Mahaulepu Beach, Kauai: The Best 2024 Visitor Guide
Mahaulepu Beach, Kauai. A beautiful, secluded beach just a few minutes from Poipu on the southern shore of Kauai.
Best of all, hardly anyone was there when we visited!
Impossible? No, most tourists don’t want to hike the Mahaulepu Heritage Trail, an easy scenic coastal hike with spectacular views, but about 2.6 miles one way to Mahaulepu Beach!
Which is a pity because there is so much to see along Mahaulepu Heritage Trail: lithified cliffs, nene (Hawaiian native geese), a sinkhole and Mahaulepu Cave, giant African tortoises, sand dunes, coastal views and pretty beaches!
We spent the better part of a day enjoying the hike with our kids, and spending some time on Mahaulepu Beach.
Mahaulepu Beach is a 2 mile long stretch of golden sands against clear, intense blue ocean waters, with a backdrop of sand dunes, lithified cliffs, rainforests and mountain ranges.
Locals divide the long Mahaulepu Beach into three sections, starting with Gillins Beach on the southern most end, followed by Kawailoa Bay and Haula Beach.
If you don’t have that much time or don’t want to hike the Mahaulepu Heritage Trail, you can drive up to Mahaulepu Beach, and enjoy this beautiful, pristine portion of the south shore of Kauai!
Visiting Kauai? The only way to get a real feel for the rugged beauty of this incredible island is through a helicopter tour!
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Mahaulepu Beach Directions
Getting to Mahaulepu Beach is straightforward, and depends on how much time you have.
Have time to kill? Start from Shipwreck Beach in Poipu and hike the Mahaulepu Heritage trail, a coastal trail with stunning views. The hike is about 5 1/2 miles roundtrip, and just the hike takes about 2 hours.
Throw in a couple of more hours and you’ll have plenty of time to explore Mahaulepu Beach.
Don’t have that much time? You can drive east on Poipu Road a few miles from Poipu past the Poipu Bay Golf Course and turn right at the fork to CJM Country Stables.
Take a left at the next fork onto a dirt road and park alongside the road.
Note, the beach access closes at 6:00 pm, so make sure you’re out by then.
Mahaulepu Beach Parking
Parking at Shipwreck Beach, where the trailhead for the Mahaulepu Heritage Trail is located, is usually ok on weekday mornings, the best time to hike the trail.
The free public Shipwreck Beach parking lot is at the end of Ainako Street, just after the Grand Hyatt Resort on Poipu Road.
If you’re driving upto CJM Country Stables, there is a small parking area at the fork in the dirt roads leading to CJM Country Stables. You can also park along the left road and walk down to the beach area.
Mahaulepu Beach Map
The Mahaulepu Beach map below shows the location of Mahaulepu Beach, and the main attractions nearby.
Mahaulepu Beach Access
The Mahaulepu Heritage Trail takes you to Punahoa Point, with a spectacular view of Mahaulepu Beach.
As you continue on the trail, you will go past Makauwahi Cave Reserve (Mahaulepu Cave) and the Lida’s Field of Dreams (Tortoise Farm), and eventually end up at the southwestern end of Mahaulepu Beach called Gillins Beach after a house right at the edge of the beach that belonged to him.
If you parked near CJM Country Stables, continue along the dirt road on the left side of the fork (expand the Mahaulepu Beach map above) and you will join up with the Mahaulepu Heritage Trail.
Turn left and follow the above directions.
Mahaulepu Beach Reservations
No reservations or permits are needed for Mahaulepu Beach. No entrance fees are needed either.
Mahaulepu Beach Amenities / Facilities
Location: Poipu, South Shore of Kauai
Lifeguard: No
Beach Amenities: None
Food Nearby: None
Parking: Shipwreck Beach parking lot or near CJM Stables at Mahaulepu Beach
Directions: Head to Shipwreck Beach if you want to hike, else to CJM Country Stables (see above for more information)
The three beaches at Mahaulepu Beach, Gillins Beach, Kawailoa Bay and Haula Beach are remote, isolated beaches, completely pristine and totally undeveloped!
You will find absolutely no amenities or facilities here.
Shipwreck Beach, the trailhead for the Mahaulepu Heritage Trail, has restrooms, showers, picnic tables and multiple restaurants close by.
