukumehame Beach Park is a small area famous for its iconic dead trees juxtaposed with the tropical beach. The Haleakala Crater is an other-worldly landscape with deep, rich colors that can be hiked to. Hikers can climb to the summit of Haleakala National Park, which is a large volcano that forms much of the island of Maui. Much of the island’s wild side can be seen from the top. Capturing sunrises from here brings rich colors and shadows to your photographs.
On Kauai Island, Kalalau Beach is a quiet beach situated at the bottom of impressive mountains and cliffs. Glass Beach is a rocky beach famous for the rounded glass littered on the beach from a nearby plant. The Lava Pools of Mokolea feature holes made from lava that fill up with water and stream back out to the ocean. Capture the full force of the ocean by photographing during high tide.
Stay on Kauai and hike up Waimea Canyon. This is a beautiful green and red deep canyon that makes any hiker feel small in comparison.
