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Does it make any difference view-wise which side of the plane you are on when landing at Honolulu International airport? It's a first-time Hawaii trip for one of our party and we would like (if possible) to get her a seat with a good view.
Thanks for any comments
Landing at Honolului International - which side of the plane is best ?
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Honolulu! - apparently I can't spell Hawaiian names when I type too fast
If the winds are such that they make their usual approach, either side works. Aircraft coming from the mainland make their descent just south of the island so folks on the right have a great view of Diamond Head and the entire island. Once they turn on final, the folks on the left get a good view of the west end of Oahu and Pearl Harbor.
Thx very much dwooddon! I think I will try to get right hand side but left sounds great too.
I am remembering right side as having more of the view, but they do usually seem to make a turn-around in landing like dwooddon describes, so any window seat will get you something.
speaking of landing in Honolulu, I watched Hawaii Five-O last night and there was a plane arriving in Honolulu that clearly WAS NOT landing in Honolulu. Did anyone else catch it. Landing in Honolulu is not that picturesque except you fly over the arizona and you see Diamond head but this plane landing last night was in the middle of lush green mountains and white sandy beaches. Guess I've always missed that when landing there!
I'm generally always arriving from the US mainland so I get a right window seat with a great view of Diamond Head and Waikiki.
Sitting in the left window can give you views of Maui and really cool views of Molokai's north shore.
Either side is fine.
The inside!
Thx everyone
Jets normally land flying into the wind. The prevailing winds on Oahu are east to west. We have flown into Honolulu 15 times. On our first trip to Hawaii, the wind was coming out of the west, and the plane flew directly along Waikiki Beach before landing. The view was fabulous. On every trip since then, we have landed from the west, so we had good views of Pearl Harbor on the left side of the plane. Depending on what time of day your departing flight leaves, you'll get great views of Waikiki on the left side of the plane. The westerly winds don't happen often in Honolulu. All you can do is hope for great views on landing.
The planes from the Mainland come in from the East over Diamond Head and Waikiki. On that approach being on the right side of the plane gives you the best views.
The plane then goes past the airport down toward the west side of the island and takes a U-turn, if you will. On the left side of the plane you will have the view from the approach to the airport as the plane lands.
Outbound to the Mainland, you'll want to be on the left side of the plane, which is the only side that will have a view of Honolulu.