Makapuʻu Beach Park
Waimanalo, HI
Makapuʻu Beach Park sits directly below the lighthouse trail, its wide sand backed by cliffs and known island wide for a shorebreak that draws serious bodyboarders in winter. Summer flattens the surf enough for swimming, and the view across to Rabbit and Kaohikaipu islands is one of the best on this side of Oahu.
One of the most scenic beaches on the island with a real winter bodyboarding culture, but the shorebreak sends people to the hospital most years and it's no place for casual swimmers when the surf is up.
How we score beachesWinter swells here are for experienced bodyboarders only. Ask the lifeguard about conditions before you go in past your knees.
A large free lot sits right at the beach off Kalanianaole Highway, and it fills on winter weekends when the swell is up.
A short, flat walk from the lot leads onto open sand, no stairs.
Winter brings big, dangerous shorebreak and a real bodyboarding scene, while summer calms down enough for regular swimming.
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