Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area — Attraction in Hawaii

What an incredible beach and environment! Even with the high surf the water was warm and fun and easy to be in. The beach is well tended and the facilities are large and readily available.

I would give this a 5-star rating but for a bad experience. On days with high surf, the park forces visitors to exit prior to the times posted on the site. They communication was rather poor, especially for out of town visitors and had us rushing to leave to avoid a parking ticket. More than that, even with the information that the park would close at 4:30PM (rather than 8PM) they shut the water off well before 4:30PM, in fact it was shut of prior to 4PM so nobody could wash their feet or use the restrooms.

My recommendation to the park, should they ever read this, would be to provide clearer instructions to beachgoers about when the beach closes and THEN when the gate closes as well as the consequences for staying too late. I would also recommend the water be left on until the park closes. After all, if you're going to get a ticket for leaving too late, you should at least be able to wash your feet.

The whole experience left a rather bad taste in my mouth--it felt almost like a scam to generate revenue from tourists. I spent several days contemplating this review and still give it 4 stars, though, because the beach is just amazing and ultimately the worst part about the park was the staff's poor...

This is my parents favorite beach on the big island. They come every winter and stay in the Waikoloa Beach Resort area so this beach is conveniently located near by.

We came twice when we joined them for 10 days this year. This beach is known to be good for boogie boarding because of the big waves.

On our first visit, the waves were huge. Anthony and I both boogie boarded and had a great time. It was exhausting with such big waves.

The waves were much smaller on our second visit. We actually liked boogie boarding better because you didn't have to fight as many waves to get out there.

It's a really nice beach. My only issue is that it was very crowded both times. I prefer a less crowded, more relaxing beach. There also isn't much (if any) shade on the actual beach. There's a lot of shade behind the beach on the grass which we took advantage of (I prefer to be on the beach though).

Since it's a state park, parking costs $5 if you park inside the gates. There is plenty of parking, but since it's crowded, you might have to walk quite a ways to get there.

Stop at the nearby Hot Malasadas truck after for the best warm, fresh donuts.

If you like boogie boarding, this is a great beach to come to. Overall, if you can avoid the crowds, it's a...

The quintessential Hawaiian beach... This is it. Beautiful soft sand, a long beach to walk and contemplate life before jumping in and letting the rolling waves wash it all away. Or spend the day building a sand castle, or boogie boarding, or sun bathing, or putting down your phone and actually reading a book. There is a great concession stand with great food - tacos, French fries, etc and also umbrellas for rent - you will want one. There is no shade. Be mindful of your gear, and your garbage - wind picks up suddenly and fiercely. It's heartbreaking to watch beach toys get sucked out to sea and potentially harm the ocean life. Be sure to look behind you - the summit of Mauna Kea is visible from the beach, as is Haleakala on Maui - if the winds are right. Lastly, be mindful of the resident bees in a few of the trees below the parking lot and above the beach. Not usually a pest but for those with allergies it's something...