Kaanapali Beach - Friday 5:30pm

Some beaches on Maui are better for snorkeling whereas others are better for surfing, and some are just good for playing beach volleyball and watching the sun go down. Kā‘anapali Beach is good for all of them — not to mention the scuba diving, boogie boarding, shopping, cliff jumping and rows of oceanfront beach bars.

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This is arguably Maui’s most popular beach, which makes sense considering it’s located in Hawai‘i’s first master-planned resort area. When the Royal Lahaina opened on the beach in 1962, it kicked off a string of a high-rise resorts that today forms the glitzy, glamorous hub of recreation in West Maui. By 2003, Kā‘anapali Beach became so popular it was named the “#1 Beach in America,” and it continues to thrive as one of the busiest and most happening places on Maui.

 

There’s more to Kā‘anapali than the beach, however. It also houses two championship golf courses with views looking out at the ocean, as well as Whalers Village shopping center where some of the biggest names in fashion have set up their sparkling shops. There are dozens of restaurants within the resorts where celebrity chefs whip up fancy cuisine made from locally sourced ingredients and a clutch of poolside tiki bars where visitors from every corner of the globe unwind after a day in the sun.