Best Things to Do at Mahaulepu Beach
1. Admire the Natural Beauty at Mahaulepu Beach
Golden sand dunes. Intense blue ocean waters. Ironwood tree forests fringing to the ocean. Lithified sand cliffs. Sinkholes and caves.
You have so much natural beauty around Mahaulepu Beach, pristine and waiting to be explored!
Walking along Mahaulepu Beach from Gillins Beach through Kawailoa Bay to Haula Beach is a beautiful stretch of coastline.
2. Mahaulepu Beach Snorkeling & Swimming
Mahaulepu Beach is not one of the best Kauai swimming beaches or best Kauai snorkeling spots!
Waters here can be rough, especially during summer, when summer swells are common.
In winter, ocean waters on the south shore beaches of Kauai tend to be calmer (definitely better than the north shore Kauai beaches)!
But if you do enter the waters at Mahaulepu Beach, exercise caution and stay closer to the shores. Apart from the rocky coral reefs near shore, there may be rip currents as well.
3. Sunbathe or Relax with a Book on the Mahaulepu Beach
With wide stretches of finely powdered, golden sand beaches extending across all three beaches at Mahaulepu Beach, and excellent sunny weather on the south shores of Kauai, finding a private, secluded spot to relax is a breeze!
If you just want to chill with a good book, you’ll find shade trees all along the beach, with plenty of ironwood trees and coconut palm trees.
4. Admire Turtles, Monk Seals and Other Wildlife on Mahaulepu Beach
With the beach mostly deserted during the week, you’ll find a host of wildlife enjoying the golden sands!
We saw many Hawaiian monk seals, and chatting with a local couple, we learned that Mahaulepu Beach is a popular breeding and nesting area for this endangered species.
Hawaiian green sea turtles, another endangered species, is also common here, especially in winters, when the ocean waters are calm.
Both species are protected, please keep your distance (at least 10 feet per NOAA).
Also in winter, we spotted migrating humpback whales along the coast, while hiking on the Mahaulepu Heritage trail.
5. Kite Surfing & Wind Surfing & Kite Boarding at Mahaulepu Beach
If you continue northeast along Gillin’s Beach, you’ll come to Kawailoa Bay, a deeply inset bay, protected but with a vast ocean expanse where the winds pick up!
And due to the winds, a very popular haunt for the local kitesurfers, kiteboarders and windsurfers!
Just standing on shore and watching the kitesurfers and kiteboarders enjoy the ride is almost as thrilling, a picturesque tropical paradise setting!
6. Hike Mahaulepu Heritage Trail
If you drove directly to Mahaulepu Beach, spend some time hiking at least a portion of the Mahaulepu Heritage Trail, one of the best Kauai hikes.
Closer to the Mahaulepu Beach, you can take detours to explore the Mahaulepu Cave and view the African giant tortoises.
As you walk along the coast, you get spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean, and often you can spot spinner dolphins or humpback whales (in winter) breaching the ocean surface.
A bit further up, along the greens of the Poipu Bay Golf Course, our kids spotted nene, endemic Hawaiian geese, named for their characteristic nene honking!
You can see ancient ruins of Hawaiian rock temples (Waiopili Heiau) further along the trail!
7. Explore Mahaulepu Cave (Makauwahi Cave Reserve)
A giant sinkhole exposed the entrance to one of the largest limestone caves in Hawaii, now an archaeological site to research the remnants and fossils, some thousands of years old!
The Makauwahi Cave Reserve is a fascinating (and FREE!) exhibit, open from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Apart from fossil discoveries, the land around the area is also used for preserving some of Hawaii’s endemic plant species.
The entire Mahaulepu area is of immense interest to archaeologists, and you’ll see signs marking ancient Hawaiian ruins, petroglyphs and the like along the Mahaulepu Beach. Gillin’s Beach, in particular, has petroglyphs on submerged rocks.
8. Tortoise Farm (Lida’s Field of Dreams)
We had to make a detour to Lida’s Field of Dreams, east of the Makauwahi Cave and home to giant African spurred tortoises, an interesting byline to Hawaii’s native plant conservation efforts.
The Burneys were cultivating a nursery to preserve some of Hawaii’s rare native plants, and were faced with an overgrowth of weeds.
The ingenious solution was to import African giant tortoises that loved munching on the weeds, but left the rare plants alone!
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