Kapaʻa Swimming Pool Returns to Regular Hours April 7

Staffing shortfalls that stripped the Kapaʻa Swimming Pool of its early-morning adult sessions and ultimately shut the east-side facility entirely ended Tuesday when the Kauaʻi County Department of Parks and Recreation restored the pool to its full regular schedule.

The disruption began February 18, when the department reduced operating hours citing staffing issues. Under the trimmed schedule, the dedicated 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. adult swim available Wednesdays through Fridays disappeared, replaced by a later 8:30 a.m. opening with no reserved lap lanes. Tuesday hours shifted to 10:30 a.m., and the Saturday morning adult session was dropped as well. The pool then closed entirely before the county confirmed the April 7 reopening date.

The restored schedule: the pool remains closed Sundays and Mondays. Tuesdays run open swim from 10:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays offer adult swim from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m., followed by open swim from 9:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Saturdays include adult swim from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. and open swim from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The closure rippled across east Kauaʻi's aquatics community. Swim lesson schedules, school athletic programs, and learn-to-swim participants who rely on Kapaʻa as the county's only public pool on the east side had to reroute or suspend training. Swimmers looking for an alternative were directed to the Waimea Swimming Pool on the island's west side, a considerable drive for Kapaʻa-area residents.

Tuesday's reopening marks at least the third significant disruption at the facility in roughly 12 months. Mechanical problems forced a temporary closure in September 2025, and a separate mechanical failure shuttered the pool in April 2025. The recurring pattern has drawn repeated calls from Parks and Recreation for community patience.

The department has not announced further schedule changes. To confirm lane availability or current hours, call the Kapaʻa pool at 808-822-3842, the Waimea pool at 808-338-1271, or Parks and Recreation directly at 808-241-4460.