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S.W.A.T. Gun Club
Category: Arts & Entertainment Arcades Arcades [Edit]
2266 Kuhio Ave2nd Fl
Honolulu, HI 96815
Neighbourhood: Waikiki
(808) 923-3553
- Hours:
Mon-Sat 10 am - 11 pm
Sun 12 pm - 11 pm
- Good for Kids:
- No
10 reviews for S.W.A.T. Gun Club
10 reviews in English
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Review from Garett C.
San Jose, CA
5/23/2012
I've been visiting Hawaii (family) for over 15 years now and I've always wanted to try one of the Waikiki gun ranges for the assortment of guns you get to shoot. The gun clubs in Waikiki are catered to tourists who are looking for an experience, not a typical shooting time at the range.
Back home, I've been to normal ranges where you rent the lane, rent the gun(s), and buy their ammo. SWAT and the other Waikiki gun clubs are not like that. Instead, you pay a package price, get to shoot several types of guns (I did the VIP package: H&K USC, Uzi, CX4, M16, AK47) for a total of about 50 shots. That's not a lot of shots but that's about what these packages come with.
The location is an easy walk from any Waikiki hotel back a couple of streets to Kuhio Ave (back side of International Market). Walk between the buildings past a tattoo shop and discreet Gentleman's club and go up the metal spiral staircase to the SWAT Gun Club. Note: this is Hawaii... unlike the glorious hotels and Ala Moana Mall, *most* places in Hawaii are sort of run down compared to upscale Mainland standards. Once you enter the club, there's a front desk where the owner was stoic but became more friendly as I chatted with him.
DON'T FORGET YOUR COUPON! (Either online or from the street solicitors or tour books). ALL activities in Hawaii have coupons and no one needs to pay full price.
I signed the waivers, paid my fee, and was escorted to the enclosed waiting room to read safety instructions and wait as the guns were prepped.
The range itself was a short 30' distance so like I said earlier this was about a shooting experience with different guns... not "target practice". There were about 6 lanes and the guns from my package were spread out different lanes. Note that the guns are cabled to a bar inside the lane to prevent people from turning the guns on anyone else. I had no problem with this as I know how unruly Waikiki tourists can get. Again, this is not a typical range experience where respectful gun enthusiasts go to shoot... this is for TOURISTS to get to fire cool, and REAL guns.
The guns seemed properly maintained and the sites were accurate... I was able to hit center target for almost all my shots. The shooting only lasted maybe 15-20 minutes because of the number of shots. They allowed me to film myself with a tripod camera.
Overall, I'm glad I did it and was happy to get to shoot famous guns I've always wanted to try. Some people may have access to these "awesome" guns back home, but I do not so this was were I got my experience.
One big disappointment was the lack of an MP5; even though it was advertised in the package, on the fliers, and on the website. The owner explained that he was still trying to obtain one, and the CX4 was the equivalent replacement for it for the time being.
I had considered Waikiki/Hawaii Gun club originally, but the terse Japanese lady at the desk of Waikiki Gun Club really turned me off so I walked out. Later I went to Hawaii Gun Club to try and just shoot the MP5 but they wanted $65 for just 20 shots. Maybe next time. Both Waikiki and Hawaii Gun Club were clearly more catered to Japanese tourists. Also note that at these two locations you must pay $6 per target... and each gun uses its own target. At SWAT targets are all included.
Overall, I'd say any of the locations will be fun. It's more about what price you pay and which package you want. One thing SWAT has going for it is the nicer desk dude. -
Review from Paul B.
1/16/2012
Face it. You are vacationing in Hawaii, living the good life, its inevitable that you will eventually need to shoot some guns. I'm pretty sure thats how that works at least.
Either way, after beaching it up for a few days and eating as much spam musubi as possible, my girlfriend and I thought "a firing range? This makes perfect sense". Also, I somehow had decided that knowing how to not be terrified of a gun is some sort of "life skill".
Now, of course, Waikiki has multiple firing ranges so we decided to shop around and see what looked best. First we stopped at Hawaii Gun Club and were just generally creeped out by the vibe. Can't really say why but the place just made us feel uncomfortable and unwelcome... could have been a fluke, but it was enough for us to walk out and almost give up on the idea. But... my girlfriend had never even held a gun before, and again, somehow this seemed like something that needed to be corrected.
So we pressed onward and found our way to the oddly located S.W.A.T. Gun Club. And loved it.
