Honaunau Bay

Site details

Entry

Beach/Shore

Depth

1.2–16 m (4–52 ft)

Environment

Ocean/Sea

Entry effort

Moderate (4 of 5)

Coordinates

19.42274, -155.91152

Site briefing

Honaunau Bay is a wonderful diving and snorkeling spot - there's a ton to see, and a lot of it is really close to the entrance/exit area. Coral is present at all life-cycle stages, with conservation efforts underway at the northern end of the area. The immediate cove is protected by a reef wall that's about 25 meters from the entrance. There is a small beach with one picnic table along the roadside. Access to the water is via walking over the lava, and urchins are everywhere. Viz is typically exceptional due to a rocky entrance, though you may observe some halocline due to fresh water percolating down the hill in the lava from above.

Entry and route

First things first - parking is limited. There are spots for maybe 3 cars, 5 boat trailer combinations. This is in a neighborhood so it's important to recognize that and not park in the way of diveways or blocking the single lane, one way roadway. There's a locally owned and operated parking lot there, that's $5 cash.

Onward - once parked, walk over the rocks to the coordinates identified in the posting. Best to enter the water using the 2 steps - they're below the water line, and may be marked with an orange traffic post/cone. Reef shoes are a great idea, as there are urchins near the entrance, and the entrance is all lava rock. If you're diving, set your flag out in the sandy patch about 20 meters from the shore. If you're snorkeling, just have at it! It's one of the best Big Island snorkel spots.

Tides and currents

• Nearest NOAA tide station: Napoopoo, Kealakekua Bay (1618021)
• Nearest NOAA current station: Kailua Kona (HAI1129)

MyDivingSites forecasts tide, current, swell, and weather for Honaunau Bay hour by hour.

Dive reports from Honaunau Bay

1 logged dive, average rating 5.0 out of 5, average visibility 5.0 m (16 ft).

• Nov 29, 2025 · Joe · visibility 5 m (16 ft) — 5-star viz, and a ton to see. Lots of structure, mainly corals. Urchins - red pencil, blue-black, collector, rock boring. Corals - Cauliflower, brown lobe, and transverse coral. Fishes - Angels, Blennies, Boxes, Butterflies, Cardinals, Damsels, Elongates, Files, Goats, Puffers, Surgeons, Tangs, Triggers, Unicorns, and maybe a wrass. Seen: Humuhumunukunukuapua'a (Reef Triggerfish), Milletseed Butterflyfish, Saddle Wrasse, Cauliflower Coral, Lobe Coral, Spotted Boxfish (Moa), Stripebelly Puffer.

Marine life seen here

• Cauliflower Coral (Pocillopora meandrina) — seen on 1 dive
• Humuhumunukunukuapua'a (Reef Triggerfish) (Rhinecanthus rectangulus) — seen on 1 dive
• Lobe Coral (Porites lobata) — seen on 1 dive
• Milletseed Butterflyfish (Chaetodon miliaris) — seen on 1 dive
• Saddle Wrasse (Thalassoma duperrey) — seen on 1 dive
• Spotted Boxfish (Moa) (Ostracion meleagris) — seen on 1 dive
• Stripebelly Puffer (Arothron hispidus) — seen on 1 dive