Visiting Pearl Harbor

On December 7, 1941 the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor. They wanted to weaken the Pacific Fleet to prevent a possible military intervention in their actions. Since this day, the United States joined the World War II. On December 8, the United States declared war on the Empire of Japan.

 Photograph taken from a Japanese aircraft at the beginning of the attack.

In the attack, deployed in two parts involving fighter jets, bombers and torpedo boats, eight American battleships were damaged, four of them came to sink. 2,402 Americans died and 1,282 were injured.

The USS Arizona burning.

GETTING TO PEARL HARBOR?

The bay of Pearl Harbor is on the island of Oahu (Hawaii) , about 15 km west of the capital Honolulu. Honolulu Airport is accessible from almost anywhere in the world, but you will only get cheap flights from America. Most tourists travel first to the West Coast or Latin America and from there they take a flight to the islands.

Honolulu.

Once in Honolulu, you can easily find a rental car to explore the island or you can get Pearl Harbor by public transport. Many hotels have shuttle buses that take their hosts to the memorial complex, as it is one of the major tourist attractions of the island. It is advisable to ask for these services.

 If you go by car there are many signs to get the place. If you stay in Waikiki Beach (one of the most turistic areas because of its paradise coast) you can reach the entrance to the Visitor Centre by bus #20 or bus #42 or by car taking the H1 highway  leaving the airport behind and taking the 15A exit which indicates "Arizona Memorial / Stadium" (not the previous one that indicates "Pearl Harbor naval base"). You will only have to follow the signs for "Pearl Harbor Historic Sites". For a Honolulu bus routes check www.thebus.org.

Once in the Visitor Centre there are shuttles that take you to the different attractions.

PEARL HARBOR VISITOR CENTRE

Location here .

Official Website: http://www.pacifichistoricparks.org/phh_park_info.php

Opening hours: 7:00 to 17:00 (the program that include a 23-minute documentary video about the attack and a boat ride to the USS Arizona runs from 8:00 to 15:00).

Closed Thanksgiving, December 25 and January 1 .

The duration of the visit to Arizona with the documentary is estimated 1h15min.

Free entrance and parking.

It's not allowed to enter any part of the historic site with luggage, bags (even the camera's bag), backpack or purse. There are lockers at the entrance where you can leave them for $ 3.

 Photo: Christ Vlahos

Your visit will have to start at this point that is where you will obtain access and passes to all the memorials and museums. Your ticket  will give you access to the 23-minute documentary video about the attack and the ship that takes you to the USS Arizona. In high season, especially in the summer months, there are long queues and be aware that the tickets are limited. Therefore, it is better to get your ticket online from this page . Although the admission is free you will be charged $ 1.50 for the cost of the service but it's worth it.

Here you can find visit several exhibitions as "Path to War" and "Attack". Also we can visit the memorials to victims.

Memorials, monuments and museums in Washington DC, USA

HOW TO GET FROM NEW YORK TO WASHINGTON?

I explain this because surely there are many people who do not know that you can go to Washington from New York and back the same day. If you wake up early enough, you'll have time to visit the most important places of the capital. It has nothing to do with New York, but it is a place full of history, perfectly maintained and offers plenty of cultural attractions.

• Tour. You can book a guided tour (about 13 hours) to visit the main places. Lots of agencies offer this possibility but I do not recommend it, especially if you are interested in the Second World War.

• Train. This is the most convenient but also the most expensive. If you catch an express train you can get Washington in 2h 45min . The price of this train is usually more than $ 300 round trip . The regular train takes 3h 20min and roundtrip ticket usually costs about $ 100 . All trains depart from Penn Station (next to Madison Square Garden). To buy tickets online: www.amtrak.com .

• Bus . There are plenty of bus companies that take us to Washington. An economic choice is Megabus (click here to go to the website). If you buy in advance you can get tickets for $ 8 . Sometimes out offers for less even. It has a few stops in New York and a fairly large departure schedule. The trip takes 4h 30min but there are even departures at 5 am to get there soon.

MOVE AROUND WASHINGTON 

You can consult here the transport network of the city. It has the timetables and routes of the metro and buses. The metro is a pretty comfortable option. Here you have the map of the lines. It reaches Maryland and Virginia.

WORLD WAR II VETERANS MEMORIAL (NATIONAL WWII MEMORIAL)

Location: here

Metro stop: Smithsonian (Orange and Blue lines).  

Website: http://www.wwiimemorial.com/

Open 24 hours.

This memorial was opened to the public in 2004. It was built almost entirely by private contributions. They obtained more than 197 million dollars in donations from citizens, associations, foundations, veterans, organizations and even students (some schools raised funds for the cause). For more information please visit their official website .

This memorial is considered one of the most important American WWII monuments. It has received visits from major veterans ​​and even Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg did a little tribute to the veterans there for the promotion of The Pacific .