Desperate Brit here - unfortunatley we are going to have to cut short our holiday to Hawaii and will only be able to manage two weeks (instead of the original three ) . The first week is accounted for on Maui ( attending a wedding ) and we want to go to the BI to do the Manta Ray Dive - so I thought that as we are only going to have a week we would stay on the BI -and go somewhere quiet after doing the diving and seeing the Volcanoes - can anyone suggest a quiet sandy beach ( with plam trees )where we could go for some R&R and swim in the ocean in May without hordes of people ??
Mnay thanks

Hello,
It would be helpfull to know where you are staying (e.g., which condo/hotel) on the Big Island before recommending a beach.

Hi JOHND - We havn't booked anything yet - we know we will be staying in the Kona area for two nights ( to do the Manta Ray dive) then to Hilo for one night - then I am looking for somewhere else to stay on or near a nice quiet beach somewhere for four nights - If you could let me know where the nice beaches are I will then look for some accom. near it ( to give u an idea - we were going to stay on the north shore of Kaui in a little cottage for a week - we HATE large "resorts" and crowds !) Thanks

I will top a previous post entitled: "Kona or kohala on the west side of BI?" that discusses the best beaches in Hawaii. Personally did not find much in the way of sandy beach in Kona, though the lava beaches are beautiful in their own right. We liked A-Bay on the Kohala coast in front of the Outrigger Waikoloa Beach Marriott (~$200/night partial ocean view-a good value), which is next door to the Hilton Waikoloa (a.k.a. Hawaii's Disneyland)and across from the Kings shops. Though if you have the dough, there are other $)upscale resorts on the Kohala coast-see other post for recommendations (e.g. Hapuna Beach, Mauna Kea, etc)

Hapuna is very nice. It can be crowded at times. The best private beaches are the ones between Kona and Hapuna that you have to park among the dried lava and hike to. A detailed book with a good map can help you. If you are driving along the highway and see a tiny oasis near the shore among the black lava, that's usually it.