Kawaihae is an unincorporated community on the west side of the island of Hawaiʻi in the U.S. state of Hawaiʻi, 35 miles north of Kailua-Kona. It…Kawaihae is an unincorporated community on the west side of the island of Hawaiʻi in the U.S. state of Hawaiʻi, 35 miles north of Kailua-Kona. Its harbor is one of only two on the island, together with that of Hilo.