White Sands Beach

When you read «White Sands Beach» on a map and pull up to a salt and peppered beach, you’ll be disappointed to realize it’s not what you first think of. It’s surrounded by lava rocks, everywhere!
This is definitely a locals spot since there’s lots of people coming in and out and many people just sleeping on rocks and by the few trees.
Not the Hawaiian beach spot I was looking to take my family to and blew out half the day driving to it. If you want an actual beach, this isn’t it. The whole «beach» is surrounded by lava rock and it says so on the signs around it. There were a lot of waves which looks perfect for boogie boarding but you’ll be crashing onto the rocks if you aren’t a pro so that was a no-​go for my girls.
A plus is there was a lifeguard on duty when I was there briefly, which I assume is because of all the rocks. Another plus is the volleyball net if you like to play but you’ll be playing right against all the people sitting around it because it’s such a small area.

This place is outright nasty. It is full of some of the more colorful locals. The only plus is that a lifeguard is normally on duty during the day. If ur brave you might be able to shower with the community bar of soap that has been left.

White sands or Magic Sands beach is your typical tourist spot. It’s a pretty small beach and tends to be very crowded during the busy season. While this isn’t my favorite beach in Kona, I do like to come here when I am visiting the fam for a quick dip in the ocean. But there are far better «hidden» beaches in Kona.

A.K.A. Magic Sands, or «Magics» to the locals. Affectionally called so because the sand «magically» disappears after the first winter storm, only to return again in the spring. Lots of lifted pick-​ups bumpin some tunes. The waves can get pretty big, so please be responsible. Nevermind, just don’t go here if you are from the mainland please.

Most of the sand in Kona isn’t black, but there’s a hell of a lot of black sand mixed in (which is coarse on this mainlander’s feet). I’ve found all the lava rock everywhere and the dark sand kind of bleak, so I was pleased to be going to a white sand beach to swim.
There are still a lot of lava rocks here, both on the beach and going into the ocean, so you have to climb down to the ocean, and it’s unsafe to swim near a chunk of the beach. There is a lifeguard, which is great for a beach this small, and the one on duty while we were there was EXTREMELY attentive. Trucks from a few local eateries (including kosher tacos!) parked nearby, for those wanting lunch. Several people went snorkeling or swimming from this beach, and there were a fair amount of boogie boarders. The waves weren’t good enough at all for surfing, but nice for swimming and playing. There were also showers and restrooms.