HONOLULU GUIDE:
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°PubClubbing
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°Nightclubs
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The best bars and nightclubs and the nights to be there are reviewed on this site with words and photos.

Nightclubbing in Honolulu

People get wild at Honolulu's nightclubs.

I's a Hawaiian tradition. Days spend at the beach are followed with an evening of dancing at the clubs.

This is hardly New York, mind you. Honolulu's club scene is much more laid-back. The dress codes are relaxed, the clubbers far less intense and the staff usually know who's coming in the door.

There is little point in arriving before midnight. It is possible to beat the weekend rush of people coming from the just-closed bars and pubs by arriving prior to 1 a.m. Otherwise, the entrance line provides the opportunity to win over a few new party friends before going inside.

The clubs are located a few blocks inland from the beach. It's best to take a quick 5-minute taxi ride from the major hotels or other area bars.

In addition to the dance spots, Honolulu's strip clubs are popular party spots, even among local women. Scroll to the er, bottom, for the scoop on where to see the strippers.

Dance Clubs (For Honolulu Bars & Pubs, Click Here)

One club is named after the famous surf spot at the North Shore.

Dancing the evenings away under the swawing palm trees is a breeze in Honolulu.

One of the locals' most popular Saturday night activities is a weekly event called Feng Shuiat the Hyatt. With a different theme each week, it turns the upstairs bar at the Hyatt into an upscale club scene. The bar, which has an outdoor walkway overlooking the beach is, well, nice! It's classy not casual, or at least not Hawaiian casual, so shoes not sandals are required. Other nights, the Hyatt bar can accommodate those souls without soles.

Another hot promoter party is Skyline, Put on by Flash, promotions guru at the famous Wave, it's a dress-to-impress affair for a 30ish upscale crowd. It's 30 floors up in the Hanohano Room, of the Sheraton Waikiki.the first and third Saturday of the month and reaches capacity by midnight. Click here for the latest party Skyline parties.

Keeping with the surf theme, at least in name, is Pipeline. It's about twice the size of The Wave and has a huge video screen behind the deejay. It has two "VIP" rooms, but gaining entrance is as simple as walking up the stairs (this isn't exactly the Foundation Room at the House of Blues in L.A.). The room by the dance floor is fairly posh with couches and a low-lit bar while the one by the entrance is more like a sports pub. The crowd is a tad younger than at The Wave and a bit more club-dressy. The one downside to Pipeline – and it's an easy deal-with-it situation – is that it is swarmed with flashlight-waving security guards keeping the walkways clear. Fortunately, they are concentrated around the entrance and are not pushy by any means, so it's best to be in other parts of the club.

One of the most popular dance spots is Locus, with its three rooms and packed weekend crowds ($10 cover, long pants required but stylish tees okay). "It's the sickest club in town," one local says. Then again, it was pretty sick local that said it (ha, ha).

The most casual dance club in town is the friendly Red Lion. How friendly? The doorman smiles when he let you in. How casual? If it weren't for the dancing, this would be a great dive pub. Instead, it's a great dive dance club. A major redevelopment project by the Outrigger hotel chain has chased it from Lewers Street to the UH area. Locals still love the place because it always has drink specials.

Club partying, Aloha style

For those who wonder where in the heck they are going to wear that black dress or black shirt and slacks they packed for a trip to Hawaii, Honolulu does offer some upscale club choices. The Ocean Club at Restaurant Row is a bar and dance club. It's most popular among well-dressed locals on Tuesdays and the last Saturday of each month it has something called the "piranha room." Here, people start lining up at around 10. Shorts and not even jeans are not allowed – this is definitely a "scene" club.

Like its popular cousins in New York and Los Angeles, the W Hotel at the base of Diamond Head has a lively lounge. The view from the bar is tough to beat, and we don't just mean the ocean. On Fridays and Saturdays, this is where the classy and affluent singles mainly in their 30s and 40s can be found. The problem with the W is that it could be anywhere –  Dallas, Atlanta, New York – and there's no hint of Hawaii.

A similar scene is evident at the exclusive John Dominis. It is a bit expensive, but has style. Venus is a left-of-center club that's best on Sunday nights.

Moose McGillycuddy's isn't much of a pick-up place, but the soldiers and sailors who just moved to town don't know that yet. They flock here like it's general quarters and are attacked by attractive and overly-eager he/shes. It can be amusing to watch the action (from a safe distance, of course). Okay, we confess that this is not always the case. In fact, Tuesday it has dollar drinks and Wednesday is Ladies' Night with drinks specials.

For promoter events, Skyline Two (www.skylinetwo.com ) has all kinds of cool activiites, including poolside parties under the moon.

Diamond Head isn't the only landmark in Honolulu. For nightclubs, it's The Wave, as much of a local ritual as tanning, as big a legend as The Duke. At least it was, until condo developers came in and took over the property, reducing The Wave to a mere memory.

Strip Clubs

The strip clubs in Honolulu are so good, even women frequent them.

Unlike other major metropolitan cities, Honolulu strip clubs allow full nudity while getting drunk as a skunk (hard booze, beer & $100 bottle of Korbel champagne for the ladies). Although touching the dancers is not allowed, many of the dancers will touch you (over and over again). Some of the most famous porn stars can be seen in Honolulu for special performances. Plus, many of the strip clubs serve outstanding free food and $2 beers at Happy Hour.

Local favorites are Rock Za because it has the hottest chicks, Deja Vu - almost as "infamous" as Rock Za – Femme Nu because the girls tend to touch a lot and Exotic Nights because it has, according to one local, "the most bang for the buck."

Next stop on the Hawaii Party Bus: Sightseeing!

Honolulu Nightclubs Listing

* The Wave, Hawaii's most famous bar with live music, is being replaced by condo development. A sad, bad "development" for Honolulu's nightlife scene.