Movie and TV Sets to Visit in Oahu

If you're planning to visit Oahu and would like to see some of the various locations around the island that have been used to film movies and TV shows, there are numerous places to visit.

Some can be seen while taking tours, while others you can visit on your own. Let's take a look at some of them.

Kualoa Ranch Tours

If you enjoy taking tours, you might be interested in taking a tour at Kualoa Ranch, with two of their most popular filming location tours being the Hollywood Movie Sights Tour and the Jurassic Adventure Tour.

The Movie Sites Tour takes you to various filming locations on the ranch where you'll see areas used for TV shows and movies, including Hurley's golf course on Lost, Jurassic Park, 50 First Dates, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, Godzilla (see his footprint above), and Jason Momoa's miniseries Chief of War. The tour lasts 1 1/2 hours and is in an open-air bus.

Jurassic Adventure Tour

The Jurassic Adventure Tour is a 2 1/2 hour jeep tour that takes you to numerous locations used in Jurassic Park, Jurassic World, and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. (Warning: the jeep ride can get pretty bumpy.)

You'll see the Indominus Rex paddock, the cages the dinosaurs were kept in, and the tree where the character Alan Grant ducked behind with Lex and Tim Murphy during a dinosaur stampede. The tree is shown in the above photo.

(Yes, it looks much smaller than in the movie, but that's because the movie was filmed in 1993 and the tree has deteriorated since then.) There are plenty of other locations as well.

There are lots of photo ops on both tours, and the tour guides are more than happy to take pictures for you. If you don't have a car, the tour offers hotel pick-ups in Waikiki.

Hawaii Five-O Tour

If you're a fan of the series Hawaii Five-O, then check out the Hawaii Five-O tour offered by Hawaii Tours. The 4-hour tour will take you to various filming locations, including Aliʻiōlani Hale, which is actually where the Supreme Court is located, but was used as the headquarters for Five-O.

You'll also see Iolani Palace, which served as the headquarters for the original Hawaii Five-O TV series, which ran for 12 seasons beginning in 1968.

You'll pass by many filming locations, including the Hawaii Film Studio, along with some iconic Oahu sites like the Governor's Mansion and Punchbowl.

The real highlight of the tour is having lunch at Steve McGarrett’s house, where you'll get a picnic lunch consisting of gourmet sandwiches, chips, drinks, and a homemade cookie.

However, it isn't the lunch that makes this so special. It's that you get a meet and greet with Shawn Kauaʻawa Garnett, who played Cousin Flippa on the show. He'll give you information about the series, answer questions, and pose for pictures.

Honolulu Filming Locations

There are locations all over Honolulu that have been used for filming, including Punchbowl Cemetery, which was seen in both the original and remake of Hawaii Five-O. Speaking of Hawaii Five-O. The Hilton Hawaiian Village was also used numerous times in the filming of this show.

NCIS: Hawaii has filmed at Waikiki Beach as well as Elvis Presley's Blue Hawaii, which was also filmed at Diamond Head. The first season opening of Gilligan's Island was filmed at the Wai Yacht Club in Honolulu, while the Honolulu Elks Club was used as the King Kamehameha Club on Magnum P.I.

Drive by 1381 Queen Emma St., and you'll see what used to be the office for Dog the Bounty Hunter.

If you don't want to pay for a tour and you don't have a car, I suggest taking the Waikiki Trolley Red Line. It's a 2-hour hop-on and off trolley tour that takes you to several historic sites in Honolulu as well as filming locations.

TV Shows and Movies Filmed at Turtle Bay Resort

One of the most popular filming locations on the island, The Turtle Bay Resort, located on Oahu's North Shore, is a gorgeous luxury resort featuring fine dining, tennis, a spa, as well as biking and hiking trails. It also happens to be the filming location of over 150 TV shows and movies. It was the primary filming location for Forgetting Sarah Marshall and was used extensively for Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates.

Other films and series shot here include:

• Journey 2: Mysterious Island
• NCIS: Hawaii
• The Amazing Race
• Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
• Alvin and the Chipmunks III: Chipwrecked
• The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
• The Amazing Race
• Magnum P.I.
• Soul Surfer

In addition, there are many TV shows and movies that have been at least partially filmed at the Hawaii Film Studio. This studio is not open to the public, but you can drive by the outside knowing that TV shows like Baywatch Hawaii, One West Waikiki, and the reboot of Magnum P.I. have been filmed there, as well as movies like Fifty First Dates and Final Fantasy.

As you can see, there are quite a few locations to visit around Oahu that have been used in TV shows and movies. In fact, there are places you might visit and not even know were previously used for filming. For example, the Honolulu Zoo has been used several times in filming. I stayed at The Twin Fin and was surprised to find out that the bar had been used in Hawaii 5-O. As many sites as I have mentioned here, it doesn't begin to cover all of the locations used on the island.

If you were visiting Oahu, which movie or TV set would you most like to see?