Right off the beach, there's a little shaved ice truck. It's got great flavors of real fruit syrup and classic syrup. They also sell other items--it all sounds so tempting and refreshing in the hot, humid weather! Got the guava and mango real fruit syrups. I'm a super big fan of the guava!! It's sweet, but like juice sweet, not pure sugar sweet. The ice melts fast, but knowing that, they give you a straw. I'd come back! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Mango (left) and guava (right) real fruit syrup - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

This was right across from Lawa'i beach and it was very very popular. The service was friendly but they were definitely on island time. I didn't mind waiting - stood there and enjoyed the nice ocean breeze! I ordered the coconut cream and guava plus a snowcap. I decided to go with the organic syrups but they also have the more traditional flavors too. In addition to shave ice, they also sell snacks. Compared to some of the other shave ice places, I felt like the syrup was more on the sweeter side ... most people don't mind that but for me, I like it less sweet so it tastes more like "natural" sweet. Don't get me wrong though, I ate the whole thing! I would definitely get this place again if I was in the area! Highly recommend! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Their little logo - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

Best shave ice -- +100 bonus points since they make their own syrups organically (real fruit shreds/pieces). The location is fun and right next to the Beach House. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Make sure to check out the Organic syrups! - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

Best shaved ice we had in Kaua'i! They make fresh fruit syrups and lots of other options for a cold treat right near the beach. We got the sunrise smoothie, coconut, passion fruit and pineapple shaved ice. You can sit and eat at the picnic table there or watch the surfers at the beach across the street. read more

See all

The best shaved ice I have had on the island. Go for the fresh fruit options rather than the syrup. $10-12 per person which is normal for shaved ice most places on the island. Unbeatable views and very helpful staff. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

The owner's passion is translated into her shaved ice and smoothies (we didn't try the food!). We sampled every shaved ice on the island (okay- exaggeration but we had a LOT of shaved ice!) This was up there in the top 3- I couldn't choose which one I liked best so they are all in the top Three :) . There was a little picnic table and a public restroom right by the place which made it perfect with its oceanfront view. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - The vibe - so cute! - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

Really good shave ice! The ice was light and fluffy. Soo many flavors of syrup-- I had such a hard time choosing. I ended up picking pina colada and lychee -- pina colada didn't taste how I expected but lychee was light and refreshing. But there was also guava, li hing mui, mango, passion fruit, etc etc. They had fresh fruit syrup too, which I've never seen and also wanted to try. I got my shave ice with the coconut snow cap which was also surprisingly light. I had a hard time choosing between that and the condensed milk snow cap. I think what this all means is that I have to go back and try some more flavors! They also have some savory food that looked good, but I didn't get any because I was still stuffed from our lunch. I'm impressed by how much they offer out of such a small space! Bit of a wait, but it's okay because you get quality shave ice! And the worker was really friendly. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Pina colada and lychee with snow cap - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

The best shaved ice in Kauai! Love it and its beachfront location! Highly recommend if your in poipu

Amazing as usual! The owner gave our daughter chalk to play on the sidewalk while the shave ice was made. Organic syrups are amazing and really show the flavor and yumminess of the fruit. Can't wait to come back again to enjoy the service, view, and shave ice read more

This was the best shave I've we had on the island. We're tried Jo Jo's, Wishing Well (which was my 2nd favorite) and Riptides. Major negative to some of the other places is consistency, as we went many times! And they would melt so fast and basically become soup halfway through. Riptides did not. It wasn't overly sweet, it was just right. It stayed frozen up until the very end of the bowl. Friendly staff; fast service; read more

See all

We really enjoyed this place and it was so convenient having it just steps from our condo complex. I think we went here 3 times, and would have gone more if we could have! The owner, Mindy, and staff are super friendly and cool. I was impressed Mindy remembered our faces from a couple days previously. We enjoyed talking with her during our visit. First time there I got the pineapple and coconut. I think my youngest got strawberry and guava and my oldest got lychee and pog. It was so refreshing and delicious! The second time, just my oldest ordered and she got lychee, mango and li hing mui. She even had them sprinkle some of the li hing mui powder on top and got an ice cream scoop. It was wonderful! Final time there I got the lychee and li hing mui with the powder sprinkled on top. My kids repeated what they'd ordered previously. They have all natural syrups as well as others. They also offer a lot more than just shave ice, although we didn't order anything else. It's a great little stop when you've spent the day snorkeling across the street! Love the painted Locals slippahs on the stand! Aloha! read more

See all

Great shave ice, friendly service, and they were even open on Thanksgiving! Our family are big fans of shave ice and this was our first experience at riptides. We appreciated that they have both fresh fruit syrups and local made syrups. Your can see the attention to detail in how they make shave ice here, inserting holes in the ice to allow the syrup to mix throughout, even topping the Mac nut ice cream version with Mac nut on top (made my mom Mac nut ordering family a little jealous). While the line can get long, it moves and you can just turn and face the ocean which is 10 ft away, so not a bad view while you wait. Mindy the owner, was kind and friendly. If you're craving shave ice, put riptides on the top of your list. It's by far the best shave ice place on Kauai. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

