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Hāpuna Beach State Recreation Area, Waimea, HI

Photo: Polihale, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

Sport & OutdoorOutdoor AdventureFamily Favorite

Hāpuna Beach State Recreation Area

Hapuna Beach Rd off Queen Kaahumanu Hwy (HI-19), south of Kawaihae · Waimea, HI

Why you should go…

Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area wraps a wide white-sand beach on the Kohala Coast, one of only a few on the Big Island's west side. You can swim in calm seas, bodysurf the shore break, sunbathe and picnic, with lifeguards on duty, then walk part of the coastal Ala Kahakai Trail. The name means spring or pool in Hawaiian. In high surf the shore break and rip currents turn dangerous, and non-residents pay an entry fee.

  • #beach
  • #state park
  • #bodysurfing
  • #kohala coast
  • #swimming

Good to know

General sport & outdoor guidance

Habits that pay off across this whole category, not rules for this one venue. Always check the official site for the specifics.

  • Weather calls the shots

    Check the forecast the morning of and keep an indoor backup in your pocket for the day it turns.

  • Shoes, water, sun cover

    The three things that decide whether you last the whole outing or cut it short after an hour.

  • Parking and launches fill early

    On a nice weekend, lots and trailheads are often full by mid-morning.

  • Daylight shrinks in shoulder season

    Spring and fall visits need an earlier start than the same trip in July.

What's around here?

The closest stops to Hāpuna Beach State Recreation Area, ordered by straight-line distance. A few more like it, plus some different kinds of fun so you can build a full day.

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Mauna Kea

    Free

    Stop at the visitor station at 9,200 feet, then take a four-wheel drive road to Hawaii's highest summit and its observatories.

    26 mi awayMore like this

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Outdoor Adventure

    Kealakekua Bay

    Free

    Snorkel a protected marine bay and see the white monument marking where Captain Cook was killed in 1779 on the Kona coast.

    36 mi awayMore like this

  • Sightseeing
    History Buff

    Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau National Historical Park

    Under $25

    Walk the Royal Grounds and a centuries-old place of refuge guarded by carved wooden kiʻi on the Kona coast.

    40 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sightseeing
    Iconic

    Kīlauea

    $25–$50

    See one of Earth's most active volcanoes and its summit caldera inside Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park.

    53 mi awaySwitch it up: Sightseeing

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park

    $25–$50

    Drive and hike around Kīlauea's summit caldera, then follow Chain of Craters Road down to the sea.

    53 mi awayMore like this

  • Sport & Outdoor
    Iconic

    Haleakalā National Park

    $25–$50

    Drive to a 10,023-foot volcanic summit above the clouds on Maui, then hike the crater or the coastal Kīpahulu District.

    55 mi awayMore like this