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    Gnarwall Surf Shop

    3.1 (19 reviews)
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    Don G.

    Awesome local surf shop located upstairs from Cinnamon's Restaurant. Nice selection of boards and accessories along with the epic custom air work of Christian Bendo on display. Christian's artwork caught my eye and soon had my full attention. I purchased two of his ocean themes created on local wood, that captures the great mana of these beautiful Pacific Islands and the unique feel of Kailua Beach. There is also a display of many of his unique custom prints, captured on real wood postcards. BONUS! I asked "John" the sales representative if I could meet the artist and have him personally sign his artwork, that I had decided to purchase! Yes! I was able to meet, talk story and even take photos with this magical creative artist. Mahalo for the fantastic five star treatment and amazing artwork that will soon become a family heirloom. I highly received visiting Kailua town and having breakfast or lunch at Cinnamon's and browse the local shops and make a stop in at Gnarwall's Surf Shop to check out their products, good vibes and local feel. I'm thrilled with my unique art purchase and in meeting the artist Christian in person. It's a unique opportunity to meet and talk to the man behind the magical artwork that he creates on the board.

    Kellyo O.

    Ohhh this is a ROUGH review for me!! I LOVE the name since it is a play on words and my family has a whole thing with me and Narwhals ;) but on the other hand, I think they really scour the FB Marketplace and Craig's List to grab up all the good board offers then turn around and sell for SO MUCH HIGHER :( I saw a board that I was trying to get on Marketplace and I know it was the same one because I still had a screenshot on my phone. They had it for $140 more than what they picked it up for so that made me sad. I think that is super uncool. They have a plethora of good boards in there but used shops that grab and hoard - not so into that. And I know they aren't the only ones that do it, just disappointed. Aloha

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    6 months ago

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    5 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    John I.

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    1 year ago

    came here to support local and was super disappointed. really poor customer service, not friendly at all.

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    2 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    5 years ago

    Great place to sell your boards they even mail you the check . Elijah was very helpful when I dropped off my boards too consign .

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    6 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    John I.

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    Review Highlights - Gnarwall Surf Shop

    Been a customer of John's since before he opened the shop and have literally never been disappointed.

    Mentioned in 3 reviews

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    HIC Hawaiian Island Creations

    HIC Hawaiian Island Creations

    3.5(34 reviews)
    0.3 mi
    $$

    Keeping it local…read more.. Always passed it but never really stopped by as this Kailua location is right across from Target is easy to spot as it's quite massive having several sections there is quite a bit to see here. Love that they have their own parking lots as well though not a lot of stalls its convenience not to search is always appreciated. What I came for was stickers...love what these local shops have as it's so colorful and creative and finding something different is a challenge but for me was finding them lol as usually you find it in the display case which wasn't the case and as I searched and searched it wasn't on any of the walls or shelves got me confused and wondering if they have any at all. The staff was quite busy as the store was crowded and hand folks lined up to pay I finally found them right against the wall beside the front door lol! Finding unique ones was nice even Kailua ones is cool including the local zip code was nice but I liked the floral prints which they didn't have much of but did have deals on multiple purchase was nice since I was doing that and was thrilled to have some stickers at a great deal as well. Keeping things local is always great and here you're sure to find that and more. Thank you!

    Moments after the 10 am opening in Kailua I entered the store - 1 other customer, 4 staff members…read more Not a single staff member engaged, asked if I needed help finding something, or got a simple good morning. Each of them looked at and past me. I found what I needed, as there is a good supply of surf toys and the necessary accessories. Is it too much to expect to be acknowledged?

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    HIC Hawaiian Island Creations
    HIC Hawaiian Island Creations
    HIC Hawaiian Island Creations

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    Local Motion Hawaii - Hello Kitty skateboard that costs $99. Cute.

    Local Motion Hawaii

    3.8(14 reviews)
    4.4 mi
    $$

    My daughter and I came in to check out what they had. I saw a rack in the middle with tee shirts on…read moresale for $15. Original price was $30. Not bad. I ended up buying a burgundy colored shirt that says Local Motion on it in small letters. I remember my husband used to buy me stickers from the store. I love this brand. They sell a lot of cute clothing especially some Hello kitty stuff like the skateboard I posted. So cool. So worth the splurge and definitely check out their sale items. Customer service here was nice. The lady behind the counter explained that there are no returns on sales items because it's final clearance. Store was clean inside and everything was organized. Very nice. I would definitely come back again to check out more stuff.

    Shopping in Kaneohe, Hawaii…read more.. If you need outdoor gear such as coolers, surfboards, and YETIs, come to Windward Mall and take a look at Local Motion. Located on the upper level, next to T&C Surf Designs, Local Motion has the nicest employees and a great selection of name brands like: Hurley Billabong O'Neil Quiksilver There are a lot of t-shirts, shorts, flip flops, tote bags, towels, surf accessories, etc. to choose from! I had purchased some shirts last year and the size wasn't right. The normal exchange policy is within 90 days. However, they let me get a different size and I gladly paid the difference! Thanks for being so understanding and pleasant! That's why I enjoy the environment here! The helpful staff and quality products are spot on!

