STATE & NATION TRAVEL · news
Pearl Harbor sets Veterans Day memorial tours and a military-only USS Arizona visit
By Staff Writer · Published November 5, 2026
The Honolulu site will offer free parking November 11, public ranger programs at two Ford Island ship memorials, and a first-come after-hours USS Arizona boat trip for active and veteran service members.
Official announcement: National Park Service · November 3, 2026
Source: National Park Service November 3 Veterans Day release
Pearl Harbor National Memorial will hold three Veterans Day observances on Wednesday, November 11, with free parking at the visitor center for the day. The National Park Service scheduled public memorial tours from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hawaii time, an after-hours USS Arizona Memorial boat program for eligible military participants at 3:45 p.m., and a daylong floral tribute.
The 3:45 p.m. Arizona program is limited to active-duty and veteran United States service members. NPS says seats will be assigned first come, first served, with a maximum of 145 passengers on each boat; the release does not advertise advance reservations for this special departure.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., NPS staff will lead free 30-minute programs focused on the USS Utah and USS Oklahoma memorials and the people lost aboard the two ships. Visitors should take the regular Ford Island shuttle toward the Battleship Missouri and Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum, then meet park staff near the USS Oklahoma Memorial. A separate shuttle is scheduled to carry participants between the two sites every half hour.
Visitors may also leave a floral tribute and receive a commemorative name card connected to one of the service members memorialized at Pearl Harbor. That activity, organized with Pacific Historic Parks, is available throughout the day rather than at one scheduled tour time.
What Travelers Need to Know
Active-duty and veteran service members seeking the 3:45 p.m. USS Arizona program should arrive well before departure and bring appropriate proof of status. The special tour is first come, first served and capacity is limited; it is not the same as a reserved seat on the park's ordinary daytime USS Arizona schedule.
For the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. USS Utah and USS Oklahoma tours, start at the Pearl Harbor visitor center and use the regular Ford Island shuttle toward the Battleship Missouri and aviation museum. Build in time for security screening, the shuttle ride and the walk to the NPS meeting point.
Parking at Pearl Harbor National Memorial is free on November 11 under the event announcement. On an ordinary day the lot costs $7 and payment is made on arrival, so travelers visiting on another date should not expect the holiday exception. Park admission remains free, while separate partner attractions and reserved USS Arizona programs may have their own ticket or service charges.
The visitor center is normally open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and bags are not permitted inside the memorial or visitor center. Recheck the release and current park alerts before departure because Navy boat operations, weather and security conditions can change access.
About the Location
Pearl Harbor National Memorial is at 1 Arizona Memorial Place in Honolulu, just outside the secured Ford Island bridge. The site interprets the December 7, 1941 attack on Oahu and its consequences while preserving places associated with the USS Arizona, USS Utah and USS Oklahoma.
The Ford Island memorials give the November 11 tours a setting that ordinary visitor access does not fully reproduce. NPS says the USS Oklahoma capsized minutes after the first torpedo strike, killing 429 officers, sailors and Marines. The USS Utah Memorial is normally unavailable to visitors who lack military-base access, so the event's dedicated connection between the two Ford Island sites is a significant part of the program.