Lydgate Beach Park
Wailua, HI
Lydgate Beach Park uses a pair of boulder enclosed pools at the mouth of the Wailua River to turn an otherwise open stretch of coast into the safest ocean swimming on this side of the island. Families spend entire afternoons here, moving between the calm pools and the large playground just behind the sand.
The protected pools make this the single easiest ocean swim on the island for small kids, and the only real downside is how crowded the playground and pools get on weekends and school holidays.
How we score beachesUse the smaller, shallower pool near the parking lot for very young kids, and save the larger pool further along for confident swimmers who want enough depth to actually swim laps.
A large paved lot serves the park, generally with room even on busy weekends given the size of the beach and playground area.
Paved paths connect the lot to the pools and playground, among the more wheelchair and stroller friendly beaches on Kauai.
Dogs are not permitted on the sand at Lydgate Beach Park, though a leashed dog under six feet is allowed on the coastal path that begins at the end of Nalu Road.
The boulder walls keep the pools swimmable in essentially any season, making this one of the few Kauai beaches where winter surf doesn't really change the plan.
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