7 Best Beaches on Oahu with KIds
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When visiting Hawaii, there are so many amazing places to visit that it is important to narrow down the best places to go. I am a planner that likes to have our vacations written out with activities for each day. I knew we wanted to spend a few days at the beach, but there were so many choices! I’ve compiled a list of the beaches we visited on Oahu with our boys. Keep reading to see what we thought of each location!

Contents hide
1 Ko’Olina Lagoons
2 Lanikai Beach
3 Waikiki
4 Shark’s Cove
5 Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon
6 Waimanolo Beach
7 Waimea Beach Park
  • Ko’Olina Lagoon #1
  • Ko’Olina Lagoon at sunset

Ko’Olina Lagoons

These lagoons were our very favorite beach that we visited on this trip. There are four different lagoons. Each of the lagoons have very clean, soft sand and breaker rocks to keep the waves small. We didn’t get a chance to snorkel here, but everything I read before our visit said these are great places so snorkel. We visited both lagoon #1 and lagoon #4. Even though it was a state holiday with kids out of school, the lagoons still weren’t too crowded at all. There are some big hotel resorts alongside these lagoons (Disney Aulani, Four Seasons, Marriott). The lagoon #4 is part of Ko’Olina Beach park next to the marina. There are a few different food choices throughout the hotels. Each lagoon is connected with a sidewalk. If we had more time, I would’ve definitely spent another day here.

One of our goals was to see a sunset on the beach. We happened to see the sunset at lagoon #1 and it was as spectacular as I was hoping it would be!

Parking can be a little challenging as the parking lots are fairly small, so you need to either arrive early or just wait for open spots if there aren’t any.

  • Photo by Lola O Photography
  • Photo by Lola O Photography

Lanikai Beach

Lanikai would’ve tied for our favorite beach, except for the Man-O-War situation. Apparently this summer had an attack of them! Just walking on the beach, you had to step around them. We had booked our photographer before the trip for this beach because everything I read before the trip kept mentioning Lanikai Beach as the most beautiful. I would have to agree, this is the most beautiful beach on the island. Calm, crystal clear, gorgeous blue water that my boys were dying to play in! Unfortunately, we weren’t able to play for fear of being stung by the Man-O-War. You can always check out this website for jellyfish advisories as well as look for signs posted on the beaches affected.

Parking at this beach is wherever you can find a spot along the neighborhood roads. We found a spot easily, but we also went on a Thursday.

  • Waikiki at sunset
  • Waikiki
  • Banyan Tree on Waikiki Beach

Waikiki

Waikiki offers so many different things to do! We spent an evening just walking down Kalakaua Avenue. We stopped at a Lawson’s for shaved ice. There is a part of this beach that is walled off from the waves, so it feels more like a swimming pool. My boys didn’t want to swim there, they wanted to head a little further down and swim with the waves. This beach had warning signs that there was coral in the water, so we just had to be careful not to step on it. By this beach, there was a huge, interesting Banyan Tree that my boys thought was fun to play in. We swam at the very south portion of Waikiki just in front of the Honolulu Zoo. At sunset, we were able to take in this incredible view of Honolulu! I don’t think you can go wrong with much of Waikiki Beach, there is so much to do here in and out of the water!

We walked to the beach from our hotel, which I would recommend since I did not see any parking lots nearby.

  • Ready to snorkel at Shark’s Cove
  • Shark’s Cove
  • school of fish in Shark’s Cove
  • View of Shark’s Cove from the parking area

Shark’s Cove

We wanted to try out snorkeling while we were in Hawaii. There were a few places around the island that were recommended. We settled on Shark’s Cove. Our only regret is that we didn’t bring water shoes. The rocks you need to climb over to get into the cove are very sharp! But, once you are in the cove, the water is very calm and we were able to see a good variety of fish! I was a little disappointed we didn’t see any turtles here. But, to be honest, we only spent an afternoon here and I didn’t spend as much time snorkeling as I wanted. It was a very different, unique experience. The boys enjoyed playing in the sand here as well. The Fire Station is located just to the south of the cove, so we were able to see the helicopters fly in and out a few times while we were here.

Parking was quite the challenge here. We drove in circles a few times just waiting for an empty spot. There is a parking lot, but it is fairly small. We also went in the afternoon, so if you arrived earlier in the day parking might not be as challenging.

  • Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon @ Hilton Hawaiian Village

Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon

We did not spend much time at this lagoon. We had walked from out hotel to check things out, but didn’t come prepared to swim. The water here looked perfect for kids! No waves and it didn’t get too deep. There were also fun water things to rent like a tricycle paddle bike! If we had more time, we would spent more time enjoying this lagoon as well. While in the picture it looked pretty crowded, it really didn’t feel too crowded while we were there. Keep in mind it was a Saturday that we were there. The Hilton shoots fireworks off on Friday evenings, so this could be a fun lagoon to play in while you wait for the show, maybe?

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  • Waimanolo Beach
  • Man-O-War
  • Waimanolo Beach

Waimanolo Beach

Waimanolo Beach was our first experience at a Hawaii Beach. The views and the water were absolutely stunning! I was surprised though to find the waves very strong. Come to find out later, there was a typhoon out that we couldn’t see that was causing rougher tides than normal. We also found out the Man-O-War situation was pretty bad here as well! Luckily no one got stung. We saw the posted warning signs, but being our first day at the beach we weren’t sure how bad they would be. They were very tiny jellies, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand! If you go during a time like this when lifeguards are on duty, they are prepared with vinegar that they can spray on stings. The vinegar neutralizes the stings of the jellies.

Parking at this beach was easy, there was a large parking lot with lots of spaces.

Waimea Beach Park

Unfortunately, we did not have enough time to visit this beach. It was recommended on a few sites where I researched before the trip. We did drive by it twice though and it looked like a perfect beach to set up for the day at. I did read that during the winter, the waves can be quite large on this side of the island. So this might be best during the summertime for kids.

Parking is on the side of a very small road that travels around this side of the island. I’d recommend getting here early if you don’t want a long walk to the beach. There is a small parking lot as well, if you turn into the parking area for Waimea Valley. This is a perfect beach to spend the morning at if you plan on attending the Toa Luau in Waimea Valley. Read all about our wonderful experience at this luau here!

Really though, most any beach on Oahu is a beautiful experience that won’t be forgotten! Comment below if you take any of our advice and visit these beaches that we thought were perfect for with kids!

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