Playa Hawaii is the beach of El Hawaii, a village in Chiquimulilla, Santa Rosa, east of Monterrico. The Ministry of Culture’s directory lists it as open 24 hours with free entry (undated, checked 10 November 2026; call ahead), and ARCAS’s turtle-conservation park sits on the beach 7 km east of Monterrico and 2 km west of the village.
In short: Free, 24-hour beach per the Ministry of Culture’s directory (undated). Administered by CONAP; the listing cites Decreto 16-2016. ARCAS Hawaii Park: 3 hectares, 7 km east of Monterrico, 2 km west of the village, phone (502) 5039-0451. ARCAS publishes no visitor fee or hours for the park. Four hotels in El Hawaii are listed by a local directory, without prices.
How far it is from Monterrico
ARCAS gives two distances for its park: 7 km east of Monterrico and 2 km west of the village of Hawaii. Together they put the village about 9 km from Monterrico. Neither ARCAS nor the Ministry of Culture’s listing publishes a bus, shuttle or boat route, timetable or fare between Monterrico and Hawaii (checked 10 November 2026).
For the first leg, see the drive from Guatemala City to Monterrico or the shuttles and buses on Antigua to Monterrico. Hotel Honolulu’s entry in the Yo Exploro Monterrico directory says it is 150 km from Guatemala City.
What the Ministry of Culture lists
The Ministry’s cultural information system (SIC) entry for Playa Hawaii prints:
| Field | What SIC prints |
|---|---|
| Location | Chiquimulilla, Santa Rosa |
| Hours | Horario las 24 horas |
| Entry | Ingreso gratuito |
| Legal basis | Decreto Número 16-2016 del Congreso de la República |
| Administered by | CONAP |
| Category | Patrimonio Natural |
The hours and free entry are undated in the Ministry of Culture directory, checked 10 November 2026; call ahead. The entry describes turtle releases as one of the beach’s main attractions, organised mostly by the Tortugario Hawaii, and lists ecotourism, sport fishing, rappel and surf among the activities. It says the beach shares Monterrico’s mangroves, which migratory birds pass through. It gives no price for any activity.
The protected area around Hawaii
ARCAS writes that, after years of work on its part, a protected area of more than 4,000 hectares was declared around Hawaii, centred on what its English page calls the second-largest mangrove forest remaining in Guatemala. The two language versions of its page disagree on the year: the English page says Congress declared the Hawaii Multiple Use Zone in 2015, and the Spanish page says ARCAS obtained the declaration with CONAP in 2016. The decree number in the Ministry’s listing, 16-2016, carries the 2016 date.
According to ARCAS, the management plan came out of community consultations and covers disaster relief, research, ecotourism, waste management and education. ARCAS also describes work on a marine protected area at Las Lisas, directly east of Hawaii.
On the northern edge of the Chiquimulilla Canal, ARCAS bought the 25-hectare El Salado farm in 2007: about one third mangrove and two thirds dry forest, with a pre-Maya archaeological site. It describes developing the farm as a reserve for birdwatching and ecotours. Its pages carry a 2015 footer and give no visiting details for El Salado.
The ARCAS Hawaii Park
ARCAS (Asociación de Rescate y Conservación de Vida Silvestre) began its conservation work in the Hawaii area in 1993, to counter the over-harvesting of leatherback and olive ridley turtle eggs. Its Hawaii Park is a 3-hectare protected area on the beach and the base of its activities on the south coast. The park’s accommodation is a rancho with volunteer quarters plus three small volunteer houses, a kitchen, a library-office and bathrooms, all described as volunteer facilities.
Hatchery details, release seasons and release rules are on the Monterrico turtle-release page, which covers ARCAS’s park alongside the hatchery in Monterrico. ARCAS’s Hawaii and contact pages do not publish a visitor fee or visiting hours for the park (checked 10 November 2026).