Donny, the guy who helped us, was super nice. He answered all of the millions of questions we tossed at him and made it a comfortable experience. I can't really speak to what the experience would be like for people really experienced with firing ranges... but as tourists who don't know much of anything about guns looking for a first time firing range experience: S.W.A.T. Gun Club was ideal. -
Review from Nicole M.
9/1/2011 1 Check-in Here
We almost went to one of those Hawaii Gun Club places, but being a truster of yelp, I decided this place seemed more legit.
It's located exactly across from the trade center, walk into that shopping area and it's up the sketchy looking metal spiral stairs... When I saw that I thought "okay this is sketch..." but once you go in, it's all good! My worries disappeared, the desk man was really nice, and he spoke Japanese for the tourist that came in right after us. We used a web coupon for 30% off, though i think there was a kama'aina discount (not sure though). You have to be 21, and they'll ask you to sign a waver and write down your ID #.
We did the cheap combo A, 3 guns that came out to around $25.
All .22: pistol, revolver and rifle. We got goggles, headphones, and I got to wear this silly rubber smock thing so shells didn't go in my low cut top (looools). You go into a side room to read the rules, and into the range where they show you step by step what to do, and then let you at it! The guy was really nice, kept giving me tips on my aim (my friend and I both aimed a bit too high) and at the end you get your paper target to take home!
A cool experience, not scary at all! the .22s were perfect for a girl, no kickback, non-threatening really, the riffle was heavy though, it killed my arm and it was EFFIN HOT in there especially with the stupid rubber smock on haha
The guns are chained to poles on either side of the "booth". There's no running away or easily turning these on people in here! I felt safe, and they only take one or two groups at a time.
Awesome, I'll definitely come back for the bigger guns! -
Review from Jimmy L.
10/31/2011
Tips: Bring ear plugs to go with the ear-muffs they supply.
Bring a camera for memories!
We came here in the summer of 2010 and it was our first time shooting real firearms. A number of us got the VIP package which included a lot of .22 caliber rounds. This is probably one of their most profitable packages because honestly, they do not give you enough rounds on the big boys. We could hear a tourist couple inside firing and it was pretty loud. Looked at the surveillance camera feed and noticed this tiny girl was getting really harsh recoil for something. That got me nervous.
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Gun Review/Tips:
I was not very impressed with firing the little Ruger Rifle. The .22 caliber rounds are just so small, you feel proud for hitting the target spot on, but then you realize that you could do the same with an airsoft gun. You eventually finish with that and move up a bit.
The 9mm Beretta was the first real weapon I fired. Recoil was small, but noticeable for a first timer. This was probably the starting point of my new found hate for handguns. Important to note that you need to keep your thumb away from the blow-back. I've heard it so many times from watching other people that it's become a really good habit. You don't want to lose that thumb!
I moved on to the .38 caliber revolver and this thing had quite a kick. I was honestly scared to fire it, but I held it, kept a steady sight on the target and opened fire. Same for the .44 magnum which was even worse. I couldn't wait to get done with the handguns, but there was more! Glock 21. Made me feel like I was in a Hollywood movie. Until, that is, I fired it. They do not show how much recoil this thing actually has. To be honest, though, it was probably only because it was my first time at the range so the recoil of the weapons really took me by surprise.
FINALLY! We moved onto the M-16! Wait... what? I only get 2 bullets? You kidding me? This is THE gun to fire and you're only giving me 2? Pop 1. I hit the boarder of the circle. Pop 2. Bull's eye. Moving on...
The shotgun looked really scary. Apparently you need to aim really low on it. They only give you two rounds for this gun too (but I only needed two). Pop 1. Too high. Pop 2. Still too high. Not much of the target was left after that round. Blew it away.
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Final Words:
My experience here was fairly good at the time (would give them 4.5 stars), but now that I've gone to other gun ranges, I can't say the same anymore. They really take your money when it comes to the VIP package. The flexibility of their packages are also not available. I wanted to switch out the two shotgun rounds for two more rounds on the M-16. Not possible. Waikiki Gun Club is one of my more favorite spots in the area to shoot. -
Review from William C.