The best shaved ice on the island. We tried several spots and I just kept wanting to come back to Riptides. Service was exceptional and the location was fantastic. Lots of selections for flavors, get the ube or cherry. Two thumbs up. Would try again. Cheers. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Shaved ice - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

Our favorite shave ice to date! We've stopped at this friendly little truck on past trips and came back to try it again. It's just a small little cart on the side of the road with some great beach views in tow. They can get a little backed up but the people were friendly and helped us as soon as they could. They feature both fresh made syrups and traditional ones as well. We opted for fresh strawberry and coconut with mac nut ice cream on the bottom. Well worth getting the ice cream as it add a wonderful creamy flavor and this place actually puts a decent amount in to balance it out. The flavors on the shave ice were really excellent and super flavorful, the texture of the ice was fluffy and the creamy ice cream rounded it out perfectly. One of the best we've had! read more

It was delicious! It was the least artificial tasting shave ice that I have had! They use fresh fruit and cane sugar! And it was right by the beach. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

Riptides serves my favorite shave ice on Kauai, and my favorite anywhere really. The staff is friendly, the location is perfect and the food is delicious. I love to load up my shave ice with a ton of add ons and chat it up with Mindy or enjoy the views of Lawai Beach while I wait. My son also loves the hot dogs and we enjoy chowing down on their delicious Kalua pork nachos. We always stay at the Lawai Beach Resort, so I tend to make daily visits to Riptides :-) It's a must when on island! read more

See all

Our favorite shave ice spot on this side of the island! A cute little food truck right across from gorgeous Lawai beach. You can choose from traditional shave ice flavors or all natural fruit juice flavors. My favorite was Real Fruit Mango and Guava, it was so fresh! Their cold brew is pretty good, too. Highly recommend giving this place a try! They were even open Christmas Day. read more

Great shave ice and conveniently located across from Kuhio Shores where we are staying.

Somehow, this is the last shave ice place we tried. And it was one of the best! And closest to us which we really couldn't believe. Riptides does shave ice right, and has both classic syrups and organic syrup options in great flavors. Dragonfruit easily became on of our favorites here which we had not found anywhere else (and we eat a lot of shave ice). For being just a small food truck across from Beach House, we couldn't believe all the other options they had aside from shave ice. All kinds of food and beach items for sale. We'll run and super friendly no matter who helps you. There is one table to sit at, but we always just went and sat on the grass in the shade. We went here twice during our 13 days and will return on our next trip! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Classic rainbow shave ice - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

I have tried every shaved ice business on the island, this one is my favorite. My family comes back every year and visit multiple times each trip. I highly recommend the natural fresh fruits . The owner Mindy is always super friendly and takes pride in a quality product. The location is conveniently located and overlooking Lawai beach. You won't be disappointed! read more

The reason I am writing this review is because the person behind the counter watched my young son accidentally drop his fresh made shaved Ice swatting at something. Obviously he's crushed and about to cry. Without skipping a beat she got his attention and told him not to worry. I offered to pay again as it was his fault and I definitely needed to get a new one for him but her compassion bled through the job and she just took care of the little guy so he wouldn't be sad. God bless. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Menu with Current Options and Pricing - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

As if to make up for my prior review of a completely different shave ice experience I will tell you what I find to be the most stellar shave ice on Kauai: It's here at Riptides. In a little portable shack across from a popular snorkeling spot, Riptides has been stellar over the course of several visits over the last two years. It has never once failed to deliver wonderful flavors of quality syrups (they also offer natural flavors, if you prefer), quality ice cream, perfectly shaved ice, and service from the owner and staff that is always warm and an exemplar of the aloha spirit. You might think falsely that shave ice is shave ice and that there's little variation between spots. You would be wrong and once you try a bad spot you'll understand just how wrong. But Riptides? They're the best of the best. Enjoy. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Didn't get a pic this year; here's last year's. Still awesome, and the best on the island. - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

The shave ice toppings? Next level. Handcrafted tropical flavors that taste like the fruit! Mango and passion fruit was the perfect balance of sweet and tangy but never too much. Coconut and strawberry was creamy and mellow and just sweet enough. A must have while you're visiting!! Go see Mindy! No judgement if you make it a daily treat! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Mango passion with vanilla ice cream and macadamia nuts - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

The best shaved ice in Kauai just happened to be right next to our condo. Cute little shack across from a great snorkeling beach. I had the organic homemade syrup with pieces of fresh fruit coconut cream and cherry with macadamia nut ice cream in the middle and topped with sugar cream. Decadent and yummy! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

