Punaluʻu Beach Park (Oʻahu)

Punaluʻu Beach Park on Oʻahu's windward coast — known locally as Chings — is the small reef-protected beach in Punaluʻu town. Often confused with the famous black-sand Punaluʻu on the Big Island. Check the Community Water Testing section for the sample date, result and full Surfrider report. A sample describes the water collected at that place and time; it does not establish today's water quality. Check the live DOH status above separately.

Punaluʻu Beach Park sits on Oʻahu's windward coast behind a fringing reef. Streams in the surrounding watershed can carry runoff into the coastal water after rain.

This is the Oʻahu beach locally called Chings, not the black-sand Punaluʻu on the Big Island. Check this site's dated community sample and current DOH advisories separately; a past result does not establish current conditions.

The Hawaii Department of Health does NOT routinely test Punaluʻu Beach Park (Oʻahu). The community-tested readings on this page come from the Surfrider Foundation Blue Water Task Force, a volunteer-led monitoring program run by the Surfrider Oʻahu chapter.

BWTF samples Punaluʻu Beach Park (Oʻahu) biweekly using the IDEXX Enterolert method (MPN/100mL), and compares results against the same 130 Beach Action Value DOH uses statewide. See our overview of citizen water-quality testing in Hawaiʻi for the methodology and how BWTF data fits with DOH coverage.

Sandy entry from the central park area. The reef-protected lagoon is shallow at low tide. The nickname "Chings" refers to the old Ching's Punaluʻu Store still operating across the highway. Avoid stream-mouth zones at the ends of the bay.

Calm trade-wind days. Mornings are quietest. Local families come on weekends. Stop at Ching's Store for a malasada or shave ice — institution since 1900.

Off Kamehameha Highway in Punaluʻu town, windward Oʻahu. About 45 minutes from Honolulu via Likelike or H-3. Roadside parking + small park lot. Restrooms on-site.