One of our favorite places to snorkel on Big Island, Hawaii is at Honaunau Bay, also known as Two Step by the locals. Honaunau Bay is famous for its crystal clear water, Green Sea Turtles, and colorful tropical fish. Snorkeling at Honaunau Bay is actually considered by many to be some of the best in the entire state of Hawaii.
STATS:
Where:
Honaunau Bay (Two Step): 19°25’23.10″N 155°54’41.62″W
Free Parking: 19°25’24.13″N 155°54’35.79″W
Paid Parking: 19°25’24.18″N 155°54’39.28″W
Parking: The actual snorkel area, Two Step, is right outside Pu’uhonua O Hōnaunau National Historical Park. There is a small free parking lot just outside the gate that holds about 13 cars. You can also pay to park inside the Historical Park or at the paid parking lot right in front of Two Step. The coordinates for that is as written above.
Restroom: There are portable restrooms near the beach.
Level: Intermediate. Getting in and out of the water might be challenging for some.
Estimated Completion Time: 2 – 3 hours. It just depends on how long you want to spend snorkeling and relaxing.
Ideal Weather: calmer days will make it easier to get in and out of the water
Ideal Time: you need to be there a little on the early side if you want to take advantage of the free parking.
THE ADVENTURE:
Getting There:
Before we start, snorkeling at Honaunau Bay is an amazing experience but it is not for beginners. Please proceed with caution. Also, please note that this area is sacred to the Hawaiian. As the area getting busier over the years, many people are uninformed about protecting the sacred land. Please help us and volunteers at Two Step preserve this beautiful land for generations to come.
Honaunau Bay or Two Step Beach, where you will be snorkeling, is actually right outside Pu’uhonua O Honaunau National Historic Park. You can park your car at the small dirt area on the left side of the road, right outside the entrance to the park. Be careful if you try to park here with low clearance cars. There is a small drop off that might become an issue. If this area is full, you can either park inside the Pu’uhonua O Honaunau National Historic Park which costs $5 per car. You can also follow the road that is directly across from the dirt area. This one-way road will curve around to the right and take you to another paid parking lot. Two Step Beach is right in front of this paid parking lot.
The term “beach” when referring to Two Step is a bit of a stretch. Yes, this is where the ocean meets land, but the sand has been replaced with bus-sized chunks of lava rocks. It isn’t fun to walk on, but it is actually very good for the clarity of the water. On traditional beaches, the sand onshore gets churned up by the crashing waves. Much of the sand gets sucked out to sea and floats around in the water which gives it a haze. This is not a problem at Two Step. The clarity here is pretty amazing. This is the reason why snorkeling at Honaunau Bay is the best.
Just before you get to the beach, on your right side, there are some super neat and colorful outrigger canoes. We would love to take a ride in one of those sometimes. When you reach the curve of the street, the entrance into the water should be in front of you and just off to the right. There are usually a handful of people trying to get into the water so just look for a small crowd. There is also a small sandy beach area on the left of the boat ramp with shallow water if you just want to hang out there.
We highly recommend wearing sandals or water shoes when heading out to Two Step. It is made out of jagged lava rocks and very uncomfortable to walk on barefoot. The lava rocks also get very hot in full sun so you might burn your feet.
How to get into the water:
The reason this place is nicknamed Two Step because the snorkelers enter the water by using the two naturally-formed lava steps. Technically, it is a three steps entrance. It was kind of hard to find at first but you’ll notice a crowd waiting to enter the water. There were about 4 people in front of us in line to jump into the water. As we looked around, we could see a bunch of snorkels and heads bobbing out in the water. Luckily, the area is pretty big here so you won’t have to worry about bumping into people too much.
It is a little bit tricky getting in and out of the water here. The steps are quite slippery. Also, depends on when the next wave is, you might get pushed around a bit if you’re sitting on the steps. To get in, you can sit down on the edge of the second step and time the waves just right so that the water would come right up to the step. Getting out is a bit trickier. You also want to wait for the waves to come in just right. Make sure to stay toward the left and grab hold on to the rock steps. There are jagged edge cliffs on the right-hand side of the steps coming in so be careful.
