Larsen’s Beach

Larsen’s Beach is on the northeast side of Kauai island, Hawaii. You get there by Koolau Road, which is a loop road. The south end begins at the Moloaa Sunrise Fruit Stand at mile 16.5 where it intersects Kuhio highway, and the north end close to mile marker 20 on Kuhio Highway. From the north end (Kilauea, Princeville, Hanalei) take Koolau Road, pass a lava rock wall until it ends, continue past an old Hawaiian cemetery, and take the dirt and gravel road left, going makai to the ocean which you can see across the pasture. At the end park in the county parking lot and walk towards the ocean. The trail on the left, past a mangled fence, is a centuries old historic ala loa trail. This easy trail affords great views of the reef and beach. When it gets to sea level just go through bushes to the sand.
Coming from the south (Kapaa, Lihue, Poipu) from the fruit stand just take a right and continue on Koolau Road which has switch backs and goes down and up a big hill. Take a right at the top where there are four mail boxes and follow as above. The beach is clothing optional as nude recreation at NON state park beaches in Hawaii is legal. (HI. v. Milford, case 22 489, and HI. v. Kalama, case 22 457, Sept 29, 2000.)
Topfree sunbathing for females has been unquestionably legal since May 18, 1979 cases, State v. Crenshaw and State v. Steinlauf. Cases 5791 and 5792.
Secret Beach a.k.a. Kauapea Beach in Kilauea is another Kauai naturist beach. As another wrote all types go here, straight, gay, adults, kids. Be very careful swimming and snorkeling.
For more information on the naturist option in Hawaii, the law, and links to naturist groups on Hawaiian islands and around the world, visit the blog of Kauai Naturists, coming from, logically enough… Kauai!
Email: Kauai (dot) naturists (at) gmail (dot) com

Great beach and a seemingly safe place to opt not to don a swimsuit. Very secluded, safe. Watch for monk seals, currents and coral. Sand is mostly crushed shell. No facilities, no lifeguard, no trash bins. (Please bring your trash out with you.) Probably not OK for kids, but we did see families here (clothed and unclothed) who seemed to be unaffected by the nudity.

This spit of sand was a bit hard to find. But we’re glad to have taken the time to locate it. The clean sandy beach, the seclusion, and the picturesque seascape made Larsen’s Beach an ideal place to unwind and vegetate.

Beautiful beach and would be a great beach to hang out. This beach has an easy trail to walk down from the beach access parking. I’m not sure how others are getting down that require special shoes. I saw many people in flip flops. That being said — this is not as remote as people may think. If you don’t mind hanging out at a nudist colony this beach (and trails) are for you.
There is a sign indicating how many people have drowned at this beach because of the currents. I decided to Google it and found it to be true. I think snorkeling is not a good idea here — too shallow in most spots and obvious currents in others.

If you ever see a nudist at a nude beach in San Francisco, changes are you’re likely to cringe. They’re not what you’re think.
Larsen’s beach isn’t a nude beach, per se, but it’s secluded enough that people dress as they please.
And that’s really why you’re here. Because it’s secluded.
To get here, you have do drive a long a dirt road for quite some time. You climb down a narrow path, a natural staircase of stones and volcanic rock. And you end up on an open expanse of tropic Pacific waters. The perfect place to lay out and chill. Or snorkel, weather permitting.
We met an old man on the far end of the beach, combing the beach for shells with this granddaughter. He was friendly and gave us a few tips on what to see. He also mentioned that If you bring any kind of protective footwear, you can make your way over the northern ridge to another strip of beach, and that both beaches are perfect for experiencing a Hawaiian sunrise, just watch out for monk seals in the dark.
Like most of our outdoor destinations, we were hampered with overcast skies, choppy waves, and a cool breeze. Not ideal.
But I wouldn’t count that against the beach.