ARCAS also runs environmental education in the village: presentations, English courses, beach clean-ups and hatchling-release races with local schoolchildren, and courses for adults in ecotourism, food preparation, gender, health and sanitation.
| ARCAS contact (contact page, read 10 November 2026) | Detail |
|---|---|
| Address | Parque Hawaii, Aldea Hawaii, Chiquimulilla, Santa Rosa |
| Parque Hawaii | (502) 5039-0451 |
| Park director | Sofia Mendez, +502 4060 4039 |
The village name has a story of its own: ARCAS says the town’s founder had seen a postcard of the island of Hawaii when he arrived about 60 years ago and thought he saw similarities.
Hotels in El Hawaii
Yo Exploro Monterrico, a local tourism directory, lists these properties with an El Hawaii address. Descriptions are the properties’ own wording in the directory; it prints no room rates (read 10 November 2026).
| Property | Address in the directory | How it describes itself | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hotel Maya Jade | Playa Rosario, El Hawaii, Chiquimulilla | Community tour guides, restaurant, 5 pools, views of the sea and the Chiquimulilla Canal | +502 2302 3733 |
| Hotel Honolulu | El Hawaii, Chiquimulilla | Independent rooms among gardens, facing the beach; 150 km from Guatemala City | +502 4005 0500 |
| Hotel & Resort Casa Bella | El Hawaii, Chiquimulilla | On the beach, east of the Monterrico nature reserve | +502 5907 2552 |
| Hotel Hawaina Paradise | El Hawaii, Chiquimulilla | Beach property for families and friends | +502 5702 6701 |
The directory prints the same phone number for Hotel Hawaina Paradise and for Hotel El Delfín in Monterrico, so confirm which property answers. For the larger choice of rooms in Monterrico itself, see where to stay in Monterrico.
Related
- Boat trips on the canal from Monterrico: Monterrico mangrove tour.
- The next beach east: Las Lisas.
- Volunteering at the ARCAS park, with ARCAS’s weekly fees: wildlife volunteering in Guatemala.
Sources
- SIC, Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes: Playa Hawaii — undated, read 10 November 2026.
- ARCAS: ARCAS Hawaii (English) — read 10 November 2026.
- ARCAS: ARCAS Hawaii (Spanish) — read 10 November 2026.
- ARCAS: Contacto — read 10 November 2026.
- Yo Exploro Monterrico: Hoteles — local directory, read 10 November 2026.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Playa Hawaii in Guatemala free, and how far is it from Monterrico?
The Ministry of Culture’s directory lists Playa Hawaii, in Chiquimulilla, Santa Rosa, as open 24 hours with free entry (undated, checked 10 November 2026; call ahead). ARCAS places its Hawaii Park 7 km east of Monterrico and 2 km west of Hawaii village. Neither publishes a bus, shuttle or boat timetable or fare between Monterrico and Hawaii.
What is the ARCAS park at Hawaii?
ARCAS, the Asociación de Rescate y Conservación de Vida Silvestre, has worked in the Hawaii area since 1993. Its Hawaii Park is a 3-hectare protected area on the beach and its base on the south coast. ARCAS lists the park’s phone as (502) 5039-0451. Release season and hatchery details are on the Monterrico turtle-release page.
Where can I stay in El Hawaii?
The local directory Yo Exploro Monterrico lists four properties in El Hawaii, Chiquimulilla: Hotel Maya Jade (Playa Rosario, El Hawaii), Hotel Honolulu, Hotel & Resort Casa Bella and Hotel Hawaina Paradise, each with a phone number. It prints no room rates. The rooms at the ARCAS park are volunteer quarters.
Is Hawaii a protected area?
ARCAS says a protected area of more than 4,000 hectares, centred on the mangroves around Hawaii, was declared after community consultations; its English page dates this to 2015 and its Spanish page to 2016. The Ministry of Culture lists the beach under Decreto Número 16-2016 del Congreso de la República, administered by CONAP.
Why is the village called Hawaii?
According to ARCAS, the town’s founder had seen a postcard of the island of Hawaii when he first arrived about 60 years ago and thought he saw similarities.
