White Sands Beach Park (Magic Sands)
Kailua-Kona, HI
White Sands Beach Park earned its nickname, Magic Sands, from a shoreline that can vanish almost entirely during a big winter swell and reappear again just as suddenly weeks later. When the sand is in, it's one of the few real swimming beaches along this stretch of Alii Drive, and the shorebreak draws a steady crowd of bodyboarders every afternoon.
A genuinely fun, easy beach day when the sand cooperates, but the shorebreak causes real injuries and the beach's habit of disappearing keeps it unpredictable.
How we score beachesCall it Disappearing Sands if you want to sound like you've been coming here a while. Locals use both names depending on whether the sand happens to be there that week.
A small lot along Alii Drive fills quickly, especially on weekends, with additional roadside parking nearby when it's full.
A short paved path and a few steps lead from the lot to the sand, an easy walk when the beach is in its sandy phase.
Dogs are welcome on a leash at White Sands Beach Park, in line with the county's usual beach park rules.
Summer usually holds more sand and calmer water, while big winter swells are exactly what strips the beach down to bare rock some years.
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