Will have rental car in Maui, Hilo, and Honolulu--need advice on beach areas

[anteaters]

Hi! We'll be in Hawaii in late January on a Princess cruise and will be renting a car in Maui, Hilo, and Honolulu (just one day for each island.) While we want mostly to travel around and see the main sights on these islands, we would also love to be able to stop and spend an hour or so going for a swim. We would need a place where we can park our car for free or at a reasonable cost, have bathrooms for changing in and out of our swim suits, and beach waters that are considered safe for swimming and where there will be some other people around. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Astro Flyer]

If you're arriving in Kahului Maui you could go to the West Maui area (Kaanapali, Lahaina) which is about 45 minutes away or to South Maui (Wailea, Makena) about 30 minutes away.

 

Lahaina is a nice old whaling town filled with stores & restaurants but not great beaches. Kaanapali has nice beaches in front of luxury hotels & the Whalers Village shopping center has stores & restaurants which validated parking.

 

If I want to go to the beach I prefer those in the Wailea/Makena area mostly in front of resort hotels. There is free parking, toilets & outdoor showers at Ulua/Mokapu, Wailea & Polo Beach in Wailea. The Shops at Wailea has stores & restaurants.

 

Beaches are best before noon when tradewinds generally increase. All of these beaches are safe but check for red flag conditions which can happen at anytime. Some ignore the bad conditions because they want to enjoy the ocean but it could be a big mistake.

[Susan-M]

Agree with Astro Flyer's recommendations for Maui, and for late January, you might find the conditions a little better in S. Maui (Wailea, Makena). But which port will you be in there - Lahaina or Kahului? Most beaches have public parking, and a lot have washroom/change facilities.

 

I don't think Hilo will be worth a beach stop - the best beaches and weather are on the west side of the Big Island (do you have a port day in Kona as well?) In Hilo I would devote my time to sightseeing - especially VNP, and if you have additional time, the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens or Akaka Falls.

 

Waikiki is a must IMO when in Honolulu - busy, but great to see! I'm not sure about public facilities and parking though (we've only been there while staying in hotels and were able to walk to the beach). Hopefully someone else can help with that - or you could ask on the Honolulu Tripadvisor forum.

[aussiemandy]

When we were in Hilo in October we were 'caught' in the **** Down and couldn't visit the Volcanic Nat Park, so drove to the waterfalls, and decided we needed a swim. The closest we could fine to the port was Onekahakaha Beach Park. It was a lovely spot. NOT a surf beach, more an ocean pool. It is protected by rock walls, has a sandy bottom, change rooms, nice grassy area. It was here we spotted our first turtle, such an amazing treat. It swam around near us for over 1/2 hour before others came and tried to get too close. If you want to cool down, get wet and don't need surf it's a lovely spot.

[aussiemandy]

Don't know why my last post was 'edited' regarding the Shut Down. Will it happen again and you'll all wonder what I'm talking about? And yes I checked my spelling.

[pseudoware]

While on Oahu off the Grand Princess last month, we drove to the windward side of the island. Some great beaches there - Lanikai Beach, Kailua Beach Park & Waimanalo Beach are some to consider.

 

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[slidergirl]

Second Kailua Park on Oahu. Lanikai is frequently mentioned as the best beach in the US, but parking is always an issue. Kailua is on the other side of the river outlet. Nice beaches, calm waters most of the time.

If you can do Kona instead of Hilo for the car rental/beach day, head up coast. Hapuna State Park has an excellent beach, and can have breakers to make good bodysurfing. Or, drive through the lava field at Kona Coast State Park to the beach - it's never crowded.

[anteaters]

Thanks so much to all of you who gave such good sounding advice. I'm going to print it up. Oh, we will be in Lahaina which I just called Maui--I have to learn more about the islands obviously.

[Astro Flyer]

Thanks so much to all of you who gave such good sounding advice. I'm going to print it up. Oh, we will be in Lahaina which I just called Maui--I have to learn more about the islands obviously.

If you're planning to stay in the Lahaina area then there are alternatives to renting a car. There is a shuttle bus ($2/pp/ow) a short distance from the Lahaina pier or about a $20 cab ride each way to get to Ka'anapali. It's nearly an hour to get to the South Maui beaches without any traffic delays.

[slidergirl]

hmmmm…anteaters… from UCI, I take it??? I grew up near there...

[pseudoware]

If you're planning to stay in the Lahaina area then there are alternatives to renting a car. There is a shuttle bus ($2/pp/ow) a short distance from the Lahaina pier or about a $20 cab ride each way to get to Ka'anapali. It's nearly an hour to get to the South Maui beaches without any traffic delays.

 

Or if you stick with the rental car, you can still drive to Ka'anapali beach. It's a long beach, and there are several areas to park and access the beach. Not much further north is Kapalua Bay, which I would strongly consider. You can take the upper Honoapailini Hwy. and take a left at the Napli shopping center and turn right onto Lower Honoapailini. From there Kapalua is about 1 mile, just turn left into the small public parking lot. IMHO, worth the add'l distance to drive there.

[anteaters]

hmmmm…anteaters… from UCI, I take it??? I grew up near there...

 

Yes, I went to UCI for my BA and teaching credential. We live about an hour away from there now. The area has really built up a lot since I went to school there beginning in its 2nd year of existance.

[anteaters]

Thanks, Psuedoware! That sounds like a good option for the beach part of our day.

Edited January 15, 2014 by anteaters
left out a name

[mnchkn11]

I recommend Lanikai on Oahu. It is absolutely beautiful. I wish we'd spent more time there! Parking was not a problem at all when we were there. There are many side streets where you can park for free, and then find one of the public paths to the beach. Not too difficult. I'm not sure about public facilities, but there is a bigger beach down the road (not sure of the name) that has facilities.

[southpawsdakota]

Lanikai is beautiful but be very careful as to what you leave in your car. We have traveled many places and it was the ONLY place that we had a car broken into. We parked in a neighborhood area as that is where the parking was. Be careful and take everything with you and don't leave in the car or the trunk.