Waipatiki Beach is, in my opinion, the most beautiful beach in Hawke's Bay. It is about a 45-minute drive from Napier, the last 20 minutes on a narrow, winding gravel road. Perhaps because of this, the beach is rarely crowded. There is a small parking lot at the end of the road, and then you have a very short walk to the beach. There is a small sandy area where most visitors stay. The current here is very strong, so swimming is not recommended. Surfers, however, seem to favor this particular spot.
The sandy area of the beach is flanked by cliffs, and a small path provides access to the more remote sections of the beach. The path winds along the cliffs, and if you wish to get closer to the water, there are spots where it is safe to walk down to the water. The farther you get from the parking lot, the fewer people you will see, if you encounter any at all. This makes for a peaceful, relaxing retreat.
Waipatiki Beach is supposedly a good spot for finding paua shells. Paua is a type of mussel with a beautiful, almost holographic shell. Paua is commonly eaten, and the shell is made into jewelry and various souvenirs. On my trip to the beach, I found only a small piece of a shell. When talking to locals later that day, they said that only five years ago, that beach would have had hundreds of the shells, but due to over-fishing, the numbers have severely dwindled. Still, your best bet to find a shell is after a storm, when the rough tide may have washed some empty shells up on to the beach. Aside from paua, though, there are thousands of other shells in all shapes, colors, and sizes, especially if you walk along the cliffs for a mile or so.