Honolulu · RedAwning

Waikīkī BeachTwo miles of imported sand, the world's first surf school, and free public access from sunrise to sunset

Waikīkī Beach is a two-mile crescent of crushed coral and imported sand on Oahu's south shore — eight named sub-beaches running from Hilton Hawaiian Village's Duke Kahanamoku Beach to the Kapiolani Park breakwater under Diamond Head. It's the birthplace of modern surfing, free and open 24 hours, and arguably the most photographed sand on Earth.

Hours today12:00 AM – 11:59 PMWednesday hours
TicketsFrom $80Surf Lesson — Group
LocationHonolulu, Hawaii2400 Kalākaua Avenue
Official sitehonolulu.govPlan your visit

2 miBeach length
8Named sub-beaches
76 °FAverage water temp
FreeAdmission

Waikīkī Beach is not a single beach. It's an arc of eight named sub-beaches — Duke Kahanamoku, Fort DeRussy, Gray's, Royal Hawaiian, Kūhiō, Queen's Surf, Kaimana (Sans Souci), and Outrigger Canoe Club Beach — stretching two miles from the Hilton Lagoon to the breakwater at Kapiolani Park beneath Diamond Head. Most of the modern shoreline was rebuilt in stages between 1928 and 2012; sand has been imported from Manhattan Beach, California, Molokai, and most recently from offshore reservoirs to fight chronic erosion.

Modern surfing as a sport started here. Native Hawaiians had been surfing on koa-wood olo and alaia boards for centuries, but Olympic gold medalist Duke Kahanamoku — born in 1890 a few blocks inland from Kūhiō Beach — popularized board surfing internationally during exhibition swims in the 1910s and 1920s. The Beach Boys of Waikīkī, an informal hui Duke founded with Tom Blake and Sam Reid, became the world's first commercial surf school. The bronze Duke statue at Kūhiō Beach faces the ocean, hands raised in welcome.

Plan around the trade winds — mornings are calm and crowded, afternoons windy and emptier. Lifeguards staff Kūhiō, Queen's, and Sans Souci. Free Friday fireworks fire from a barge off the Hilton Lagoon at 8:00 PM. The hardest-working public restrooms in Honolulu are at Kūhiō Beach Park; expect a line. Reef-safe sunscreen only — chemical sunscreens are banned statewide.

Duke Kahanamoku statue and beach
The bronze Duke statue at Kūhiō Beach Park honors the 1912 Olympic gold-medalist freestyle swimmer and "father of modern surfing." The flat sand stretch behind it — Duke Kahanamoku Beach — is the calmest swimming water in Waikīkī, protected by a curving breakwater and the man-made Hilton Lagoon.
Beach Boys of Waikiki surf lessons
The Beach Boys still operate on the sand fronting the Outrigger Reef and Royal Hawaiian — direct descendants of the 1907 hui Duke founded. Two-hour group lessons run $80, board and rashguard included, on the gentle Canoes and Queen's breaks. Beginners stand up on the first wave, by guarantee.
Royal Hawaiian "Pink Palace" stretch
The strip of beach in front of the 1927 Royal Hawaiian Hotel is the postcard. Coral-pink stucco, white umbrellas, and a clear shot at Diamond Head four miles east. Public access from both ends of the hotel; the lobby lanai bar is famously not gated, so you can grab a Mai Tai without a room key.
Outrigger canoe rides
The traditional Hawaiian six-person koa-wood outrigger leaves from Gray's and Kūhiō Beach concessions; $35 buys three rides on rolling waves toward the Royal Hawaiian. Steered by a Beach Boy paddler — same boats Duke Kahanamoku trained on a century ago.
Friday-night fireworks
Free fireworks fire from a barge anchored off the Hilton Lagoon every Friday at 8:00 PM, year-round (weather permitting). Best vantage is the sand between the Hilton and Fort DeRussy — arrive by 7:30 PM, bring a blanket, no permits needed.
Kuhio Beach hula
Free authentic hula performances on the Kūhiō Beach hula mound — Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays at 6:30 PM. Halau (hula schools) rotate weekly and the music is live, not piped. The torchlighting ceremony 30 minutes before sunset frames the show.
Sans Souci (Kaimana) Beach
The eastern end of the Waikīkī crescent, fronting Kapiolani Park and the New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel — local favorite, less crowded, calmest water on weekday mornings. Honolulu lifeguards work this stretch year-round; turtles regularly haul out near the breakwater.
Sunset and sunrise from Sans Souci
Most Waikīkī sunsets are obstructed by hotels. Sans Souci (Kaimana) on the east end gives an unobstructed view of the southern ocean horizon — sunset hour, sunrise hour, and Diamond Head crater catching first light forty-five minutes before sunrise.

Open hours

The beach itself is public and open 24 hours. Honolulu lifeguards staff Kūhiō Beach, Queen's Surf, and Sans Souci 9 AM–5:30 PM daily; Friday-night fireworks at 8:00 PM (Hilton Lagoon end) year-round.

Monday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM
Tuesday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM
WednesdayToday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM
Thursday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM
Friday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM
Saturday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM
Sunday12:00 AM – 11:59 PM

Note · Public restrooms and showers at Kūhiō Beach Park and Kapiolani Park close at 10:00 PM; beach access remains open.

Ticket pricing

Per-person admission. Buy in advance to skip the gate line.

Beach AccessFreeFree for everyone, all eight sub-beaches, all 24 hours
Surf Lesson — Group$80Two-hour group lesson with longboard and rashguard
Outrigger Canoe — 3 Waves$35Beach Boys of Waikiki, traditional Hawaiian outrigger experience
Beach Chair & Umbrella Rental$30Per day at concessions in front of the major hotels

There is no entrance fee, parking lot, or reservation system — you are walking onto a public Honolulu City and County beach. Paid parking lots run $5–$15/hour at hotel garages; metered street parking on Kapahulu Avenue is $0.25/15 min, 4-hour max. Surfboards, paddleboards, and outrigger canoes are rented on the sand at concession stands.

Beach Boys lessons

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