Duke Kahanamoku Beach
Duke Kahanamoku Beach
4.5
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Named after the former olympian Duke Kahanamoku.
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Neighborhood: Waikiki
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.5
110 reviews
Excellent
50
Very good
39
Average
20
Poor
1
Terrible
0
Tommo
Melbourne, Australia56,931 contributions
Mar 2020
Duke Kahanamoku Beach forms part of the famous Waikiki Beach.
It is located at the front of the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon. The beach is named after Duke Paoa Kahanamoku (1890-1968), who is anicon and a respected Hawaiian surfer.
Its a beautiful beach, lovely white sand and a great spot in the afternoons to watch the sunset.
It is located at the front of the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon. The beach is named after Duke Paoa Kahanamoku (1890-1968), who is anicon and a respected Hawaiian surfer.
Its a beautiful beach, lovely white sand and a great spot in the afternoons to watch the sunset.
Written March 21, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
William B
San Francisco, CA178 contributions
Aug 2023
One of the best places to eat in Waikiki. Service is excellent and food is outstanding. If you plan on eating here you will need to make your reservation at least six weeks in advance. If you wait until you arrive In Waikiki to make your reservation you may not get in. Without reservations it is usually a two hour wait.
Written August 15, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
allweneedtodo2
West Midlands, UK60 contributions
Apr 2013 โข Couples
Nice beach and the water lovely hotels back on to it and you can sit outside and have a drink or meal in them it wasn't as busy as Waikiki and has a path way around it and recreation grounds, its a lovely walk from the harbour to Waikiki beach the harbour end by the hilton has a lovely man made lagoon great for the kids but the sand isn't very deep around the lagoon and there are signs up asking you not to dig holes, but the lagoon looks the part and there are lots of water activity's for you to hire, and grass to sit on too. And you have a fantastic view of the fireworks on Friday evenings from here. It's very nice spent more time here than Waikiki beach on our trip.
Written May 13, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sunseekers315
Oakville, Canada44 contributions
Jul 2018 โข Family
This beach is located next to the Duke Paoa Kahanamouku Lagoon at the Hilton Waikiki.
It is a small, rocky beach. Bring swim shoes and floaties to navigate the area or else it will be painful! (Floaties are available for cheap at the ABC store across the street and they blow them up for you for $1).
A few things to note:
-bring your own chairs and towels - you can rent from the hotels on the beach but itโs expensive!
- there are limited food options on the beach- there is a DQ with a limited menu and a food truck, and not much else. You have to go into the Hilton or outside the resort to get food to bring to the beach
- beach is incredibly crowded and is a public beach so is an interesting mix of people
- beach partly closes early Friday afternoon so that the Friday night fireworks can be set up
- beach and sand is rocky generally
- lots of wedding picture traffic regardless of the day
- itโs less busy than Waikiki down the street
- easy to keep track of kids in the water, but there are no lifeguards on duty
- waves are small and the water is calm
It is a small, rocky beach. Bring swim shoes and floaties to navigate the area or else it will be painful! (Floaties are available for cheap at the ABC store across the street and they blow them up for you for $1).
A few things to note:
-bring your own chairs and towels - you can rent from the hotels on the beach but itโs expensive!
- there are limited food options on the beach- there is a DQ with a limited menu and a food truck, and not much else. You have to go into the Hilton or outside the resort to get food to bring to the beach
- beach is incredibly crowded and is a public beach so is an interesting mix of people
- beach partly closes early Friday afternoon so that the Friday night fireworks can be set up
- beach and sand is rocky generally
- lots of wedding picture traffic regardless of the day
- itโs less busy than Waikiki down the street
- easy to keep track of kids in the water, but there are no lifeguards on duty
- waves are small and the water is calm
Written July 2, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SergeyTripAdSergey
Moscow56 contributions
May 2015 โข Couples
Shallow water. Maybe it is safest beach in Oahu, so this is the reason why there are so many small children. And they all are crying simultaneously. Happy crying, sorrow crying, just crying, all types and sorts of baby crying are presented on this beach. Folks who considering to give a birth to a baby and still hesitate should go this beach first just to check their ability to withstand endless crying.
Written May 10, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Knlake
Natick, MA15 contributions
Tonsvof people in the water and on the beach. Tons of surfing schools all out there together. I don't know how they didn't crash into each other. The waves were pretty tame also.