In the water:
As soon as the line in front of us clear up, both of us hastily put on our gears and slid right into the warm water. There was so much to see when you snorkeling at Honaunau Bay. The second we got underwater, we immediately came right up on a big Green Sea Turtle. It was pretty cool to be so close to him but we make sure to not get too close to the turtle. Don’t forget, it is illegal to be too close or touching the turtles. They are protected.
Warning: There are no lifeguards at the beach. If you aren’t a strong swimmer, please bring a flotation device. The waves can toss you into the rocks, please be careful.
The bay is almost completely consumed with beautiful coral reefs. This added so much texture and diversity to the seafloor. There were miniature canyons, formations, and narrow passages that were super fun to dive down and swim around. Make sure to pay attention to the waves if you want to explore this area. The waves can be strong and dangerous. There were also different pockets of cool and warm water. It was definitely interesting swimming through them. Please make sure to do your best not to touch the coral. It may look like rocks, but it is a living creature. The oil in your skin is actually harmful to it.
As we headed towards the north end of the bay, the water was gradually getting deeper and deeper. It went from only about 10-20 feet deep when we were near the steps to a straight drop down to 100 feet a bit further out. We found out after we left that someone had taken concrete blocks and spelled Aloha in the deeper area on the right side of the bay. We will have to go find it on our next visit.
As we swam around, we saw big schools of Yellow Tang, Parrotfish, Trumpetfish, Spotted Boxfish, amongst many other fish. Fun Fact: The state of Hawaii is home to around 75% of the United States’ coral reefs, and 57% of those are located on the Kona coast. Honaunau Bay contains one of the biggest varieties of coral in the entire state of Hawaii. All of the reefs have also attracted a large variety of fish. And if you’re lucky, you can also spot the Spinner Dolphins and Green Sea Turtles. The Spinner Dolphins usually hang out at the deeper area. Unlucky for us, we didn’t get to see them when we were there.
Snorkeling at Honaunau Bay is such a neat experience. If you don’t feel like snorkeling at the time, you can always explore the tidepools around here or simply watch the infamous Green Sea Turtles sunbathing on the beach. The sandy beach near the boat ramp is also perfect for sunbathing. Another cool spot to check out the turtles is at Kiholo Bay. If you want more extreme snorkel, you can always do the late-night snorkel with the manta ray. Also, don’t forget to check out our list of Top 10 things to do on the Big Island for more fun activities.
You can also hear Dustin talk about some of our favorite things to do on the Big Island on the Between The Mountains Podcast
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RECOMMEND GEAR:
Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.
• Sunscreen:
Make sure to use eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen to protect our reef and marine wildlife. We use eco-friendly, reef-safe sunscreen, All Good Organic Sunscreen Butter – Zinc Oxide – Coral Reef Safe and All Good Sport Sunscreen Lotion – Coral Reef Safe (3 oz)(2-Pack) or Stream2Sea SPF 30 Reef Safe Sport Tinted Sunscreen.
• Snorkel mask
We used OUSPT Full Face Snorkel Mask.
• Fins
These are the ones we used, U.S. Divers Trek Fin – Compact Snorkel Fins and U.S. Divers Proflex FX Fin.
• Towels and beach gears
You’re going to the beach, so this is kind of obvious.
• Water shoes or sandals
Definitely recommended because the lava rocks are very sharp and will get very hot in the sun. Vy uses UBFEN Women’s Water shoes. Dustin has UBFEN Men’s Water shoes.
• Flotation belt
If you’re not a very good swimmer, a flotation belt will help you be more comfortable in the water. Vy uses these every time she goes snorkel.
CAMERA GEAR:
• Camera:
Sony a7 III
Gopro Hero 7 Black
• Lenses:
Sony 24 -70mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar T Zoom Lens
Sony 18 – 250mm f/3.5-6.3 High Magnification Zoom Lens
• Accessories:
Bobber – Floating Hand Grip for GoPro HERO Cameras
