We will be heading to Hawaii soon. I have read here and elsewhere to get to Diamond Head early to avoid the heat and the crowds. Unfortunately my husband will be in meetings until noon most of the days we will be there. Would the crowds and heat be terrible if we went late afternoon (4:00?)?

I would prefer to spend the few mornings he has off snorkeling, but we could spend one of them at Diamond Head if later in the day would be much less enjoyable.

Thanks

The sun should be just over the rim as far as crowds most have probably heard the same as you and unless they have similar issues though most likly went early.

We went mid afternoon and it was not a big deal. The hike up is not very strenuous...IMHO

bring water at least. The hardest part is in the last quarter of the hike, pretty steep. other than that. its a great time, I went around 9 am, had a good bit of people tho, mostly sweaty and breathing heavily.

If you are in any kind of shape for hiking it's an extremely easy hike. If you aren't in great shape, just take it easy, it's not bad.

The views from the top of Diamond Head are terrific, but the hike itself isn't much to write home about in my opinion. It's not something I would ever desire to do again on a subsequent visit to Oahu, although I'll likely be going back to Hanauma Bay for example.

Double check the park's open hours before arriving late afternoon. You need to allow for 90 minutes minimum to hike up and back. Not sure what it would be like after sunset, although viewing a sunset from Diamond Head would probably be quite stunning.

I agree that if you are in any kind of shape the hike is not bad..."extremely easy" as Andrew stated might be a bit of an exaggeration IMHO. In addition to the path there is a long steep staircase. The worst part for me was at the very top where you crawl through a "window" to get to the top...being a bit claustrophobic it was a little bothersome I think mostly because it was unexpected. We hiked it around noon(in January) and didn't find the heat or crowds too bad. Do bring water and wear good shoes, I saw more people "blow out a flipflop" than I could count! Have fun!

My husband and I are avid hikers -- we had just done 16 miles on the Big Island two days before -- so we did the hike at noon in August because that's when we had some free time. It kicked my butt! It's uphill the whole way -- no flat areas to give your legs a break -- but moreover, there is NO shade. I could feel my skin baking, and I think that's what got to me!

I didn't find crowds to be a problem at all. We didn't have the trail to ourselves by any means, but it wasn't a cattle prod either! I would go closer to the end of the day, if only to give yourself a break from the sun.

4pm will be fine.

Open 6am - 6 pm.

You will need to get there by 4:45 to be able to get to the top & back down.

Takes about:

30-35 minutes up
20-25 minutes down
10-15 minutes at the top