Kaalawai Beach offers many fun activities including sunbathing, beachcombing, wildlife watching, fishing, swimming, surfing, bodyboarding, bodysurfing, kayaking, canoeing, surf-skiing, jet-skiing, water-skiing, boating, snorkeling, scuba diving, and wakeboarding. The water near Kaalawai Beach is usually unsuitable for water activities because the shallow reef near it makes water activities difficult here. In addition, the nearshore ocean bottom here is mostly rocky and this also makes water activities further difficult. The water here can also have unpredictable rip currents and dangerous waves. Surfers seasonally visit this beach - they launch their surfboards from this beach and paddle to a nearby surfing site named Brown’s. Snorkelers also occasionally visit Kaalawai Beach - depending on the time of the year, you can see many kinds of animals in the water near Kaalawai Beach including sea turtles, small crabs, migrating whales between December and May, and rare Hawaiian monk seals.
There is an artificial cove near the eastern end of the beach that is called Cromwell’s Cove - this cove is protected by artificial rock walls and it was used as a yacht harbor by James H.R. Cromwell. You can access this cove by walking east along the shoreline from Kaalawai Beach’s eastern end. However, please note that the shoreline between Kaalawai Beach’s eastern end and Cromwell’s Cove is rocky and it can also be occasionally slippery, particularly during high tides and turbulent water conditions. We recommend walking to this cove only if you are a strong swimmer and an experienced hiker. Cromwell’s Cove offers relatively better swimming and diving conditions as compared to Kaalawai Beach because it has calmer water and a sandier ocean bottom. People also jump into the water in Cromwell’s Cove from the lava rock walls above. However, we recommend being careful while jumping into the water in Cromwell’s Cove from the lava rock walls above because people have been previously injured while attempting this jump.
