Kauai BeachesHawaii Beaches: Introduction | Oahu Beaches | Maui Beaches |Big Island Beaches (Hawaii) | Kauai Beaches If you are looking for long stretches of white-sand Kauai beaches, your best bet is Kauai's southern and western shores. Kauai's main resort areas are all quite different in climate, price, and accommodations. On the south shore, Poipu is anchored by perfect beaches. The Coconut Coast, on the east coast of Kauai, has the most condos, shops, and traffic. Hanalei, up on the North Shore, is rainy, lush and quiet, with spectacular beaches.
EAST SHOREKalapaki Beach, which fronts the Kauai Marriott in the town of Lihue, is the best of the east coast Kauai beaches. Kalapaki is protected by a jetty and patrolled by lifeguards, making it very safe for swimmers. The waves are good for surfing when there's a winter swell. The view of the Haupu Ridge that shields Nawiliwili Bay is breathtaking.
From Lihue Airport, turn left onto Kapule Highway (Hwy 51) to Rice Street, turn left, and go to the entrance of the Marriott; pass the hotel's porte cochere and turn right at the Shoreline Access sign. Facilities include lifeguards, free parking, restrooms, and showers; food and drink are available nearby at JJ's Broiler.
NORTH SHOREKee Beach is a reddish-gold beach where the road ends on the North Shore. Kee (kay-ay) is on a reef-protected cove at the foot of fluted volcanic cliffs. Swimming and snorkeling are safe inside the reef, but dangerous outside.
To get here, take Kuhio Highway (Hwy. 56), which becomes Highway 560 after Princeville. Kee is about 7.5 miles past Hanalei.
Swimming is excellent year-round, especially in summer when it becomes a big, placid lake. It is also great for body boarding, surfing, fishing, windsurfing, canoe paddling, kayaking, and boating (a boat ramp is on the west bank of the Hanalei River).
To get here, take Kuhio Highway (Hwy. 56), which becomes Highway 560 after Princeville. In Hanalei town, make a right on Aku Road just after Tahiti Nui, then turn right again on Weke Road, which dead-ends at the parking lot for the Black Pot section of the beach; the easiest beach access is on your left.
To get here, go west on Kuhio Highway (Hwy. 56), which becomes Highway 560 after Princeville. Between mile markers 4 and 5. Park on the makai (toward the sea) side of the road and walk down a steep path to the beach.
To get here, turn down Kalihiwai Road half mile west of Kilauea and then turn right onto the first dirt road, which is a tenth of a mile from Hwy 56. The road ends at a parking area a third of a mile down.
Take Kuhio Highway (Hwy. 56), which becomes Highway 560 after Princeville. It is about 6 miles past Hanalei town, after mile marker 8 (a half mile past Tunnels Beach).
Restrooms and showers are available at the public beach park. No lifeguards are on duty. If parking lot is full, continue half mile to Haena Beach Park (see above) and walk back.
SOUTH SHOREPoipu Beach Park offers beachgoers something unique to many Hawaiian beaches - calm waters. Due to the protected bays and shallow sandy bottoms (never get deeper than 3 feet), Poipu is very popular with families with small children. More advanced swimmers can swim to a reef guaranteeing underwater adventures.
To get here, turn on Poipu Beach Road, then turn right at Hoowili Road. Families are sure to appreciate the well-maintained picnic areas and covered pavilions, as well as the shower and bathroom facilities.
Low-lying rocks keep this Kauai beach from being good for swimming, but bodysurfers love it, especially in summer. A coastal walkway about a mile long along the cliffs leads to sand dunes that once served as a Hawaiian burial site.
To get here, turn into the Hyatt Regency Kauai Resort, drive along the east side of the hotel, and turn right. Public restrooms and showers are available. No lifeguards are on duty, but ocean conditions are posted.
WEST SHOREPolihale is near desert. When it's raining everywhere else, beachgoers head to Polihale State Park. The state park includes ancient Hawaiian temples and burial sites and the famed Barking Sands Beach, where footfalls sounds like a barking dog. In the winter, strong rip currents make the waters treacherous for swimming. The safest place to swim is Queen's Pond, a small, shallow, sandy-bottom inlet protected from waves and shore currents.
To get here, take Highway 50 past Barking Sands Missile Range and follow the signs through the sugarcane fields to Polihale. There are facilities for camping, as well as restrooms, showers, picnic tables, pavilions, and parking. No lifeguards are on duty.
|
Lydgate Beach Park, a popular family beach, has protected swimming in a large seawater pool created with stonewalls. Although there is no coral, snorkeling is quite good. You will find a good variety of colorful tropical fish including some large unicorn tangs and surgeonfish.
Hanalei Bay is a dream come true. The golden sands extend about two miles around the scenic half-moon Hanalei bay. On the other side, 4000-foot waterfalls lace the volcanic ridges. Three beach parks are located on the beach: Black Pot, Hanalei Pavilion, and Waioli. Restrooms and showers are available at each. 
Lumahai Beach, made famous by the movie South Pacific, remains one of the most photographed beaches in the state. With no protective reef, swimming or even wading can be very risky. No lifeguards are on duty. 
Secret Beach is a gorgeous golden-sand beach backed by sea cliffs and jungle-like woods. The beach can only be seen on land from Kilauea Point, so until the point was opened to the public in 1974, the existence of the beach was a "secret," known only to island residents and nude sunbathers. There are no public facilities or lifeguards here.
Haena Beach Park is a grainy-gold-sand Kauai beach that offers great swimming and snorkeling in summer. But stay out of the water in winter when the big waves are dangerous. Although there are no lifeguards on duty, there are plenty of facilities on hand, including picnic tables, restrooms, outdoor showers, and parking. 
Postcard perfect Tunnels Beach is a grainy, gold-sand beach with good summer snorkeling around reefs and coral heads close to shore. Its name refers to the reef "tunnels" that is found in the lagoon inside of Makua Reef, a popular scuba-diving spot. When the surf's up, Tunnels is one of the best Kauai beaches for expert wave riders.
Shipwreck Beach, the pleasant golden-sand beach fronting the Hyatt Regency Kauai, got its name from an unidentified wooden boat that lay crashed onshore for years until Hurricane Iwa washed it away in 1982. 
Salt Pond Beach Park is the second best family beach in Kauai (Lydgate State Park is number one). Natural reefs break the waves making it a safe swimming beach. Water in the cove gets up to 10 feet deep making it good for swimming laps (four time across equals half a mile). Both ends of the cove are shallow and good for kids.
To get here, turn left just past the 17-mile market onto Lele Road, then right onto Lokolkai Rd; the beach is about a mile from the highway. There are facilities for camping, as well as restrooms, showers, covered picnic tables, and lifeguards