Written August 24, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
shasta2088
Rockaway Park, NY1,562 contributions
Jul 2021 โข Family
Great place to relax outside the large Hilton Hawaiian Village resort with all of the resort amenities nearby (multiple restaurants, drinks, towel and chair rentals).
Parts of the beach, especially along itโs western edge near the lagoon are full of shall pieces of coral that I needed beach shoes to walk safely. The rest if the beach is sandy but there are small pieces of coral out underwater not far from the shore.
Also home to a pier for Port Waikiki cruises with sailboat/catamaran, powered boats, and submarine rides.
Parts of the beach, especially along itโs western edge near the lagoon are full of shall pieces of coral that I needed beach shoes to walk safely. The rest if the beach is sandy but there are small pieces of coral out underwater not far from the shore.
Also home to a pier for Port Waikiki cruises with sailboat/catamaran, powered boats, and submarine rides.
Written July 27, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Previa1994
Chicago, IL6,648 contributions
Sep 2019
The famous Waikiki Beach has several sections of beaches, each with different names. And, Duke Kahanamoku Beach is one part of the long Waikiki Beach. So the review is generally about Waikiki.
No question Waikiki will be visited by everyone who visits Honolulu. And, it is indeed a place worth visiting to appreciate the essence of Honolulu. But, unless one is staying close to the beach, it is not a convenient place to visit by driving due to the unavailability of convenient parking or reasonably priced parking. Street parking near the beach is limited, if at all available, and parking in the garages could involve substantial walking to get to the beach.
But the beach area is wonderful, and the sunsets are beautiful, if it is not too cloudy. The free Hula Hawaiian Cultural music show (near Kuhio Beach, which is part of Waikiki) is worth attending. Check website for day and timings.
No question Waikiki will be visited by everyone who visits Honolulu. And, it is indeed a place worth visiting to appreciate the essence of Honolulu. But, unless one is staying close to the beach, it is not a convenient place to visit by driving due to the unavailability of convenient parking or reasonably priced parking. Street parking near the beach is limited, if at all available, and parking in the garages could involve substantial walking to get to the beach.
But the beach area is wonderful, and the sunsets are beautiful, if it is not too cloudy. The free Hula Hawaiian Cultural music show (near Kuhio Beach, which is part of Waikiki) is worth attending. Check website for day and timings.
Written October 31, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Michael L
Watchung, NJ205 contributions
Aug 2019
All in all a very nice, broad beach. The views and the water are great. Like at Waikiki Beach (aka the Royal Moana Beach) the sand at this beach is somewhat coarse to the touch, but nothing too sharp or rocky. Also similar to Waikiki Beach, this is a popular beach. Expect to share it many other visitors, including families with children.
Adjacent to Hilton Village lagoon. There's access to a boardwalk that connects to other beaches of Waikiki and nearby hotels along the shoreline. Quite a few restaurants within walking distance.
I tend to prefer beaches that have softer sand and less crowded. However, this beach is great for what it is.
Adjacent to Hilton Village lagoon. There's access to a boardwalk that connects to other beaches of Waikiki and nearby hotels along the shoreline. Quite a few restaurants within walking distance.
I tend to prefer beaches that have softer sand and less crowded. However, this beach is great for what it is.
Written October 8, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
WorldTravelers34
Chicago, IL2,283 contributions
Dec 2017 โข Couples
We walked along this beach a few times. Duke Kahanamoku Beach is immediately adjacent to the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor and the Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon. It is the widest beach in Waikiki. Kahanamoku Beach is named after the legendary Hawaiian hero Duke Kahanamoku (1890-1968) who was an Olympic swimming champion and later became a movie star as well as the Sheriff of Honolulu. Swimmers should wear reef walkers or some other protective footwear because the shoreline in this area has a rocky bottom. Every Friday night there is a free "King's Jubilee" torch lighting ceremony and fireworks show on Duke Kahanamoku Beach. This is definitely a relaxing beach to visit.
Written February 7, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Can you bring your own paddle board to Duke Kahanamoku Beach?
Written September 27, 2019
A Tripadvisor member
Crown Point, Indiana
Are there beach chair rentals, a nearby beach bar? What kind of water toys are available? Paddle boards? Thank you.
Written January 26, 2018
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