This was such a peaceful beach, it's wide and the water is very calm and luke warm. Our little had…read morea blast playing in the sand and running in the water. The black rocks are there in certain areas but they are fairly smooth and easy to sit on and let the waves be at your waist. Also there is an upper level of grass too so you can picnic and whatnot. We stayed here for a couple of hours and lots of people also came to scuba dive. They had all their gear and went to the right side of the beach, maybe even did classes there? You could also see the Spouting Horn in your front view. This was a great spot that seemed not as popular, it didn't get busy until late afternoon and we had the beach for us and another couple families for hours. Great find.

Beautiful beach great views. They have public restrooms that are clean. There is three public…read moreparking and they also offer handicap parking..

A beach with an interesting name, Shipwreck Beach is located on the south shore of Kauai, close to…read morethe more popular Poipu Beach. It is easily accessible by car via a paved road (Ainako Street) betwen the Grand Hyatt and the golf course. My wife and I spent a couple of hours here, mainly because ironwood trees grow in the sand towards the back of the beach, and provided shade for where we sat down (it wasn't too crowded even in the early afternoon, and found parking in the small dirt parking lot adjoining). This is the beach that the folks staying at the Grand Hyatt would use, so saw loungers and umbrellas setup specifically for them. There was also good 5g reception so was able to surf the web while watching people surf the waves. The surf here is strong, and the shore break is very close to shore. This meant that folks were surfing and body boarding very close to shore, and I was amazed how they were able to avoid each other (and swimmers)...it definitely takes skills to do that...this is not a surf learning beach. Even saw one guy enter a barrel, being engulfed...have not seen one so close to shore before. I did enter the water and enjoyed it until a big wave caught me good and threw me ashore like a rag doll. Luckily I didn't pull anything, so decided not to push my luck anymore for the rest of the trip.

Pros: You will definitely see Sea Turtles, potentially Seals and Fish if you go out to snorkel…read more There is also a rental shop with affordable prices and a small playground. Cons: Parking in the afternoon is full and you will have to wait to get a spot. Tourist heavy, sand spots are hard to come by later in the day. Recommendation: Come before 10am, read all the sign otherwise lifeguards will yell at you over intercom and respect the wildlife.

Probably the most famous beach on Kauai, Poipu was named 'Best Beach in America' in 2001 by "Dr…read more Beach", when such lists weren't so prevalent as they are now. My wife and I visited on Day 4 of our Kauai vacation in the early afternoon, and continued to understand why it is so popular with tourists. The area around the beach area is built up, with retail businesses within walking distance. There is usually plenty of free parking, but on this day, the past week's rains had flooded one of the parking lots, so there were not as many spots. My wife still found a good spot though, and we walked the short distance to the shoreline. There is a protected man-made wading area towards the east of the beach. It is easy to wade out to the lava rock retaining wall, with the water being maybe 3 feet there. There are facilities and lifeguards in the area. One of their jobs was to keep folks from getting too close to 4 sea turtles that were sunning on the sand near that area.

To get the right directions look for the beach parking lot on Google maps. When you get to the…read morestables keep left at the fork. Pretty rough road. Don't suggest if you have a low riding car. You park up top and walk down the trail to get to the beach. Didn't find the trail rough or slippery as others had mentioned. Interesting caves along the way. Long strip of beach good for walking and there are tide pools at the other end which have some interesting stuff to look at. This beach was listed online as good for body surfing and boogie boarding. Absolutely not! It's very very rocky. You would be thrown into rocks and very scraped up. Shipwreck beach nearby is a bit rocky but not this much... And much more suitable for boogie boarding.

I hesitate to give 5-stars (to hide it away from other) but this it fabulous. No showers and the…read morescenery is spectacular...

This was a fun, chill beach that we checked out during our stay. It was within walking distance of…read moreour condo. It wasn't really crowded and the waters were really calm. There were a couple families with younger kids which was understandable because it was so chill. My girls and I enjoyed our time here playing in the water, sunbathing and beach bumming. The waters are super shallow even pretty far out, so it wasn't super conducive for snorkeling. I did a small amount of snorkeling, but noticed there were a TON of aha needlefish just hanging out right below the surface of the water. They were all looking straight at me while I was swimming around and were kind of freaking me out! It was then I decided to stick closer to shore and no longer snorkel lol!

