Keawakapu Beach

Snorkeling Keawakapu and the 1962 car reef

For everyday snorkeling, work the lava rocks at either end of the beach on a calm morning: the north rocks by the Mana Kai and the south rocks toward Mokapu both hold reef fish, eels if you look closely, and regular green sea turtles. Enter from the sand, give the rocks themselves respectful distance, and get in before the wind ruffles visibility, usually by late morning.

Now the strange story. In 1962 the State of Hawai’i barged about 150 junked, stripped car bodies over from O’ahu and sank them half a mile off Keawakapu to build an artificial reef. Salt water ate the thin metal within a few decades, and later drops of concrete-and-tire modules did most of the real fish-housing work — but parts of the old cars are still down there, 80-some feet deep, hosting taape and the occasional frogfish.

The car reef sits far too deep for casual snorkeling — it is a scuba site, visited by local dive boats — so enjoy the story from your beach towel and keep your own snorkeling to the shoreline rocks. If you want big, easy underwater theater, book the boat trip to Molokini Crater instead; several leave from the ramp just up the coast.

Keawakapu parking, facilities and timing

Three free lots serve the beach, one per entrance. North: turn toward the Mana Kai off South Kihei Road for two small gravel lots. Middle: the lot at the corner of South Kihei Road and Kilohana Drive. South: the small lot where South Kihei Road dead-ends at the Wailea line. All three fill on busy mornings, so arrive early or come after 3 pm, when the departing lunch crowd frees up spaces just in time for the good light.

Facilities are thinner than the county parks in town: outdoor showers to rinse off and portable toilets at the parking areas, but no lifeguard anywhere on the beach. Conditions are usually gentle, but that absence matters — swim within your limits, keep kids close, and skip rough days entirely. The nearest staffed towers are back at the Kamaole beach parks.

Food is a strong suit. The Mana Kai end has a well-loved oceanfront restaurant for a post-swim lunch, and a ten-minute hop takes you to Monkeypod Kitchen in Wailea or the poke counters of central Kihei. Our move: morning snorkel here, lunch in town, then return with dinner takeout for the sunset shift.

Good to know

• Snorkel the rocky ends before 10 am; afternoons trade clear water for wind chop.
• Three free lots (Mana Kai, Kilohana Drive, road's end) — early morning or after 3 pm parks easiest.
• No lifeguard on this beach: swim conservatively and keep an eye on kids.
• The sand is deep and soft — flip-flops off, and give your calves credit for the full-length walk.
• Walk south into Wailea along the sand and beach path for the best free golden-hour stroll in South Maui.
• Reef-safe sunscreen only — the turtles working these rocks are the show you came for.