The famous Banzai Pipeline surf break is located on Oahu’s North Shore in Hawaii.
Pipeline forms over a shallow reef near ʻEhukai Beach Park. When powerful winter swells arrive, the wave can create a hollow, often nearly cylindrical tube, which is why the break is renowned for both its beauty and its danger. The reef leaves little margin for error when surfers are traveling inside the barrel.
The name Banzai Pipeline combines the break’s local nickname with the title of a 1963 surf movie, The Endless Summer. Surfers commonly call the wave simply Pipeline, while the nearby beach is associated with the break’s official park location.
Oahu’s North Shore also includes other famous breaks such as Sunset Beach and Waimea Bay. Pipeline is therefore a specific reef break, not a general name for all large Hawaiian surf.