Things to do nearHo‘okipa

Ho'okipa Beach sits just east of Paia on Maui's North Shore, where the Hawaiian Islands take their most unfiltered Atlantic-style battering from open-ocean swells rolling in from the North Pacific. The beach has been a gathering place for surfers since the mid-twentieth century, but it rose to international fame in the 1980s when windsurfing transformed it into one of the sport's defining arenas. Professional competitions held here helped establish Ho'okipa as a household name in the global wave-riding community.

Visitors who come without a board will find plenty to hold their attention. The cliff overlook on the park's eastern edge provides a front-row seat to some of the most technically demanding windsurfing and kitesurfing anywhere in the world. On strong trade wind days, riders launch off wave faces and spin through the air in maneuvers that seem to defy the weight of the equipment they carry. Even on quieter days, the interplay of light on the reef-colored water and the drama of the coastline make Ho'okipa a rewarding place to simply stand and watch.

Below the overlook, a lower beach area becomes a resting ground for Hawaiian green sea turtles, known locally as honu. These federally protected animals are a common and humbling presence, and federal law requires visitors to keep a respectful distance. The sight of a sea turtle sleeping on volcanic sand, indifferent to the spectators above, is one of Maui's most quietly memorable experiences.

Ho'okipa rewards those who arrive with patience and an appreciation for raw, unmanicured coastline. It is not a resort beach, and that is precisely its appeal.