Waikiki Aquarium Webcam – South Shore Surf and Monk Seal

The Waikiki Aquarium Webcam looks out from the aquarium’s seawall on Kalakaua Avenue across the south shore of Oahu, with the open Pacific filling the middle of the frame and the hotel towers of Waikiki lining the shore on the right. Lines of white water mark the waves breaking on the reef offshore, which is why the aquarium calls this its South Shore Surf Cam. A curved seawall and deck run along the bottom of the picture, and a walkway with palms follows the shore on the right. A second tab switches to the aquarium’s Hawaiian monk seal habitat, home to Hoailona, a male seal who has lived in human care since he was a pup.

About the Waikiki Aquarium

The Waikiki Aquarium opened on March 19, 1904, which makes it the second-oldest public aquarium still operating in the United States, after the New York Aquarium. The Honolulu Rapid Transit and Land Company built it to draw visitors out to the newly developed Waikiki area, and it has been part of the University of Hawaii at Manoa since 1919. It moved to its present 0.95-hectare (2.35-acre) site at 2777 Kalakaua Avenue in 1955, on the shoreline next to a living coral reef beside Kapiolani Park. The collection runs to more than 3,500 organisms from 490 species of marine plants and animals.

The aquarium describes this camera’s view as the south shore of Waikiki Beach at the edge of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. The sanctuary was designated in 1992 and covers about 3,600 square kilometers (1,400 square miles) of Hawaiian waters, where an estimated 4,000 to 10,000 humpback whales arrive each winter. NOAA and the Friends of the Waikiki Aquarium sponsor the webcams, so a National Marine Sanctuaries logo sits beside the aquarium’s own in the panel under the picture.

Straight out in front of the aquarium is Publics, a left-hand reef break along Queens Beach that takes its name from the public restrooms on the shore behind it. Local surf guides rate it as the best left in Waikiki, and it works best on a solid south or southwest swell of head height or more, with enough tide to cover the coral heads on the shallow inside reef.

Hoailona and the Monk Seal Habitat Cam

The second tab of the Waikiki Aquarium Webcam watches the mauka side of the Hawaiian Monk Seal Habitat, mauka being the Hawaiian word for the inland, mountain side. The camera looks down on a clear turquoise pool framed by artificial rockwork, with a glass railing along the visitor path on the left and a wide overhang across the far end. Palms and a strip of ocean show at the top of the frame.

Hoailona was born on Kauai in 2008. His mother abandoned him soon after birth and NOAA scientists rescued him, but several releases into the wild did not work out, vets found cataracts in both eyes, and he was judged unable to survive on his own. He has lived at the aquarium since 2011, apart from a stay at the University of California, Santa Cruz from 2021 while the exhibit was renovated, and he came back to Waikiki in 2025. His name means a sign from the sea.

Weather and Climate in Waikiki

Waikiki is warm all year, and the seasons show more in the rain and the surf than on the thermometer. NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 normals for Honolulu give January highs of about 81 F (27 C) and lows of 67 F (19 C). August averages 89 F (32 C) by day and 76 F (24 C) at night, and September is almost as hot at 88 F (31 C). The records run from 52 F (11 C) to 95 F (35 C).

Rain is light, about 417 millimeters (16.4 inches) a year at the airport, and most of it falls from October to early April, when winter showers are heavier. Summer is surf season on the south shore, when swells reach Waikiki and break on the reef in front of the aquarium. Winter is the wetter half of the year, and the season when the humpbacks are back in Hawaiian waters.

Things to Do Near the Waikiki Aquarium

The aquarium is open from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm every day. Next door on the Diamond Head side stands the Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium, a saltwater swimming pool opened in 1927 to honor the 10,000 people from Hawaii who served in World War I, and billed as the nation’s first living war memorial. Kaimana Beach lies just beyond it.

Kapiolani Park, beside the aquarium, covers 121 hectares (300 acres). It was dedicated in 1877 and named for Queen Kapiolani, wife of King David Kalakaua, and it holds the Honolulu Zoo and the Waikiki Shell, an outdoor stage with 2,400 seats and lawn space for another 6,000. The park marks the border between Waikiki and the Diamond Head neighborhood. The Diamond Head Summit Trail starts from a parking lot on the crater floor and climbs 171 meters (560 feet) over 1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles) each way to a lookout at 232 meters (761 feet).

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more of Hawaii’s coast and the ocean around it, try these cams.

• Banzai Pipeline Webcam
• Kilauea Volcano Webcam
• Catalina Underwater Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the Waikiki Aquarium located?

At 2777 Kalakaua Avenue in Honolulu, on Oahu, at the Diamond Head end of Waikiki beside Kapiolani Park. The War Memorial Natatorium is its neighbor on the Diamond Head side, and the Publics surf break lies on the reef in front of it.

What can you see on the Waikiki Aquarium Webcam?

The main view is a wide panorama from the aquarium’s seawall: open ocean and white water on the reef in the middle, Waikiki’s hotel towers on the right, the walls of the neighboring Natatorium pool at the far left, and the seawall and deck in the foreground. Sponsor logos and a Honolulu weather panel fill the band under the picture.

Is there a live monk seal cam at the Waikiki Aquarium?

Yes. The aquarium streams the mauka side of its Hawaiian Monk Seal Habitat on YouTube, and it is the second tab on this page. The camera covers one side of the habitat, so Hoailona can be out of shot or underwater for a while.

How many Hawaiian monk seals are left?

About 1,600 Hawaiian monk seals remain, which makes them one of the most endangered native species in Hawaii.

What surf break is in front of the Waikiki Aquarium?

Publics, a left-hand reef break along Queens Beach, named for the public restrooms on the shore.

What is the weather like in Waikiki?

Warm all year, with Honolulu highs near 81 F (27 C) in January and 89 F (32 C) in August. Most rain falls from October to early April.

What are the Waikiki Aquarium’s opening hours?

The aquarium is open daily from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm, and the facility closes at 5:00 pm.

Source: Waikiki Aquarium