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    Local Motion Hawaii - Nice window set up

    Nice window set up

    Local Motion Hawaii
    Local Motion Hawaii - Why sell these in HI?

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    Why sell these in HI?

    Windward WaterSports

    Windward WaterSports

    4.5(113 reviews)
    0.2 mi

    Review for Windward Water Sports 33 Hoolai St, Kailua, HI…read more96734 Owner/Instructor: Jeff Tobias On August 31, I contacted Windward Water Sports, owned and operated by Jeff Tobias, regarding a kayak rental. Since it was a Sunday and most other rental businesses were closed, we reluctantly went with this company -- a decision I sincerely regret. From the outset, the experience was chaotic and unprofessional. Calling ahead yielded little useful information; staff were unclear, unresponsive, and seemingly uninterested in helping. We were forced to book online due to the lack of timely or reliable communication. Upon arrival, we were issued kayaks and life vests that were in poor, unsafe condition. The life jackets were tattered, worn out, and looked completely unmaintained -- a major safety red flag. It's clear that this business does not prioritize safety or equipment standards. There was no proper safety briefing, and we received no warnings about the unfavorable weather or ocean conditions. The water that day was rough, choppy, and unsafe -- especially for first-time kayakers. No one at Windward Water Sports made any attempt to reschedule us or even disclose these conditions. A responsible and ethical business would have recognized the risk and acted accordingly.The parking at the launch site was disorganized and overcrowded, costing us nearly an hour of our already limited rental window. What should have been a 20-minute paddle to the snorkeling area took over 90 minutes due to the dangerous wave activity. Once we arrived, visibility in the water was zero -- snorkeling was completely out of the question. To make matters worse, on the return trip, one person in our group capsized and could not reboard their kayak without assistance -- a terrifying experience that further reflects the lack of proper safety measures, briefing, or equipment quality. After this ordeal, I requested a partial refund, understanding that we used the kayaks briefly. I was met with a flat denial. The justification? "Business has been bad." That is not a valid excuse. It is completely unacceptable to prioritize your financial struggles over the safety, experience, and basic rights of your customers. At this point, given the unsafe conditions, defective equipment, and the lack of disclosure or professionalism, I am demanding a full refund. That is the only reasonable and ethical course of action. Jeff Tobias needs to do the right thing and issue a full refund immediately. This wasn't just a poor experience -- it was negligent, unsafe, and unethical. I will be filing complaints with relevant consumer protection agencies and posting this review across all major platforms to warn others. Avoid Windward Water Sports. Your safety and your money are worth more.

    Friendly staff and good equipment! We wanted to rent on Sunday to go to Kaneohe. Unfortunately,…read moremost places are closed on Sunday, but not Windward! We called day of to confirm we are able to go to the sand bar on a Sunday. He had a few kayaks left and suggested we reserve it ASAP. We showed up at 10:15 to get our 2 tandem kayaks. Jeff and another employee helped us load it onto the top of our Nissan Altima, taught us how to load it, and told us where to park to get to the sand bar. We were off within 15 minutes. The kayaks are a lot heavier than I expected. They mounted them with ease but it was much harder for us to do on our own. It isn't hard in terms of the order to do everything or how to do it, but it was hard just because it is heavy. Overall I'd rent from here again as long as you have strong people to carry the kayaks. The rental for Kaneohe sand bar must be a full day rental (we used about 4.5 hours but would have felt rushed to get it back in 4 hours). It includes an anchor as well. It was $75 per tandem kayak + tax for us.

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    Windward WaterSports
    Windward WaterSports
    Windward WaterSports

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    Straight Up Surfboards

    Straight Up Surfboards

    5.0(2 reviews)
    0.1 mi

    Everyone talks about the magic board. Well, I actually owned one! The best board I ever owned was a…read more6'2" Island Classics shaped by Kim Purington. It had deep six channels and was so fast and responsive. It really was an amazing board! I rode it in Hawaii, California, France, and finally broke it in Spain. I have never had a board like it since! Order your magic board from Kim now!

    I have been surfing for 15 years and these guys are the best bang for your buck. Better and cheaper…read morethan anywhere else! No brainer. Just received my second custom hand-shaped surfboard from Kim Purrington at Straight Up Surfboards Hawaii. The first one was perfect I told him what kind of surfing I do then boom I had my first "magic board". Same process for the second one. It looks perfect as well. Some people don't understand the importance of a custom board. I'll tell you, off the rack boards from stores, if you can find dimensions that suit you, have really light, weak glass jobs and Kim Purrington will recommend the right glass job for you. It's fully custom and the kicker is even with all the added glass and talk time it is WAY CHEAPER and the quality is WAY BETTER. You can't go wrong with Straight Up Surfboards Hawaii. I know some people who have been getting boards from Kim for there whole lives. He is such a good guy and an even better shaper who used to shape with Eric Arakawa. Kim is just a brilliant artisanal surfboard shaper.

    Gnarwall Surf Shop - surfing - Updated May 2026

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