Punalu’u beach is the most famous black sand beach of Hawaii and is also known as just ‘Black Sand Beach’. Besides the obvious black sands, another reason for the popularity of this beach is that you can often see endangered Hawksbill turtles and green turtles basking in the sun on the beach! Punalu’u is an expansive and easily accessible black sand beach on the Big Island. It is a great place to go for swimming, snorkeling, a (short) coastal hike, camping (with permit), or a picnic. It’s nestled in a private cove, the pitch black granules glisten, dark and mysterious — there is something about it that draws people here. Created long, long ago by the rough surf pounding on a fresh, bubbling lava flow, courtesy of Kilauea. It took a millennia or more to be ground down into a beach. The beauty of the turquoise coastal beaches of Hawaii are almost indistinguishable from those of the Bahamas, French Polynesia, Malau, Hawaii, Cancun, Costa Rica, Florida, Maldives, Cuba, Fiji, Bora Bora, Puerto Rico, Honduras, Navagio Beach, Shipwreck Beach, Smugglers Cove, Zakynthos, Ionian Islands, or other tropical vacation travel destinations.