Hawaiian Railway Society — Attraction in Oʻahu

Such a fun lil snippet of Hawaiʻiʻs railway history. Took my elderly mom and 2 kids (12 and 6) to experience something different. It had been years since i went on the train and my mom and kids had never gone, yet we’re all born and raised on Oʻahu. We didnt have reservations and decided to go to the 3pm departure on saturday. We parked in the small parking area at 2:30ish. Walked into the cute office/gift shop area and bought tickets. They also had a few festive halloween themed railroad scenes for guest to take pictures at before boarding. Boarding took place at 2:50ish. Make sure to USE THE BATHROOM before you board. Waiting in line to board they were selling some snacks too, chips, water, etc. Once we chose a railcar (check out the railcar names) there was lots of seating (bench seating 1 side faces mauka, the other faces makai). As we got goin there was a lovely narration throughout the ride of the history of the area, the plants seen, the place names and its significance. Interesting stuff. At each rail crossing we could shaka to cars waiting and see who wasnt grumpy and shaka back lol. My kids had fun doing that. As the sun started to go down the makai side of the car got full sun while the mauka side still had shade. Wear glasses! We got to the half way point and stretched our legs (no standing while in motion). We were headed back but stopped near aulani for some ice cream for about 20min. No lie, that ice cream was ono!!! We took pictures and jumped back on board. They’ll check to make sure they dont leave anyone behind. So cute seeing some of the families in their yards just waiting to wave at the train riders. Just a great experience. My 12YO didnt complain, my 6YO thanked me for bringing them. Really hope they continue to get more business to keep this lil historical keepsake alive. All super friendly volunteer staff and just good vibes the entire experience. Highly recommend locals and tourist to...

Operations Manager was quite aggressive on asking if our service animal was in fact a service animal. This is after notifying the ticket office of bringing our service animal in, and being told we would most likely be asked for "papers". Which is of course not within the ADA law covering service animals. Granted I was not backing down to his intimidation, and was giving some push back. This man was very quick to use the "I was a Police Officer for 21 years, I know what to ask!". This man is in a position dealing with the public not as an enforcer but in hospitality. His people skills need some major overhaul! If we had not already bought the tickets would have left! Thankfully all other staff were quite friendly with special shout out to Ben! Thank you much for asking if I needed the lift (which I did, have mobility challenges and was using walker that day) all people are to stand in line, there are benches close by for those who are unable to stand for any amount of time, not permitted to enter first like on airplanes but small details. The best views are only of the ocean. Before that lots of urban and homeless scenery before entering Ko'Olina. On way back option to go to an Ice Cream shop for only ice cream. Apparently 2scoops does not have enough staff to handle the guests coming from the railroad. There is a lift on one of the open railcars. However the ramp up to office is incredibly steep and picnic area not accessible from gravel parking lot. Bathrooms do not have grab bars. With this attraction being run mostly by volunteers I would expect higher standards, due to money coming in goes strictly for maintenance and upkeep of grounds in addition to the...

Price: Very affordable $18 for adults and $13 for children 2-12 years old.

Time/Date: We went on the 12 p.m. train ride on Saturday.

Check-in & Parking: Parking is free, we recommend getting there 15 minutes earlier to get a good spot. We were able to go and get tickets very quickly. They will sound the horn to board the train 5 minutes before you are going to board.

Seating: You can sit anywhere that you would like to, in any car. You just pick one, but be sitting facing the Ocean side on the way out, and then Mauna side on the way back. If you have children in strollers or someone in a wheelchair, they have a lift that will assist them on the train.

Experience: The orator was very good! You could hear her clearly through the speaker system and she kept us entertained and interested the whole course of the ride. The ride is very scenic and even the stops to cross the roads was a fun experience. The history is beautiful and something we haven't heard of until we went on the tour. This is a very educational and family friendly tour. Our daughter loved it. Her favorite part was the stop on the way back to the railway in Ko Olina, to get Ice Cream. It rained on the way back, so be sure that you take a raincoat with you, or an umbrella. They do have a souvenir shop, we didn't get a chance to walk the yard to explore the other vehicles they had, due to the weather, but we do plan on returning in the near future for that.

All in all was a great experience. Really recommend this for a...