Not cheap, but worth it! My son and I shared the fresh fruit shaved ice with coconut cream and guava. Love how the girl shaved the ice and gently firmed the ice but did not packed it so that it would stay flakey. She also poked a ton of straw holes in the ice to allow the fresh fruit sauce to get deep down into the shaved ice. Definitely the tastiest and best shaved ice we have ever had, hands down... and we just came from Oahu and had shaved ice there from Waiola Shaved Ice, Matsumoto, and Vintage Shaved Ice on Waikiki- which were all good but not quite as good as Riptides! We tried returning on Thursday and were disappointed that Thursday is the day of the week they are not open. Truly our loss. read more

Highly recommend the fresh fruit dragon fruit shaved ice with cream on top or ice cream in the bottom. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Unassuming food truck. Friendly staff. Great view. - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

One of if not the best shave ice on the south side of the island! While driving to Spouting Horn we saw a small blue shack on the side of the road and were curious about what they had so we pulled over. The workers were super friendly and helpful and recommend that we try their organic shave ice. I was a little hesitant as the organic shave ice place we had earlier in the week at Old Kōloa Town lacked flavor but decided but to give organic shave ice another try. Their flavors did not disappoint! We really liked the Lilikoi and the dragonfruit flavor with the snow cap. You can taste the flavors and they do not skimp on the syrup! I wish I had found this place earlier on our trip because it would have definitely been a frequented spot. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Lilikoi and Guava - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

So good! Get the real fruit syrups and snow cab and mochi. Sit out back in the shade.

Strawberry/Mango with macadamia nut ice cream at the bottom with an ocean view. So good we went back twice!! Kids always ordered "rainbow", and loved it. We even saw a little green gecko hang out with us! Customer service was great too. Love this place, tried a few shaved ice places and this was my favorite on Kauai. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Gecko! - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

Phenomenal shaved Ice. Kids loved it and the cute shack was super close to our place. The owner was so bubbly and nice. We went back multiple times!! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Phenomenal shaved Ice. - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

I loved riptides. What a cool beach shack for a treat. When I arrived I almost immediately noticed that they had fresh fruit as a substitute for syrup. The ice was as good as it sounded. Highly recommend read more

This is the best shave ice I've been fortunate to enjoy. The ice so fine, the Mac nut ice cream delicious and the macadamia nuts included a real treat. Friendly service. I appreciated that a compostable, spoon and cup were used. Visit Riptides if you have the opportunity! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Li Hing Mui shave ice with macadamia nut ice cream - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

See all

Had the fresh fruit shave ice, and it was phenomenal. Best we've had on the island for sure. read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Dragonfruit and pineapple shave ice. - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

Really really good shave ice ocean side. The organic fresh fruit is worth the added cost. Sometimes there is a line. But that's cause it's too read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Organic lychee and strawberry - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii

If the fact that we came here 3 times for shaved ice in one week doesn't say how much we enjoyed it then I don't know what would! The best shaved ice I have ever had in Hawaii! Served with a smile and some local suggestions, a generous portion with naturally made fruit flavored syrups (you can totally tell) and a huge scoop of ice cream topped with some macadamia nuts and I am now adding them as a rotation into my diet. A small food cart, conveniently located across from a beautiful snorkel spot and some vacation rentals, there is limited street parks that we didn't have trouble finding but can see it being busy in the summer. Will be my first stop when I'm back in Kauai! read more

Best shave ice on the island, specifically with the real fruit ice syrups they make! It does take quite awhile though so come with your patience. 7 shave ices in front of me and probably a 20 min wait to far. Still waiting. Still worth it lol read more

It was delicious,the best shave ice I've had on Kaua'i. Do yourself a favor and stop by while your on the island.

The Hawaiian shaved ice here is amazing! Probably the best I've had in the islands and the states. Prices are very reasonable. The shack on the side of the road served by Hawaiians makes it so authentic. They have a picnic table and umbrella outside for seating. Only fits about four to six people. However there are surrounding areas for sitting if needed. Its directly across from the ocean so the views are beautiful. I was watching a man snorkle just off the road. Definitely recommend this place and I give it my highest orange tree rating! So that means this place is the best of the best! read more

Best shave ice on the south shore, and across from a great snorkeling beach at that. This is a cute little stand and there is one small picnic table next to it, but you can take your shave ice directly across to the beach and find a spot of shade to eat. Note there is also a public restroom here, which is awesome. This stand has both natural syrups, artificial syrups, and sugar- free options. I also really appreciated that they gave you a biodegradable straw (the kind that doesn't "melt"! I used that same straw for multiple days afterwards) and a paper bowl. Customer service was great. We went twice while staying in town. (Note there apparently is a Waikomo shave ice in Poipu but every time we tried to go the week we were in town in February the food stand was nowhere to be seen). read more

Love that they have fresh organic fruit ice. As a dye free family it was wonderful to have so many options- on top of that they were delicious! We will be back for sure! read more

Riptides Shave Ice & Snacks - Pineapple organic fruit shaved ice! So tasty! - Shaved Ice Near Me - Koloa, Hawaii