Portlock Beach
Honolulu, HI
Portlock Beach is a narrow strip of sand tucked between multimillion dollar homes at the eastern tip of Hawaii Kai, with the widest patch of sand sitting roughly between the 240 and 280 addresses on Portlock Road. Public access here was a real fight. The city cut down a gate blocking a public right of way in 2021 after years of residents treating the shoreline as private.
A real, hard won public access point with genuinely scenic water, but there's very little sand and the neighborhood makes it clear you're a guest.
How we score beachesLook for the marked public right of way signs between the driveways. The beach itself is thin and rocky in spots, so this is more a quiet walk than a spread out sunbathing spot.
Street parking only, along Portlock Road, limited and residential, so park legally and keep noise down.
A narrow public right of way path cuts between two properties down to the sand, uneven underfoot in places.
Calmer in summer, while winter swells can leave almost no dry sand at the narrower sections.
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