Beach recommendations in Maui and Kauai

[cruiser123cba]

For Maui and Kauai, we plan on sightseeing one day in each port and spending one day in each port relaxing on the beach. What beaches would you recommend in these ports? Thanks in advance!

[sceptic]

Maui - recommend Kaanapali for one day. It's a very nice beach, excellent snorkeling at Black Rock, great people-watching, primo resorts to admire and gawk at, good shopping, nice restaurant selection.

 

Kauai - A single beach?... Maybe Ke'e, if you're renting a car. It's a fine beach, with snorkeling and great scenery but no resort stuff. It also has the wonderful drive to get there. Perhaps Poipu on the south coast, but the drive is far more interesting to Ke'e. If your sightseeing day involves Waimea Canyon, by all means choose Ke'e for the beach day because you'll see (literally and figuratively) a whole other side of Kauai. There's also the matter of weather. Ke'e on the north shore is far more prone to rain, so if it's soggy up there, it's almost always sunny at Poipu. Nice to have such an option!

[cruiser123cba]

Thanks! How far is Kaanapali from the port?

 

Does anyone know of hotels in Maui or Kauai that we can park at?

[sceptic]

If the port is Kahului, Ka'anapali is about 25 miles away. It's an easy drive, but there is often a bit of congestion around Lahaina, especially from about 3 PM to 5PM or so.

 

Just check any map of Maui on the internet to see the route.

 

I'm not sure what you mean by parking at a hotel.

[Beach4me]

Thanks! How far is Kaanapali from the port?

 

Does anyone know of hotels in Maui or Kauai that we can park at?

 

You can park at Whaler's Village at Ka'anapali Beach. Whaler's Village is an open-air shopping center with several good restaurants mid-beach. They have lots of parking. There are several showers to rinse off at at the Westin (right next to WV) along the beachwalk.

 

For lunch, you can grab a sandwich at the Hula Grill right on the beach - literally...you sit with your toes in the sand. Be sure to get a piece of Hula Pie!

 

If you want a less busy area, go just past Kaanapali to Kahekili Beach (Airport Beach). It is the other side of Black Rock (the Sheraton). Here's a link: http://www.mauibeachguide.com/Airport_Beach.html There's plenty of parking here, too...but no Hula Pie! ;)

 

(I remember the "good ol' days when the sugar cane fields came down to the beach on Kahekili...there was nothing on the beach - no park, no hotels...nothing. I'd walk the beach every morning all the way to Black Rock and only see the cane field workers if they were taking a break. Man, those days are l-o-n-g gone.) :(

[glworldtraveler63]

Maui - recommend Kaanapali for one day. It's a very nice beach, excellent snorkeling at Black Rock, great people-watching, primo resorts to admire and gawk at, good shopping, nice restaurant selection.

 

Kauai - A single beach?... Maybe Ke'e, if you're renting a car. It's a fine beach, with snorkeling and great scenery but no resort stuff. It also has the wonderful drive to get there. Perhaps Poipu on the south coast, but the drive is far more interesting to Ke'e. If your sightseeing day involves Waimea Canyon, by all means choose Ke'e for the beach day because you'll see (literally and figuratively) a whole other side of Kauai. There's also the matter of weather. Ke'e on the north shore is far more prone to rain, so if it's soggy up there, it's almost always sunny at Poipu. Nice to have such an option!

 

I have been doing a lot of research on

Kauai.

We are spending 14 days on Kauai in June, be advised that Ke'e does not have life guard and there can be a terrible rip tide, just keep that in mind.