Visiting the USS Arizona Memorial

Four to five thousand visitors come to the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center each day, and tours to the USS Arizona Memorial run every ½ hour between 8 am and 3 pm. Tickets to the battleship USS Arizona Memorial are limited, thus, purchasing a tour package like one of our discounted Pearl Harbor Tours would be the best option. Otherwise, reservations may be made through the National Park Service website.

The two most popular ways to get to Pearl Harbor are by rental car or purchasing a tour to the battleship USS Arizona Memorial. Listed below are the advantages and disadvantages of each option.

Going by rental car gives you the most flexibility and might make economic sense if you have a weekly rate on the vehicle. If you are only renting the car for the day, it may be more expensive than a tour because, since the pandemic, rental car prices have almost tripled. Also, it takes an average of an hour to get your vehicle in the mornings due to the long check-in lines.

If you did not purchase a Pearl Harbor tour, you can secure Arizona Memorial tickets through the National Park Service website. Access to the USS Arizona Memorial is extremely limited compared to the enormous demand, and tickets become available two months in advance. Once at the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center, there are only three parking lots, and the lots quickly fill up in the mornings, especially on holidays and peak summer periods.

There are many advantages to purchasing a tour of the Arizona Memorial Monument. First, your tour includes a ticket to the USS Arizona Memorial. Second, there is so much competition in selling tours to Pearl Harbor that the tours tend to be reasonably priced, and most include a Honolulu City Tour. The third advantage is that you do not have to worry about directions or parking at Pearl Harbor. In addition, most tour guides are so fun, entertaining, and knowledgeable that you and your family will have a memorable tour and have an opportunity to meet other families on your tour. The disadvantage of purchasing a tour is that you are on a set timetable and do not have the flexibility the rental car provides.