How to get to Palolo Zen Center from the Honolulu airport

Many of our visitors arrive at the Honolulu airport. It is several miles from the airport to the zendo. Visitors must make their own arrangements for this last step of the journey.

Sometimes it is possible to pick up guests in the zendo van, IF arrangements are made well ahead of time -- however, this is frequently impossible. The templekeeper is particularly busy right before retreats. If visitors have a friend in the local sangha, they might want to make airport pickup arrangements with the friend.

Various hire services are available. We list a few below, for the convenience of visitors -- however, we cannot be responsible for the quality of these services, or for unexpected price hikes. But -- if you have a miserable experience or the price has changed, let us know and we will change the information on the website.

You can hire a taxicab at the airport without having made any reservations. Taxis will cost at least $35.

You can also make arrangements to ride one of the airport shuttle services.

* Island Airport Shuttle now costs over $30, close to the cost of a taxi. Visitors must make reservations, by phone or over the web, 24 hours in advance. Visitors can call 808-521-2121 or visit www.shuttleguys.com to make reservations.

* A Mr. Chinn, at 808-741-7545, advertises that he charges $28 for transporting 1-4 people to or from the airport. We do not of anyone who has used his service and can vouch for its quality.

* Reliable Shuttle, at 808-735-4225, operates a shuttle bus that runs between the New Ohtani Hotel in Waikiki and the airport and charges only $15 for a one-way trip. However, visitors would have to pay for a cab to take them from the hotel to the zendo. No one has tried this service yet, so we do not know how much a taxi from the hotel to the zendo might cost.

Most of the route will be familiar to the driver, but the roads in the upper Palolo valley may be new to him/her. The visitor may want to print out the following directions, and read them to the driver in case there are problems.

Take the H-1 freeway towards Diamond Head and Koko Head; signs will say Freeway (east)

Take the 6th Avenue (25B) exit

Turn left onto 6th Avenue

Go two blocks up 6th and turn right onto Waialae Avenue

Go up Waialae Avenue (still going Koko Head) as far as 10th Avenue

Take a left onto 10th Avenue; there is a left-turn signal

Go far up 10th, towards the end of the valley; pass the elementary school on the left.

Take a slight right onto Waiomao Road, at the Baha'i Center

Go a long way up Waiomao, past the Korean temple

At one point, the road will narrow and become even more twisty

This is now a private road -- GO SLOW

The zendo is a long, low cream and brown building on the right, set in the middle of wide lawns

There is a small sign saying Palolo Zen Center hanging from the mailbox

Go up the short concrete driveway and turn right

Park in front of the kitchen, on the lower level, to unload your luggage

If no one comes to greet you, you can start carrying your luggage up the stairs

The residential wing is at the top of the kitchen stairs, to the right

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