Tiburon, CA
10/10/2011
Since my friends are from China, they don't allow guns there so I wanted him to try shooting here in Hawaii, there are many human billboards waling on the street with different gun clubs in hawaii but after reading reviews in yelp we decided to try SWAT since its got good reviews and it was located right behind the restaurant we ate at. Walked in and the guy behind the counter was happy that I spoke good english (cos most of the ppl come here are japanese tourists) anyway we paid the discounted price(73 dollars to shoot 5 different types of guns) and off they went while we can watch him shooting through a video monitor in another room. whole thing takes about 15 to 20min and after he is done he gets to take the paper target home. overall very good experience!
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Review from Hanna P.
9/15/2009
Yea they're everywhere. LOL
When my BF and I came to enjoy Hawaii, we never thought we would go to the gun range to shoot some guns. But my BF really wanted to go shoot guns. What is a girl to do? Anyways, I was really scared at first because I thought this place was going to be like sketch city. The guy who was taking us back was kinda scary. I for sure thought I was going to be robbed and shanked in an alley.
Anyways, when we got there, I wasn't as scared anymore because the place looked normal. I did the VIP package because my BF wanted to shoot all kinds of different guns. Overall, it was pretty cool. I kept jamming the gun or something because every time it was my turn to shoot, the gun wouldn't work right. But the guy who was watching over us was really patient enough to keep fixing it for me. He was really cool and we kept joking around about how much I sucked because I kept shooting the target off the hook. It was pretty fun. -
Review from Brian L.
7/7/2009
You can't miss the ads for them...they're humans. They have them all over the main street, so if you're looking, they'll find you.
I believe I did the VIP package. It was about 120 bucks, you can bargain a little bit. I chose it because it offered a wide variety of guns to shoot. The people are all pretty nice.
You get a bunch of guns to shoot, the person loads it for you, changes the weapons for you, etc. You basically just stand there and shoot. What's annoying is that you have to pay for your own target (like 5 bucks, but still).
My favorite gun was definitely the 44 revolver, it was a beast of power. The M-16 was surprisingly easy to shoot.
I suggest you don't do a package if you want to shoot the powerful guns more. If you get a package, you get a lot of 22 bullets, which aren't very fun/accurate to shoot. You'll pay more, but you'll get more bang for your buck. If you just want to shoot and have fun, get the package. -
Review from Robert B.
Foster City, CA
9/5/2008
Wow.. what a concept... go to Hawaii and be a cool guy playing with the big guns!
Pretty cool... guns in an indoor range close to the beach and all the action... I guess all the tourists like to play Rambo on vacation.
We were met by some guy with a sandwich board passing out coupons for discount shooting and extra ammo... sounded fun - My girlfriend has never done it....I had a blast watching her shoot for the first time... she jumped and ran out after the first shot... I got the extra rounds... Thanks!
all the cheap packages are shooting .22 caliber guns...
revolver, semi-auto, and rifle...
I got the "b" package for $50 just to get a .38 and a 9mm into the mix...
it sure seemed like there was a lot more .22 rounds than the big stuff...
not like it's advertised.... but it was fun all the same...
kinda weird shooting guns that are chained to a wall... but I understand.... a high volume shooting range... don't want anything to disappear...
it's fun with a bang. -
Review from Euge L.
2/23/2009
these guys are like the nudie bar/call girls aka escorts aka hookers and blow in vegas. no shitting you. on any given night, there mustve been ten sandwich board guys all spread out the greater waikiki beach area advertising this place. i get it. the japanese cant have guns. they want to rent harleys and shoot guns when they come stateside.
but leave me alone!
bang bang... if im going to shoot guns on vacation, its not going to go bang bang... no thanks. 22s? 9mm? bring me a 44 magnum dessert eagle that i can make obnoxiously loud BANG BAADDDNGGGGG, but cant hit the side of a barn with, then maybe we will talk. -
Review from Joshua J.
Aiea, HI
11/29/2010
Being a local and knowing that this range was a tourist trap prepared me for the worst. I wanted to get my wife to shoot a .22 before we spent the money to buy her one, so we went down one afternoon armed with the discount coupon from their website. Parking was a pain, but that's pretty normal for Waikiki. We found the place easily enough, and the lady at the desk was friendly (although she was pretty insistent that I wanted to shoot the big guns).
The range was relatively clean, and the guy running the range was really friendly. My wife and I shot our rounds, and then collected our targets and left. The process was efficient, and everything worked. Now that my wife has her own .22, we will not likely visit this range again, however, it was a positive experience overall.
If you are planning to go, make sure you get a coupon from their website and know beforehand exactly what you want to shoot--and be ready to pay for it.
