Dance clubs, live music, rooftop bars, speakeasies, LGBTQ+ venues, listening bars and late-night dives in Honolulu.
Dance clubs, live music, rooftop bars, speakeasies, LGBTQ+ nightlife, listening bars and late-night dives across Honolulu, with where to go and what is worth the late night.
The Republik on Kapiolani Boulevard in Honolulu is the city's premier concert and events venue since 2012, the room touring electronic, indie and hip-hop acts route through on the Oahu stop.
Tip: Box office Tuesday to Friday 10:00 to 13:00 with a $2 per-ticket service fee. Doors at 20:00 most nights; 21+ for headline shows.
The District on Kapiolani Boulevard in Honolulu is the 21+ nightclub run by The Republik's team, with bottle service tables, DJ-led dance floors and karaoke rooms upstairs.
Tip: 21+ at the door, ticketed weekends. Friday and Saturday 22:00 to 02:00; reservation-only on big-DJ nights.
Sky Waikiki on top of Waikiki Business Plaza in Honolulu is the 19-story rooftop venue that turns into a dance floor after 21:00 with DJs spinning above Diamond Head and the Pacific.
Tip: Dinner service 16:00 to 22:00 then dance-floor mode. Reservations on OpenTable; resort casual sunset, smart casual late.
Blue Note Hawaii at the Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort in Honolulu opened in January 2016 as a 326-seat partnership with the Blue Note Entertainment Group, with two nightly performances year-round.
Tip: Two shows nightly. Reserve at bluenotejazz.com/hawaii; dinner from Executive Chef Julius Laurentius alongside the music.
Anna O'Brien's on South Beretania near UH Manoa in Honolulu has booked punk, rock, metal and reggae shows since 1969 in the upstairs club room with a downstairs pub of darts and pool.
Tip: Shows most weekends and weeknights. Comedy University on Wednesdays. Mug Club membership is a deal for regulars.
House Without a Key at the Halekulani in Waikiki Honolulu features live Hawaiian music and hula under a 130-year-old kiawe tree from 17:30 every evening, the city's most romantic sunset show.
Tip: Hula and live music 17:30 to 20:30 nightly. Bar tables walk-in; the Diamond Head side fills up first.
Lewers Lounge at the Halekulani in Waikiki Honolulu features nightly light jazz performances seven nights a week, the intimate cocktail lounge of Hawaiian jazz with Chet Baker and Ella Fitzgerald-themed drinks.
Tip: Tuesday to Saturday 20:30 to midnight, Sunday and Monday 20:00 to 22:30. Smart casual dress.
The Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian in Waikiki Honolulu runs live music 18:00 to 22:00 nightly under the beachfront tent, mixing Hawaiian acoustic sets with the canonical Royal Hawaiian Mai Tai.
Tip: Live music 18:00 to 22:00 daily. Oceanfront tables turn at 19:00; arrive early for the sunset table.
Sky Waikiki Raw and Bar on top of the Waikiki Business Plaza in Honolulu is 19 stories above Kalakaua with a wraparound deck over Diamond Head, the Pacific and the city lights.
Tip: Happy hour 16:00 to 18:00 daily. Birria tacos as the late-night menu after 21:30 nightly.
Hideout by the Laylow in Waikiki Honolulu is the open-air poolside rooftop bar at the Laylow Autograph Collection, with craft cocktails and Modern Hapa Hawaiian small plates nightly.
Tip: Daily 11:00 to 22:00. Live music many evenings; the back lanai has the Diamond Head view.
The Tchin Tchin Bar rooftop in Chinatown Honolulu is the plant-walled terrace above Lucky Belly with hanging lanterns, wines by the glass, and the city's hippest non-Waikiki sunset bar.
Tip: Tuesday to Saturday 17:00 to 22:00. Closed Sunday and Monday; terrace seats first-come.
Bar Leather Apron in Downtown Honolulu is the intimate mezzanine cocktail bar inside the TOPA Financial Center, the 2023 James Beard winner for Outstanding Bar, with Hawaii's most extensive whiskey list.
Tip: Wednesday to Saturday 17:00 to midnight. Reservations highly recommended; walk-ins by availability only.
Podmore in Downtown Honolulu is Anthony Rush and Katherine Nomura's cocktail bar in the 1902 Joseph W. Podmore Building, with bartender Alex Law running the cocktail program in a lava-rock space.
Tip: Tuesday 15:30 to 22:00, Wednesday to Friday 11:00 to 22:00, Saturday 10:00 to 23:00. Closed Monday.
Skull and Crown Trading Co. on Hotel Street in Chinatown Honolulu is the modern tiki bar with fresh-juice cocktails, a deeper rum list and the Resy-only weekend reservations.
Tip: Tuesday to Saturday 17:00 to 23:00. Closed Sunday and Monday; book ahead on Resy for weekends.
Hula's Bar and Lei Stand on Kapahulu in Waikiki Honolulu is the 50-year-old LGBTQ+ bar inside the Waikiki Grand Hotel, opened 1974 by Jack Law and Bob Magoon Jr., billed as one of the longest-running gay bars in the world.
Tip: Daily 11:30 to 02:00. Diamond Head view from the 2nd floor lanai; nightly entertainment.
Bacchus Waikiki on Lewers Street in Honolulu is the friendliest gay bar in Waikiki since 2013, with a 2nd-floor wood interior, DJ-led weekends and drag shows alongside trivia and underwear parties.
Tip: Daily midday to 02:00. Wednesday GAYME Night 19:00 to 21:00. New ownership 2025 under Joseph Evans.
Wang Chung's Karaoke Bar in the Stay Hotel Waikiki Honolulu is the LGBTQ+ karaoke bar behind the Hyatt Regency, with speciality cocktails and $1 song queues nightly from 17:00.
Tip: Daily 17:00 to 02:00. Happy hour 17:00 to 20:00. Drag brunch and lesbian nights monthly.
The Manifest in Chinatown Honolulu is the dual cafe-and-cocktail bar with the state's largest whiskey selection, with live music and arts programming late nights since 2009 on North Hotel Street.
Tip: Tuesday 10:00 to 22:00, Wednesday and Thursday to midnight, Friday and Saturday to 02:00.
Bevy in Kakaako Honolulu opened as the SALT block's listening room with vintage hi-fi, DJ residencies and a cocktail program, with live music Wednesdays and DJ sets Friday and Saturday.
Tip: Tuesday to Saturday 17:00 onward, DJ sets Friday and Saturday 21:00 to 02:00. Closed Sunday and Monday.
La Mariana Sailing Club on Sand Island in Honolulu is the city's last original tiki dive bar since 1957, with carved tikis from the Sheraton Kon Tiki Room and pufferfish lamps from Trader Vic's.
Tip: Tuesday to Saturday 11:00 to 20:00. Closed Monday and Sunday; tucked behind the warehouses, hard to find.
Murphy's Bar and Grill on Merchant Street in Downtown Honolulu is the canonical Irish pub of the city since 1891, with 16 beers on tap, Guinness, shepherd's pie and the St Patrick's Day block party.
Tip: Monday to Friday 11:00 to 21:00, to 22:00 Friday. Closed Saturday and Sunday; lunch trade beats the dinner crowd.
Suzie Wong's Hideaway in Waikiki Honolulu is the dive bar hiding behind a 7-Eleven on Kalakaua, with cheap drinks, friendly bartenders and a divey-loud Waikiki off-strip vibe.
Tip: Daily until 02:00. Look for the unmarked door near the 7-Eleven; cash works easier than card.