Beaches here tend to be less crowded than those in Lahaina and Ka`anapali. Like West Maui, it is more dry than other parts of the island, featuring sandy, pleasant beaches, and is also a major resort area, with shopping, restaurants, and golf courses. South Maui is the region along the island’s southwestern coast, including the towns of Kihei, Wailea, and Makena. Wailuku features many historic buildings as well as locally owned shops and restaurants, while Kahului features retails stores and the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. Iao Valley was the scene of the great Battle of Kepaniwai between the forces of the Maui kingdom at Hawaiian King Kamehameha I, the ruler who united the Hawaiian islands into the Kingdom of Hawai’i. To the west of Wailuku is scenic Iao Valley, once a retreat for the chiefs of Maui, where is located the iconic Iao Needle. Kahului is the site of Kahului Airport, where the great majority of travelers will arrive on the island. The county seat, Wailuku, is here, as is the largest population center, Kahului, immediately east of Wailuku.
#Gay bars in maui pro#
Nearby Kapalua is also noted for beautiful beaches, resorts, and golf courses Honalua Bay is a popular surfing and snorkeling location, and during the winter months features enormous waves that test the mettle of the hardiest pro surfers.Ĭentral Maui is the major population center of the island. Ka’anapali is also the site of ocean side golf courses and Whalers Village, a major open air shopping destination. Ka’anapali Beach, north of Lahaina and Front Street, features Pu’u Keka’a, ‘Black Rock,’ where a torch lighting and cliff diving ceremony is held nightly at the Sheraton Maui to commemorate a feat by the great Maui King Kahekili.
Now, Lahaina is known most as a tourist destination, her famed Front Street a busy thoroughfare of shops and restaurants, terminating in the Banyan Tree Square at the south end, site of an enormous banyan tree as well as the reconstructed ruins of Lahaina Fort. It was also a major center of the whaling industry during the 19th century. Drier than other parts of Maui to the east, West Maui was once a gathering place for Hawaiian royalty, and Lahaina for a time served as the capital of the Kingdom of Hawai’i. West Maui comprises Maui’s northwest corner, and features the major resort towns of Lahaina and Kapalua and the famed Ka’anapali Beach and Honalua Bay.