Working on the beach in oahu?

Travel Info
I am currently a college student and have a year and a half left before graduation. Once graduation comes, I want to move to hawaii (oahu) and work on the beach in waikiki. Any beach job is fine for me, especially such as whale watching, renting out jetskis, parasailling, etc. I was just wondering what other people thought of my idea. Obviously, there are adults in waikiki who work on the beach and make a living. I am 22 year old male, caucasian, single, and have no kids. I will have a bachelor's degree from Illinois State University. Any input is appreciated.

Travel Tips

I'm sure it is nice to dream about, but very impractical. If you have a degree why don't you consider getting a job in your particular field of expertise and spend your idle time on the beach. Not to discourage you from chasing a dream but is this something you want to do for an experience or long term. Most of the people I see working on the beach at Waikiki are native Hawaiians and I don't think they would appreciate very well a haole from the mainland trying to take away one of the jobs that could support another Hawaiian. They very much want you to come and visit their Islands and are by far the most accommodating and sincere folks I have ever met. However when you are finished visiting they want you to go back home, nothing personal. Living in Hawaii is expensive and visitors to the Islands like you and me have driven up the cost of housing and other living expenses and the support is needed for the local people.

I have the utmost respect for the people from the Islands and very much appreciate the "Aloha" I am given each time I visit. They deserve to keep as much of their heritage for themselves as they can.

If you still want to give it a try and realize how expensive it is and the obstacles you will face with the other people then go for it. I have a friend that is a surf instructor on Maui and he just barely gets by sharing a place with 4 other guys.

It may be glamorous to think about, but in reality very hard to accomplish.

Nice place to visit but do you really want to live there.

Get your education and put all that hard work and money you (or someone) spent on it to work. Then travel to the Islands and enjoy the beauty God has bestowed upon them and the people that call it their home. Go spend some time in the most beautiful place in the world and experience the the most wonderful people you will every meet.

"And Then Go Home".
Others

I went to school near Waikiki and I can tell you, though it's a pretty unrealistic goal, you should go for it if that's what you really want. Waikiki is actually a really ugly part of Oahu, the most touristy, and littered with the most drug problems and prostitution on the island. Also, I can't imagine anyone who could get a job whale watching, unless they are a tagging scientist, or parasailing, unless they are a professional competetive parasailer. I'd say that your best bet for working in Waikiki would be to work in one of the restaurants or shops in the area, and finding one directly on the beach would be really hard. Of course, having a bachelors will help, but honestly there are a lot of nicer areas in Hawaii to find a job, like the North Shore. Gorgeous beaches without half of the fat, whiny tourists. Anyway, I hope your dream comes true and you land that beach job. I hope my advice helps!
I think it's a great idea. If you love the sun and surf and love interacting with the tourists, you'll wake up smiling to go to work everyday.

Here's the problem(s): are you talking about opening up one of those businesses you mentioned and being self-employed? If so, just know that many of businesses already exist providing those services that you mentioned, and to complicate matters, Hawaii is not know for being business-friendly, much less small-business friendly.

If you plan on working for someone else, the problem then becomes survival--financially. To my knowledge, opening positions in many of those tourist-service jobs do not pay much, so making enough to pay rent (which is unbelievably high, esp. in Waikiki) becomes the next obstacle.

Working at one of the less populated beaches around the state is another idea, however, just understand that your chances of landing a higher-paying job becomes more difficult as well, since those less crowded areas serve less tourists, so obviously, less jobs are available.

I hope I don't sound too negative. The fact is, that making a life here is very difficult, but give it a try. For all the crap that I type, I wouldn't live anywhere else in the world. And staring at the waves all day (and the hot tourists, too!)....what can beat THAT?
You could become a professional lifeguard. You won't get rich, but you could survive. You could go to University of Hawaii and study Oceanography or something, that would put you in the water world of careers.
You don't need a degree to work at the beach, but you have to tan well. The Hawaiian sun is harsh and unforgiving, but with a lot of walking and shaking hands and hanging out I am sure that you can get a job working on the beach. With the number of different services that are provided there for the tourists it should just be a matter of time before you have a job.

Good Luck!!!