Where can I see sea turtles?

Hawaii is the most reliable place to meet one: Laniakea Beach on Oahu, Kahalu'u Beach Park on the Big Island and Black Rock on Maui all have resident honu, reachable by walking in from the beach.

Can you touch a sea turtle?

No. In Hawaii, touching, chasing or feeding a honu is illegal under the federal Endangered Species Act and state law — NOAA documented a snorkeller paying a $1,500 settlement after pursuing one off Kaua'i. Stay 3 meters (10 feet) back.

How long do sea turtles live?

Green turtles don't reach breeding age until 20 to 30 years old and are believed to live several decades beyond that. Their exact maximum lifespan in the wild isn't precisely established.

Animal profile

Where to see sea turtles

Chelonia mydas (green turtle) & Eretmochelys imbricata (hawksbill)

A green sea turtle swimming over Hawaiian reef, mirrored in the underside of the water surface above it. — Sea Turtle, photographed in Hawaii. Photo by Brocken Inaglory · CC BY-SA 4.0

Green sea turtles are long-lived marine reptiles that travel hundreds of kilometres between the reefs where they feed and the beaches where they nest, using natal homing to return to the region they hatched in. In Hawaii they do something seen almost nowhere else at this frequency: bask out of the water on sand and lava rock, most likely to regulate temperature, save energy and rest out of reach of tiger sharks. The population has recovered substantially since legal protection arrived in the 1970s, from roughly 67 nesting females recorded in 1973 to close to 500 nesting annually in recent surveys — one of conservation's genuine success stories.

Size: Green turtles to about 1.2 m and 150 kg; hawksbills smaller, usually under 0.9 m
Diet: Adult green turtles graze seagrass and algae; hawksbills eat mainly sponges

Best places to see sea turtles

Hawaii · Oahu, Maui & the Big Island High confidence

Well documented, and reliably seen in season.

Best time: Year-round — and Hawaii is the one place they bask on land daily

How to identify a sea turtle

Green turtles have a small rounded head and a blunt, serrated beak; hawksbills have a narrow head with a pointed, hawk-like beak.
Hawksbill shells have overlapping tortoiseshell scutes and a serrated rear edge; a green turtle's are smoother and don't overlap.
Around most reefs the green turtle is the one you'll meet — a hawksbill is a genuinely notable sighting.

Meeting them responsibly

Keep at least 3 meters (10 feet) away, in the water and on the beach. Give a turtle resting on sand considerably more room than that.
Never touch, chase, feed or ride one. In Hawaii this is illegal under the Endangered Species Act, not merely rude, and people have been fined.
Never block a turtle's path to the surface. They breathe air, and a turtle repeatedly prevented from surfacing can drown.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I see sea turtles?: Hawaii is the most reliable place to meet one: Laniakea Beach on Oahu, Kahalu'u Beach Park on the Big Island and Black Rock on Maui all have resident honu, reachable by walking in from the beach.
Can you touch a sea turtle?: No. In Hawaii, touching, chasing or feeding a honu is illegal under the federal Endangered Species Act and state law — NOAA documented a snorkeller paying a $1,500 settlement after pursuing one off Kaua'i. Stay 3 meters (10 feet) back.
How long do sea turtles live?: Green turtles don't reach breeding age until 20 to 30 years old and are believed to live several decades beyond that. Their exact maximum lifespan in the wild isn't precisely established.