Windward Oʻahu sits at the center of one of Hawaiʻi's turning points. In 1795 King Kamehameha I landed on the island and won the Battle of Nuʻuanu in the cliffs above Honolulu — the victory that brought Oʻahu under his rule and all but completed the unification of the Hawaiian Kingdom. In the century that followed, missionaries built churches and planters laid out farms along the windward coast, yet Kailua stayed rural and Hawaiian at heart: a district of taro, cattle, and fishing, far from the harbor town growing up on the leeward side at Honolulu.
Just around the point lies Lanikai, whose name means ‘heavenly sea,’ and its beach is the one the postcards use — a soft white crescent facing the Mokulua across impossibly clear water. Above it, a short, steep climb up Kaʻiwa Ridge reaches the old Lanikai ‘pillboxes,’ concrete observation posts left from the Second World War, and a view that takes in the whole windward coast, the Mokes, and the reef. Down on the sand, kayaks and stand-up boards launch from Kailua Beach Park and Lanikai for the paddle out to the islets. Beach, bay, and islands together are what people picture when they picture Kailua.
Why People Visit Kailua
Kailua blends scenic windward beaches with deep Hawaiian heritage. Visitors come to swim, paddle out to the islands, and hike to a pillbox view, then slow down in a town that stayed local. It is picturesque, approachable, and meaningful to the island families who call it home — natural beauty and everyday culture side by side, with year-round appeal in its parks, paths, and shoreline.
