Janet

Hi,

I am leaving for Hawaii on Friday; will be there on business but want to get to the Arizona Memorial. Do you recommend going with a tour or can we do it on our own - will have a car? Is there parking available? Will we need reservations ahead of time or can we be flexible.

Thanks,

janet

Christie

You can do it on your own. Parking is limited, but there should be some available. Go to the guest center and just buy a ticket. They are timed and you have to be on the boat at your time.

It is well worth the trip.

tweedy

Janet I think you will find the Arizona Memorial very moving. They tell you a little about it on the way over to the ship and the memorial is across the deck. To realize the ship is on the bottom and in only 30 or so feet of water and that so many men lost their lives.

People chatted all the way over in the boat, but once you get on deck something happens and almost everyone was silent in our group.

It's been there along time and when we were there, there was still an oil slick on the water.

Also you get a chance to see where several other ships went down in the Harbour that day......

Enjoy your time in Hawaii

tweedy

xxx

Was there a year and a half ago. You buy the tix and then you see a short film with the members of the group that has tix for the same time. Then you board the launch over to the memorial. You are only on the memorial for about 20 minutes. The film will quiet everyone right down. It's very informative and reminds you that you will be above a tomb, not just another tourist attraction.

Also, if you have a car you can take it over to Ford Island where U.S.S. Missouri is now a permanent museum docked just a short distance away from the Arizona. Basically you have the start of the war in the Pacific (Arizona) right next to the place it ended, on the decks of the Missouri. Definitely worth the trip...

Michele

You are making an excellent choice to go to the Arizona Memorial. I went to Hawaii when I was 21, and my girlfriends and I decided to see what this thing was all about. (we were the typical "party-types" then) We at least watched the film beforehand in silence, then joked and had fun on the shuttle boat out to the Memorial. However, once we reached the Memorial, all 3 of us were intensely moved! No one ever explained to us that the ship is RIGHT BELOW the memorial, and one can view it from the Memorial!! When we looked at the names of all the men who down with Arizona, we realized that most of them had probably been around our ages (19-21), and all 3 of us had tears in our eyes.

When I look at the US flag today (some 20+ years later), it is the image of the Arizona that comes to mind and the names of the men that went down with her that I recall.

Enjoy, but expect to be moved greatly.

Anna

We arrived before the visitor center opened and had no problems finding a parking spot. The Memorial is free, but you are given tickets for the movie and shuttle boat as you enter the visitor's center.