Hawaii Beaches and the Zen of Tiki

Kailua State Beach is my personal favorite all Hawaii beaches on the East coast of Oahu. This is not a surfers beach, this is a beach for everyone else.

This beach is a protected bay on the east side of Oahu. The surf is mild 1 - 3 ft on average, there is usually a nice breeze blowing that is strong enough to enable world class wind surfing. You can reach Kailua from Waikiki by a short drive from Honolulu taking the Pali Hwy through the rain forests. The Hwy drops you down into the town of Kailua. As you enter the parking lot you will see a van full of beach toys such as kayaks and boogie boards that are for rent.

Be on the look out for sea turtles, they will swim up to you and stick their head up out of the water and check you out. You have to be fast they don’t spend much time looking at you before they disappear under the waves. There is not a lot to see snorkeling but once in a while I have seen turtles cruising along the bottom. I recommend getting there early on weekends to find parking.

Not far to the south from Kailua is Hanuama Bay. You can snorkel with a wide variety of colorful fish and sea life. The weekends get busy so you must get there early because the park will shut down when the parking lot is full. There is a shack on the beach that rents masks and fins if you don’t have your own. There are three Orange balls floating near the back of the bay. There are strong currents past those floats that will pull you out past the coral. The life guards are constantly pulling people out of this area with their jet ski’s.

North of Kailua you will find several shrimp hatcheries. Stop at one of the road side stands and enjoy the Shrimp Scampi it’s fantastic. Further north is the Turtle Bay Resort and Golf Course. This could be a great way to spend the morning before hitting the beach.

As you round the tip of Oahu you are now on the North Shore approaching Sunset Beach and the Banzai Pipeline.

Let’s Go Home To Hawaii Beaches

Filed under: Best Beaches on May 7th, 2008