Baby beach is a really great beach next to the road with homes across the street…read more This is a great beach to bring young children where they can play and swim in shallow pools. Another beautiful beach hardly anyone there and it was easy to find parking. They had 1 picnic table, but no restroom area. On Kauai you will see the occasional Rooster or Chicken running around where ever you might go too.

This was probably my favorite beach we visited this time around. It's not a very large beach and…read morecan get crowded with those who are wanting to snorkel. Even surfers set out here to catch some waves. There are a lot of rocks, more rocks than sand, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I highly recommend water socks to protect your feet. There's a great entrance point that's pretty smooth and easy on your feet, but the waves can be choppy. The snorkeling reminded me a lot of Two Step Beach on the Big Island because you didn't have to swim out very far to see fish. There were a ton of fish out there! There were also a couple of turtles further out, but there were quite a few people hanging out around them. Remember not to get too close to them! :) We visited this beach several times because it was right outside our condo complex. At one point we were just sunbathing and playing in the water and ended up having the whole beach to ourselves late in the afternoon! It was awesome!

This beach is perfect to watch the sunset at, & is right next to the nice restaurant The Beach…read moreHouse. There is a very small sand area, but the ground is leveled so that it's very easy to sit & watch the sunset. The water is full of rocks, which actually made it very good for snorkeling. There were lots of fish around, eating off of the rocks. It was also in a little cove, so the waves were a bit smaller & easier to snorkel around in. This was one of the best beaches to snorkel at to see fish of the ones I went to (Anini Beach, Poipu Beach, & here).

I came here after being sadly underwhelmed with the vibes at Poipu. We opted to set up a little…read morespot and jump in the ocean. The waves here are all shorebreak and the bottom drops out fairly quickly so prepare to tread water! We enjoyed our swim and worked up an appetite. The crowd can be a bit on the busier side since it's close to the resorts but Poipu was crazier in my opinion.

Amazing beautiful beach. Great waves, super close to the resorts, and the beach bar what else could…read moreyou ask for.

Beautiful trail along the hike that is fairly easy to moderate. A few bumpy parts, but no major…read moreelevation. Easy parking by Shipwreck Beach at the starting point. Took us a little over 2 hours with some photo opps.

While beautiful and at times stunning,this trail is located on the more arid and less accessible…read moreside of Kauai. I prefer the east northeast and northern trails as they are more tropical. I do recommend exploring everything and this trail is interesting.

This is a great beach right across from the broiler. Good spot to walk after dining and drinks…read more We saw sea turtles and monk seals in a natural setting. Lots of picnic benches. And clean beach restrooms. Feral chickens abound.

I have old memories of this beach. Before hurricane Ewa, this beach was the bomb! Good size waves…read morefor bodyboarding and body surfing. After hurricane Ewa, the personality of the beach changed. Ewa brought in a lot of rocks. The waves had become timid. No more bodyboarding and bodysurfing. To my surprise, today I see decent size waves And a good amount of bodyboarding and body surfers! Perhaps hurricane Iniki returned back to its ole' self? Well something happened! Maybe one day I'll enter the water once more here... after 39 years:)

If you find yourself near Poipu Beach and fancy a little natural theatrics, the Spouting Horn is…read moreyour go-to spot. Picture this: water shooting dramatically through blowholes, like Mother Nature showing off her party tricks. The ocean's hue is so stunning it might make your Instagram followers weep with envy. Parking? Plenty. Stress? None. There's even a picnic area if you feel like making a day of it--though, let's be honest, this is more of a quick-stop kind of gig. Legend has it, a giant lizard got trapped there and now moans dramatically every time the blowhole erupts. Talk about holding a grudge! We swung by during a casual drive from our condo, and while there's some nearby construction, it's nothing that'll ruin the vibe. Bonus: you can even catch a glimpse of the action from a mile away at the Sheraton Kauai Resort, if you're feeling lazy. So, is it life-changing? Nah. But is it worth a pit stop for some cool photos and a bit of local lore? Absolutely. Consider it nature's way of saying, Ta-da!

Located on the southern coast of Kauai, this natural lava tube blowhole has been known to shoot…read moreseawater as high as 50ft into the air. According to local folklore, a giant lizard which once protected this portion of the island got stuck in the lava tube. And the lizard's roar is now heard every time the Spouting Horn Blowhole blasts water into the air. There is a paved parking lot here, so parking is not an issue. While the actual blowhole is not accessible, you can still get a great view and awesome pictures at the fenced viewing area. There's not much else to do here so it never gets too crowded. As people come and go after about 10mins. Bathrooms facilities are also available here if you need a restroom break.