Perfect Days on Maui

Areas of Maui

South Maui

horses Ma’alaea, North and South Kihei, Wailea and Makena southward to La Pérouse Bay often are lumped together in travel parlance as the Sunny South Shore. The South Shore provides all of the watersports, kayaking, hiking, horseback riding, golf, tennis and other outdoor activities you could possibly want plus dozens of restaurants ranging from good to marvelous.

True enough, the sun shines for more days on superb South Shore beaches than elsewhere on Maui, but the beaches and type of development (or lack of it south of Makena) bordering the ocean all are very different. As a result, the South Shore offers several very different kinds of vacation experiences on land plus a full range of ocean excursions out of Ma’alaea Harbor and from the Kihei Boat Launch and Makena Landing.

Kihei

South Maui extends from Ma’alaea through Kihei, Wailea and Makena to Cape Hanamanioa and the last snorkeling spot on the lava coast, virtually deserted Keawanaku Beach with its black, white and green sand.

Windy Ma’alaea, its boat harbor, condos, restaurants, shops and the Maui Ocean Center (MOC), can be regarded either as the northern end of South Maui, as the southern end of West Maui or even as the southern end of the Central Valley that runs to Kahului.

sailboat The uncrowned intersection of Central, East and West Maui, Ma’alaea is tucked away between Hwy. 30 and Hwy. 310. Ma’alaea and its harbor, shopping village and condos are easy to pass unnoticed except for the marquee of Buzz’s Wharf. Most people discover Ma’alaea when they head to Ma’alaea Harbor to board excursion boats for Molokini or elsewhere, visit the MOC or have lunch or dinner at one of the excellent restaurants located around the Harbor.

Crowded with condos, homes, local shopping centers and other stores, and many good restaurants, Kihei offers visitors hundreds of affordable condo apartments, hotel, vacation rental and B&B accommodations that are well- located to take advantage of the beaches in Kihei and Wailea-Makena.

Two distinctly different parts of Kihei stretch along Kihei Road:

North and South Kihei, both of which contain large numbers of condo resorts with most of the shopping and restaurants located in South Kihei;
Keawakapu Beach as it merges with Wailea at Kilohana Drive, anchored by a cluster of condos just south of the Kihei Boat Launch.

South Maui between Kihei, Wailea and Makena is the warmest, sunniest and driest part of the island and includes a marvelous and diverse assortment of beaches, including: Sugar Beach (Ma’alaea Beach), stretching more than three miles south from Maalaea, one of the longest white sand beaches in the world, with strong offshore winds; and Kamaole Beach Park I, II and III, great beaches for swimming, families and children.

Wailea-Makena

Keawakapu Beach, the last beach along Kihei Rd., is long, wide and sandy, great for walking, jogging and swimming, especially in the morning. Wailea and its marvelous beaches starts at the Palms condos, at Kilohana and Wailea Alanui Drive, and extends past Mokapu Beach Park and Ulua Beach Park to the Polo Beach Park, excellent for swimming and snorkeling, and the Fairmont Kea Lani. The beachside path provides one of the best walks or jogs on Maui.

Here Wailea Alanui becomes Makena Alanui and runs past Palauea Beach, hidden Po’olenalena Beach Park, Nahuna Point (“Turtle Town” and “5 Graves”), Makena Landing, Malu’aka Beach next to the Prince Hotel, Onelui Beach (“Red Sand Beach”) beneath the Red Hill (Pu’u Ola’i), Little Beach and Big Beach (Makena Beach), Pa’ako (“Secret”) Cove, and Ahihi Cove to La Pérouse Bay where the road ends.

golf Wailea and Makena Golf Courses line most of the east side of Wailea Alanui and Makena Alanui except for the Wailea Ekolu condos and the Diamond Resort up the hill on Kaukahi Street. From Wailea Iki, that runs between Wailea Ekolu villas and the Wailea Blue Golf Course, Piilani Hwy. (Hwy. 31) starts its run parallel to the South Coast, intersecting with Hwy. 311 (Mokulele Hwy.) and Hwy. 3 to Ma’alaea.

‘Ahihi-Kina’u Reserve & La Pérouse Bay

The area south of Makena and the lava coastlines around Cape Kina’u and La Pérouse Bay have become increasingly touristy, busy and a legitimate concern to local conservation organizations and the authors of Perfect Days.

All visitors must make every effort to protect the natural resources and cultural values in the Keone’oi’o (La Pérouse Bay) to Kanaloa Point area and the ‘Ahihi-Kina’u Reserve and follow all of the clearly posted rules and regulations governing access to and use of this very fragile, historic coastal area:

Comply with posted restrictions.
Stay away from the coral.
Don’t stand on the reef.
Do not disturb any rock piles (may be archeological sites).
Don’t feed the fish.
Don’t harass marine animals.
Don’t chase dolphins.
Consult with rangers and/or volunteers from Friends of Keone’oi’o about where to go and not go.
Don’t hold parties at night.
Don’t make bonfires.
Clean up your trash.

The State Department of Land and Natural Resources has banned commercial kayaking in the ‘Ahihi-Kina’u Natural Area Reserve. Although commercial kayakers may not be at fault, historic sites and coral heads in the ‘Ahihi-Kina’u reserve have been damaged by the estimated thousand people who visit daily.