Beaches in Hana

I am getting married in Hana in September on the beach, but I need some advice for which beach to use. Does anyone know if Hamoa beach or Koki beach would be better for a 3:00pm wedding on a Saturday? Its just the 2 of us so we dont need a lot of room, just a gorgeous backdrop. Thanks! -PJ

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Beaches in Hana

Hamoa definately Hamoa. This is my fave on Maui. absolutely gorgeous. Scott and I were married(just the 2 of us) on a beach in Makena 2/06 which was out of a dream. Congats

Beaches in Hana

Depends on what you prefer in terms of crowds and shade. If weather is nice, since Hamoa is the official beach for Hotel Hana Maui, there may be quite a crowd from guests to locals to Hana tourists. Not as packed body to body as Oahu or Waikiki, but can get very busy. Access is down a steep flight of concrete stairs, with railing. And parking is often a nightmare for Hamoa; lots of no trespassing / no parking signs from residents and neighbors of the beach. There is only one small parking lot, very hard to navigate, only for 8-10 vehicles. Not much shade at 3 in afternoon.

If there are not too many guests, this might work. But you may have to clear it with the hotel. There are facilities on this beach - showers for washing off your feet, restrooms, etc. There is also a covered pavillion area as well but it is often set up for outdoor dining for hotel guests. This is the beach which can feel a bit snobby sometimes, when the hotel management makes the cabana boys ask you to get up and move or not use the lounge chairs because they are reserved for hotel guests ONLY.

Koki is MUCH more wild and rustic; beautiful, slightly overhanging red bluffs; open vista with view of Alau Island. A bit better parking with spaces on both sides of the road and just past beach on grassy area - maybe enough for 20+ cars, but there are no facilities. Bring your own everything. Plus in later afternoon the trees along the road, slightly above beach and the bluff can offer some nice shade.

You may also want to check with Hana Police Department to see is there are any rules about beach weddings.

Personally, I would go for Pailoa Bay, the bride in white coming down the natural rock stairs onto a stunning BLACK sand beach, surrounded by jagged rock formations, blow holes, even a lava tube. This beach is in the Waianapanapa state park, just before Hana Town, down a lovely shaded road. There is lots of paved parking in several areas, plus an extra gravel parking lot near the park entrance. The park also has a shaded picnic area on the bluffs above the beach, restrooms, etc.

On the beach itself - since it faces almost due east, there may be a bit of shade away from shoreline, closer to the bluffs and stairs, but at 3 in afternoon most of the beach area will be open to full sun.

just returned from a friend%26#39;s wedding on the beach in south maui (7/7/7) and TONS of people were getting married ALL OVER THE PLACE ALL DAY. anyway, you can get married on public beaches in maui -- you just cannot RESERVE or set aside a space so that can get tricky. we put our ';mats'; out like we were enjoying the beach, but since it was around 4, most people had left the beach we were on (chang%26#39;s beach or the south end of Po%26#39;olenalena near Wailea/Makena).

Hamoa%26#39;s parking IS a nightmare, Hamoa does have a path to walk down but most beaches DO in maui (don%26#39;t wear a long dress anyway! go for something simpler or you%26#39;ll sweat -- more on this...), and the area in the CENTER of the beach is where the Hana hotel has reserved spot.

However! If you can find a wedding planner (which there are plenty of) do it -- and get their advice. Each ';side'; of Hamoa (crescent shaped beach) is GORGEOUS and would be a perfect backdrop for pictures, although get a planner, a photographer, and find out what THEY THINK -- b/c of the sun angles, conditions, etc.

With that said: hamoa beach is the prettiest beach in all of maui! =) we drove that nutty drive to hana the other day just to bob in the ocean there at that beach.

with that -- i saw a few girls in ';regular'; wedding dresses (big, frilly, and their beaus in full suits) and they all LOOKED uncomfortable. the sun is hot and beating down at 4 pm still! the girls wearing simple, less layers, short dresses just seemed to be having more fun ;-) -- plus, you can take your shoes off and stand in the water and not worry so much about your dress getting wet -- those were GREAT pix!!!

Hamoa is my favorite beach on the planet. There is no better romantic backdrop than Hamoa Beach in my opinion. That being said it may be somewhat crowded at 3 on a Saturday, but the crowds tend to thin out in the later afternoon . Koki is nice too , more rugged and less protected but wild and beautiful . Either spot is nice , but I give the edge to Hamoa.

Also if you are staying at the Hotel Hana ( which is very expesive but worth every penny for your wedding night ) they will offer a free shuttle service to the beach so parking will be a non-issue. Stay in one of the sea ranch cottages there and make sure you check out the spa with it%26#39;s huge outdoor lava rock jacuzzi.

Best of luck to you %26amp; Aloha :)

We stayed in the Hana Oceanfront Cottages last year, which is directly across the little road from Hamoa Beach. We walked to the beach in one minute flat! VERY romantic and private.

Hamoa IS gorgeous, stunning. I took tons photos of it and the cottage, so let me know if you want to see them.

I agree with the other posters. Hamoa is where you will want to get married. You don%26#39;t need anyone%26#39;s permission to be married there. You also don%26#39;t need to talk to the hotel people or police. The hotel does have rights to the pavillion, private restrooms(there is also a public one), beach chairs and umbrellas. They don%26#39;t have rights to the beach itself. Koki beach is used more by the locals. By 3 in the afternoon you probably won%26#39;t have much privacy and it will be very warm. Any chance on a morning wedding? We were at Hamoa Beach last Sun morning at 8am and there was no one else around. Good luck and congrats!!

beauty