Picnic area · West Maui Scenic Drive
A shady beach picnic, with the highway just behind your towel.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
West Maui Scenic Drive Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for West Maui Scenic Drive. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the West Maui Scenic Drive audio tourRecorded for this place
Pāpalaua: Kiawe Shade by the Beach“Up ahead is Pāpalaua Wayside Park, with kiawe shade beside a narrow beach. It’s a convenient place to sit by the ocean or unpack a picnic, with parking close to the sand.”
Plays as you drive up to Pāpalaua Wayside Park in the Parkwolf West Maui Scenic Drive Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Pāpalaua Wayside Park is a 6.7-acre county beach-and-picnic park at about Mile 11/12 on Honoapiʻilani Highway, between Lahaina and the West Maui pali. It is an easy place to pull off for shade, sand, and an open Pacific view. The parking and highway sit close behind the narrow beach, so this feels convenient rather than secluded.
Kiawe trees shade parts of the sand. The beach works well for a quick sit, picnic, or look over the water; it is a less reliable choice for snorkeling because the entry can be rocky and visibility can be poor. Wear shoes over the dry ground, where sharp thorns have been reported. For a photo, use the shade trees to frame the ocean and keep the road out of the edge of the shot for a more beach-focused view.
Roadside parking, picnic tables, and portable restrooms are available, but the campground has no drinking water or electrical service. Bring water and food; no food service is listed at the park. Tent camping requires a Maui County permit, and county rules currently prohibit camping on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, so check the current permit calendar and fees before planning an overnight stay. The park is not listed as ADA-accessible.
Wildlife
152 sightingsHumpback WhaleMost seen around 9 AMSighting map
71 sightingsHawaiian Monk SealMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
23 sightingsSpinner DolphinMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
401 sightingsGreen Sea TurtleMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
14 sightingsHawksbill Sea TurtleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
92 sightingsWedge-tailed ShearwaterMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across West Maui Scenic Drive. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ChallengingWest Lāhainā Pali Trail4.6 mi · 3.5 hr · 0.6 mi awayOcean views reward the steep climb to turbine-lined Kealaloloa Ridge.
ChallengingLāhainā Pali Trail4.8 mi · 4 hr · 4 mi awayA tough, rocky ridge crossing with wide ocean and island views.
ChallengingEast Lāhainā Pali Trail3.8 mi · 3.5 hr · 4 mi awayA sunbaked climb to wind turbines above Māʻalaea.
Beach · 0.6 mi awayUkumehame Beach ParkA roadside beach stop for surfing, sunsets, and a picnic.
Sight · 2.6 mi awayPāpawai Scenic LookoutA quick bay overlook with a chance at winter humpbacks.
Beach · 3 mi awayOlowalu BeachA narrow roadside beach with a reef worth timing for high tide.
Campground · 3 mi awayCamp OlowaluSleep beside the coast, from a tent to an A-frame cabin.
Restaurant · 3.5 mi awayLeoda’s Kitchen and Pie ShopA pie stop with a citrus story rooted in Olowalu.
Store · 3.5 mi awayOlowalu General StoreA roadside stop for Spam musubi, shave ice, and Maui-made goods.
Sight · 3.5 mi awayOlowalu PetroglyphsAncient rock art rewards a slow scan from below.
Sight · 3.5 mi awayThe Maui Butterfly FarmA hands-on 45-minute tour through a walk-in butterfly house.Parkwolf’s West Maui Scenic Drive ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
