Paako Cove
Kihei, HI
Paako Cove is a tiny, crescent shaped pocket beach tucked between lava outcrops on the Makena coast, small enough to miss entirely from the road and known to locals by half a dozen nicknames, Secret Beach and Wedding Beach among them. The scale is the whole draw here, just a sliver of sand between two rock points and rarely more than a few people at a time.
A genuinely tiny, scenic hideaway that still feels like a discovery even though plenty of locals know exactly where it is, with zero facilities as the tradeoff.
How we score beachesLook for a narrow, unmarked footpath between two houses off Makena Road. There's no sign, so a bit of patience or a map pin helps on the first visit.
Limited roadside parking along Makena Road near the unmarked footpath is the only option, with no dedicated lot.
A short, informal dirt path leads down to the cove, uneven and not suited to strollers or wheelchairs.
Calm most of the year, though the cove is small enough that any real swell can make the entry rougher than it looks.
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