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Explore Maui
Every beach on this list is one we send our own guests to. Sugar Beach is across the street; the rest are ranked by how often we drive there ourselves.
Maui has more than 80 beaches, and most visitors see three. This guide is the shortlist we give guests at check-in: the twelve stretches of sand that earn repeat visits, from Sugar Beach right outside the bungalows to the wide-open sweep of Big Beach in Makena.
South-shore beaches are calmest in the morning before the trade winds arrive, and winter brings both whales offshore and shorebreak worth respecting. Wherever you land, take the local rule with you: never turn your back on the ocean.
01
Our home beach, directly across the street from the bungalows: the longest continuous ribbon of sand on Maui, running roughly three miles from the old Kihei wharf to Ma’alaea. Empty at sunrise, calm all morning, windy and wild by mid-afternoon.
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The biggest of Kihei's three sister beaches: the longest run of open sand, a daily lifeguard, and a quieter corner at the north end that most visitors never find.
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The middle of Kihei's three sister beaches, and for many regulars the best of them: a wide crescent of soft sand, easy swimming, and rocky points at both ends that keep the snorkelers busy.
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The southernmost of Kihei's three sister beaches and the one built for a full family day: a huge grass lawn, the best playground on the strip, barbecue grills and sand that ends in a snorkelable rocky point.
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The shaded north corner of Kamaole I that most visitors never notice — which is exactly why the locals love it.
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The long, soft-sand beach where Kihei hands off to Wailea — a locals' favorite for morning snorkels, barefoot miles and the most dependable sunset walk in South Maui.
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The resort row's showpiece crescent — and thanks to Hawai’i law, it belongs to everyone. Here is how to do Wailea on a public-parking budget.
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A calm golden crescent in Makena with the famous Turtle Town reef off its south end. Easy entry, easy parking, and the best turtle odds you can get from shore.
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Oneloa, the biggest undeveloped sweep of sand on the island — glorious for walking and watching, famous for a shorebreak that deserves your full respect.
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A small, calm, condo-lined crescent on the northwest shore with sandy-bottom swimming and turtle-rich snorkeling off both points. Worth the drive, if you beat the parking.
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Three miles of resort sand with a paved beachwalk behind it and Black Rock at the north end — morning snorkeling, evening torches, and the cliff dive at sunset.
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The north shore’s arena: world-famous windsurfing over a live reef, winter waves worth a road trip, and green sea turtles asleep on the sand by late afternoon.
Read the full guide →| Beach | Type | Best for | From the bungalows | Facilities | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar Beach | 3 mile sand ribbon | Morning walks and calm early swims | Right across the street | Restrooms, showers at Mai Poina | Free |
| Kamaole Beach Park I | Sand beach park | Big open sand and easy swimming | 10 minute drive | Restrooms, showers, lifeguard | Free |
| Kamaole Beach Park II | Sand crescent beach park | Swimming and boogie boards | 10 minute drive | Restrooms, showers, lifeguard | Free |
| Kamaole Beach Park III | Beach park with big lawn | Families, picnics, playground | 12 minute drive | Playground, grills, restrooms, lifeguard | Free |
| Charley Young Beach | Sandy cove, north end of Kamaole I | Morning swims and quiet afternoons | About 8 minutes by car | Shower at the stairs; restrooms at Kamaole I | Free |
| Keawakapu Beach | Long sand beach | Sunset walks and morning snorkels | 15 minute drive | Showers, portable toilets | Free |
| Wailea Beach | Resort-fronting sand crescent | Calm swimming, people-watching, whale season | About 15 minutes by car | Restrooms and showers at the access points | Free — all Hawai’i beaches are public |
| Maluaka Beach | Golden sand crescent with reef | Snorkeling with sea turtles | 25 minute drive | Restrooms and showers (north lot) | Free |
| Big Beach (Oneloa) | Undeveloped state park beach | Big-sand walks and watching | 30 minute drive | Lifeguards, toilets, no water | $5 per person (visitors) |
| Napili Bay | Calm crescent bay | Easy swimming and snorkeling | 50 minute drive | Beach showers, no restrooms | Free |
| Ka’anapali Beach | Three-mile resort beach | Snorkeling and the sunset dive | 45 minute drive | Beachwalk, showers, shops | Free |
| Ho’okipa Beach Park | North shore surf beach park | Windsurfing and turtle watching | 30 minute drive | Lifeguards, restrooms, showers | Free |
Seven of these beaches are within about fifteen minutes of the bungalows: Sugar Beach across the street, then south along South Kihei Road to Charley Young, the three Kamaole beach parks, Keawakapu and Wailea Beach. Makena's Maluaka and Big Beach are 25 to 30 minutes south, Ho’okipa is about 30 minutes north, and the West Maui pair, Ka’anapali and Napili Bay, take 45 to 50 minutes.
Five have lifeguards: Kamaole I, II and III, Big Beach and Ho’okipa. Sugar Beach has none, so we keep our own swims there close to shore and early, before the afternoon wind. If you are traveling with young swimmers, the Kamaole parks give you a guarded beach about ten minutes from the door, plus restrooms and showers.
Every beach in Hawai’i is public, the sand in front of the Wailea resorts included, and Wailea has free public shoreline-access lots. The one fee on this list is at Big Beach, inside Makena State Park: visitors pay $5 a person and $10 a car. Bring mineral sunscreen to all of them: under Maui County Ordinance 5306, in force since October 1, 2022, only sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide may be sold or used in the county unless a doctor prescribed another kind.
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Four beachside bungalows in North Kihei, hosted by Megan & Bryan since 2012.