Kanaha Beach Park Complete 2024 Guide: Everything You Need to Know

Kanaha Beach Park Maui blog post cover image. Text overlaying an image of white sand and turquoise waters with the West Maui mountains in the background.

Kanaha Beach Park hosts a two-mile stretch of white-to-gold sand beach and tropical blue water, sheltered by lush greenery.

With its walking-distance proximity from Maui Airport (OGG), this semi-secret gem is a great place to start or end any Maui itinerary.

The North Shore of Maui is known for receiving high winds and strong currents, but also for its spectacular beaches with picturesque views of the West Maui Mountains. The powerful tides and trade winds make for poor snorkeling conditions, but are exactly what the local surfers and windsurfers love about it.

We always spend a lot of time at Kanaha Beach Park during our trips to Maui. We have created this guide to explain everything you need to know for visiting for the first time.

This includes directions, photo galleries, services, and more.

Contents

🌊 About Kanaha Beach Park: Overview

Turtles rest on the shore of Kanaha Beach in North Maui. — Turtles rest on the shore of Kanaha Beach in North Maui as the West Maui Mountains loom large in the distance.

SERVICES

Nearest Town: Kahalui
Parking: A parking lot is available at Kanaha Beach Park.
Public Bathrooms? Yes.
Showers? Yes.
Lifeguard? Yes.

DESCRIPTION

Beautiful Kanaha Beach on the Maui North Shore behind OGG airport. — A view of Kanaha Beach from the western edge looking east across the beach.

Kanaha Beach Park is located within walking distance of the Maui Kahului Airport (OGG), making it a great place first or last stop for holiday visitors. The white-to-gold sand, lush greenery, tropical waters, and mountain views look like something stolen from a postcard.

The favorable offshore breezes this region often receives make it a very popular destination for local windsurfers. Its remote nature also makes it a favorite spot for the native honu, aka Hawaiian sea turtles, to rest.

The west end of the park is the more developed, providing restrooms, showers, parking, lifeguards, and most other basic amenities.

🌎 How to Get to Kanaha Beach Park

The satellite view above shows the location of Kanaha Beach Park near Maui airport (OGG) on the north shore. — The satellite view above shows the location of Kanaha Beach Park near Maui airport (OGG).

With Navigation: GPS devices will recognize the beach by name.

General Directions: Kanaha Beach Park is located off of Amala Place road on the North Shore of Maui. You can connect to Amala Place by taking Mayor Elmer F. Cravalho Way as if you were going to the airport but continuing past it.

☀️ When to Visit Kanaha Beach Park

A myriad of windsurfers take to the sky at Kanaha Beach on the Maui North Shore. — A myriad of windsurfers take to the sky at Kanaha Beach in front of the West Maui Mountains.

The best time to visit Kanaha Beach is right after you have gotten off the plane! The park is located just a short walk away from the airport, waiting to welcome vacationers with some Maui aloha.

Seasonally, those same winds that delight windsurfers make enjoying the sandy shore difficult. The wind and water tend to be calmer and the colors more vibrant during morning visits.

🏝 Kanaha Beach Park Photo Gallery

The Kanaha Beach Park photo gallery above gives some insight as to what you can expect to see on your visit to this beautiful North Maui destination.

Aqua and turquoise water meet white-to-gold sand with the West Maui Mountains towering in the background. When conditions are right, this becomes one of the best places in Hawaii for windsurfing and kitesurfing.

🌺 More Maui Beach & Travel Guides

A young female swimmer waits on the shore of Red Sand Beach in Maui. — Discover the best **Secret Beaches of Maui**, including the incredible **Red Sand Beach** seen above.

Before you go, you may want to skim some of the titles for other relevant Maui guides below to ensure you do not miss any epic beaches, sunset destinations, or noteworthy things to do during your visit to the Valley Isle!

MAUI PACKING LIST: A printable essential packing list + 25 useful items to consider
7 DAY MAUI ITINERARY: How to see the entire island in one week
WHERE TO STAY ON MAUI: The best places and areas to stay on the island
PLANNING A TRIP TO MAUI: Step-by-step guide for planning your first visit to Maui
ROAD TO HANA STOPS: The Top 25 places to visit on the Road to Hana
ROAD TO HANA ITINERARY: How to plan for a 1-2 day self-drive.
BEST MAUI PHOTO SPOTS: 15 best places for photographing Maui
SECRET BEACHES OF MAUI: The 10 most incredible hidden beaches on the island
MAUI SUNSETS: The Top 10 places & activities for watching sunset in Maui
KIHEI BEACHES GUIDE: Photos, locations, and descriptions for all 15 beaches in Kihei
BEST SNORKELING IN MAUI: Best snorkel spots, tips, tours, and more.

🌅 Final Thoughts on Kanaha Beach Park

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We truly hope you have found this complete guide to Kanaha Beach Park useful in planning your visit.

Now we’d like to hear from you!

Was there any question left unanswered, or information you think needs to be updated? Did you learn everything you needed to in order to confidently visit? Did we knock it out of the park?

Let us know your thoughts and help us improve by leaving some feedback in the comments below!