MauiGuidebook.com In a nutshell: A great place to have a picnic from the many nearby yummy take-out joints.
Minuses: Reef is right at the shoreline.
Sound-bite: “What’s an Okazuya?”
Honokowai Beach Park
QUICK SUMMARY:
Very pretty beach park to sit out and just enjoy being there – swimming is restricted to a shallow pool situated between rocky ledges of reef. This long shallow pool is perfect for kids and there is also plenty of shade at the beaches edge.
Beyond the rocky ledges the ocean is shallow and even though it doesn’t appear in popular snorkel maps and guidebooks, there is actually pretty good snorkeling here. (See Google map below.)
Honokowai Beach Park
Honokowai means “bay for drawing water”; in the old days there were freshwater springs at the water’s edge. The beach was also said to have been a canoe landing.
This park is a convenient place for a beach picnic, and there are several great takeout joints in Honokowai – in fact there is more inexpensive takeout in the immediate area of Honokowai than anywhere else in West Maui.
This beach park also has playgrounds, picnic tables and and BBQ’s. (Note: While alcohol consumption is allowed at many beaches, it is not permitted at this beach park.)
Info:
Mile Marker: #25.9 (Hwy 30 aka Honoapiilani Hwy) to Lower Honoapiilani Rd. – See Google map below for exact location.
GPS Coordinates: 20.954541,-156.686422
Facilities: No Lifeguards, Shower, Bathrooms, Picnic Tables, BBQ, Playgrounds
Get directions
View Honokowai Beach Park in a larger map
Maui Matts says:
Okazu is Japanese for side dish, or more accurately, the items that one eats with rice. Ya is a suffix for store or monger. Thus, a Panya in Japanese is a Bakery, or a store that sells Pan (Bread). So while one can always cook their own rice, it’s sometimes convenient to run out and buy some okazu. Or at least that’s how it worked in the old days.
Despite its name, I would say that Honokowai Okazuya actually sells plate lunches, i.e., complete with rice. I suspect the business must have been owned by a Japanese person at some point, but that doesn’t seem to apply today. Their food is good and plentiful, but our favorite is Ohana Tacos, a trailer that is parked in front of the Rental Storage place in the evenings, Monday thru Friday. My wife and daughter love their fish tacos.