Bucket List / Adventure Travel Goals
Climb The Haiku Stairs
Still to do
The Stairway to Heaven is gone for good, but Oʻahu still has ridge hikes that will leave your legs shaking.
The adventure
For decades, the Haiku Stairs were one of the most famous forbidden hikes in the world: nearly 4,000 metal steps bolted up a knife-edge ridge of the Koʻolau Range, climbing through cloud to around 850 metres above the Haikū Valley. The US Navy built the first version in 1942 to string radio antenna cables across the valley, and from the top you could see both sides of Oʻahu at once, with green ridges falling away to the ocean.
The stairs closed to the public in 1987, and in 2024 Honolulu's city council voted to remove them, ending years of debate. Climbing them is not just illegal but dangerous and unfair on the neighbourhood below. The good news is that Oʻahu still has steep, thrilling hikes you can do legally, from the old railway sleepers of the Koko Crater trail, 1,048 steps straight up the side of the crater, to sunrise walks to the pillboxes above Lanikai.
Why it’s epic
- The original stairway had 3,922 steps up a ridge of the Koʻolau Range.
- It was built during the Second World War to serve a secret naval radio station.
- Koko Crater Railway Trail, a legal alternative with 1,048 steps and views over Hanauma Bay.
- Sunrise from the Lanikai Pillbox trail over the Mokulua islands.
What it is
The Haiku Stairs, or Stairway to Heaven, climbed a steep ridge on Oʻahu.
How to do it
The stairs have been closed for years, and Honolulu decided in 2024 to remove them. Nearby legal hikes include Koko Head and the Olomana Trail.
Top tip
Don't attempt to trespass; fines are heavy.
Need to know
- The stairs have been closed since 1987 and are being dismantled, and trespassers have been arrested and fined, so don't attempt it.
- Koko Crater is fully exposed with no shade, so go at sunrise and carry plenty of water.
- Oʻahu's ridge trails get slippery and muddy after rain, so check conditions first.
Plan this trip
- Rough cost
- Under £750 per person, including flights from the UK
- Best time to go
- Closed
- Fly into
- HNL airport
The legal alternative hikes are free; flights to Hawaii and a bed in Honolulu are the real cost.
Make it happen
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Why it’s on my list
Not done yet. If you’ve done it and have tips, tell me about it.
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