Did you know there are only four green sand beaches in the world? Papakōlea beach Hawaiʿi (the Big Island) is one of them. Alongside a guide with essential tips to visit Papakōlea beach, I am sharing my experience of visiting this magical place.
To book flights to Hawaiʿi (or anywhere else) I recommend and therefore work with Kiwi.com, and trip.com which are some of the flight comparison websites that offers the best prices in my experience! :)
Practical Information about Papakōlea Beach
How does a green sand beach get formed? A green sand beach comes into existence after a very rare volcanic eruption during which green olivine crystals are brought to the surface. Olivine is a mineral that can for example be found in natural volcanic rock. When these crystals interact with the cold ocean water, they shatter in tiny pieces thus creating sand. When you look up close it really feels like the sand is made of tiny shiny green diamonds!!! This is a rare phenomenon and thus there are only four (known) green beaches in the world.
Papakōlea Beach is a green sand beach located near South Point, in the Kaʻū district of the island of Hawaiʻi. Papakōlea was once a cinder cone volcano. When it erupted the lava contained the olivine crystals and with the erosion from the ocean water, the basalt rock slowly eroded into the olivine crystals that characterize this beach today.
Visiting Papakōlea Beach: How to get there?
How to get to Papakōlea beach (Green Sand Beach)? As this green beach is quite hidden, travelling there is not easy. As with many places on the island, it is the easiest to have a car (you can rent one here). From the nearest parking lot it takes a small hour of hiking to the sun, covering 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) one way. Although the hike is mostly flat, there is no shade and so walking in full exposure to the sun can be the most challenging part.
Parking is free and you do not need a hiking license or pay any entry fee to go to the beach, as is the case with some other trails on the Hawaiian Islands. To get to the parking lot we rented a car with Turo, which is a carsharing marketplace platform, as this came out as the cheapest option in our research.
There are also locals at the parking lot who offer shuttle rides for 25 to 50 USD up to the beach in their cars. However, this is apparently officially illegal as there are ancient burial sites located near the trail and these rides are destroying the trail. Note that you can also not take your rental car to the beach, for the aforementioned reason and because this trail will be against any rental agreement, even when off-roading is included.
When you go early and prepare yourself for the possible heat during the hike, the hike to visit Papakōlea beach is a great experience though! The landscape changes continuously and you will feel like you are walking in different countries every kilometer or so: from lava rock fields to grassy fields along the wild coastline. And after the hike you will be rewarded with swimming in the ocean of course.
Tips & Advice: what to bring to and when to visit Papakōlea Beach
Overall visiting Papakōlea beach was an incredible experience! Based on my experience and our slightly poor preparation for the hike in the heat, I do have some recommendations for when you go.
Here are some essential tips that will make the hike to Papakōlea beach much more comfortable:
Go before it gets to hot, so best before noon
As with many touristy places in Hawaiʿi, on a weekday it will be less crowded then in the weekend, so consider when you choose to visit
Bring enough sunscreen (and put this on before starting the hike, do not wait until you are on the beach)
Bring something to cover your head and face against the sun
Do not wear white shoes (that you want to keep white) or flipflops, but go for hiking boots or good sneakers. I was wearing flipflops and survived, but sometimes the sand was hot and a long walk in flipflops is not as comfortable.
Bring enough water and food! There are no places to buy water or food on the hike or at the beach and you will probably sweat out a lot, so it is good to stay hydrated and bring some (salty) snacks.
We failed at all of these tips but we survived and enjoyed the hike and beach nevertheless🌞
Extra: staying connected in Hawai'i - or any other travel destination
To have internet when travelling you can buy a physical sim when you arrive, or you can get an e-sim. For the latter there are various options worth checking out:
When I went to Nicaragua, I bought one via Airalo. Which was the cheapest option I could find then!
Another good esim option is Yesim - with my code 'travelpayouts24' you get a 3 EUR discount until 31st of December 2024!
If you are a frequent traveller, you can look into the Drimsim, which is a physical sim but it is a universal sim. Yes! You read that right. It supposedly works in every country as soon as your plane lands and so has benefits similar to an e-sim.
What next?
There are plenty of things to do on Hawaiʿi and there is a lot to learn from and about the Hawaiian Islands, its culture and colonial history. Rather than just visiting this place as a tourist, make an effort to understand and learn about Hawaiian Indigenous philosophy, culture and its history so you can travel there in an ethical way.
If you are interested in beaches shaped by volcanic processes, then a slightly less rare but equally stunning beaches to visit are the Black Sand beaches! If you do not want to go all the way to Hawai'i for black sand beaches: did you know that the Pacific coasts of Central America are filled with black sand beaches at least as beautiful as the ones in Hawai'i? Visit El Paredon in Guatemala, El Tunco in El Salvador, or Popoyo in Nicaragua for example.
PS. I am working together with Hostelworld and RentACar, meaning that if you book via my hostelworld link or my RentACar link (within 30 days of clicking it) I will get a commission. So if you want to further support my blog, clicking my link before/when travelling is an amazing way to do so :)
Subscribe to my newsletter if you want to stay updated (max. once a week) on my posts, and connect with me on instagram (@iam_allovertheplace) to follow my life as a slow travelling storyteller!
Comments