In the first week of the new system, Genna Joyce parked at Kamaʻole Beach Park I and walked to a new pay station. A parking ambassador talked her through it, and she was done in about a minute. "Easy peasy," she told The Maui News. "I'd come back to the beach again."
She paid nothing, and she still had to prove she lives here. Since July 15, 2026, parking at the paved lots of Kamaʻole I and III has been free for residents only after they show proof, every time. Mākena State Park has charged nonresidents for years and accepts a slightly different set of documents. On the South Maui shoreline, free parking now depends on which card is in your wallet and which agency runs the lot.
What the kiosk at Kamaʻole asks for
The County calls the program Park Maui, and the Kamaʻole lots fall in Zone 797. It runs on license-plate technology. There are no paper tickets on the dashboard. Each parking session is tied digitally to a plate number.
For residents, the County names one specific document: a valid Hawaiʻi driver's license, with the barcode on the back scanned at a pay station or in the Park Maui app. The Maui News reported that residents also enter their vehicle's plate number at the kiosk. Visitors enter the same details plus a credit card. The plate is how the system knows your car belongs there. The scan is how it knows you're a resident.
Nonresidents pay $10 a day, $50 for a weekly pass good for seven consecutive days, or $150 for a monthly pass good for 30 consecutive days. The weekly and monthly passes are sold through the app. The Park Maui beaches page groups part-time residents with visitors under those paid rates. That matters for households here only part of the year. The County says paid parking revenue goes into its parking revenue fund. Any surplus can go to parks, transportation, business districts, and cultural and environmental sites.
County Department of Transportation Director Marc Takamori described the goal this way: "At the Kamaʻole beaches, we are especially focused on supporting kamaʻāina through free parking and preferred resident recreation hours, while also providing convenient ticketless parking options for visitors."
Weekend mornings before 10 are resident-only
Most South Maui shoreline lots don't reserve time for anyone. Kamaʻole I and III do. On weekends and County-observed holidays, the paved lots are for residents only before 10 a.m. The Maui News described it as exclusive resident use from 7 to 10 a.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The beach parks themselves stay open to everyone. Only the parking is restricted.
That window adds a second step. A free spot at 8 a.m. on a Saturday is held for cars whose drivers have verified residency, and verifying at Kamaʻole means the license scan. If the household member driving to the beach has a Hawaiʻi State ID but no driver's license, County materials describe no other way to verify. The Park Maui FAQ lists questions about residency verification, citations and parking without registering, but the published answers we reviewed don't cover these cases. We found no published process for residents with out-of-state licenses, for military personnel, or for anyone who forgets to scan. If any of those apply to you, ask Park Maui directly through the contact form at the bottom right of ParkMaui.com.
At Mākena, the price is the same and the proof is broader
At Oneloa (Big Beach), Oneuli (Black Sand Beach) and Puʻu ʻŌlaʻi (Little Beach), Mākena State Park works on the same idea under a different agency. The state Division of State Parks charges residents nothing for entry or parking if they show a Hawaiʻi State driver's license or a Hawaiʻi State ID. Nonresidents pay $5 per person to enter and $10 per noncommercial vehicle to park. Children 3 and under enter free. Visitors pay at kiosks on arrival or online through ParkMobile.
The state ID is the practical difference. A resident without a driver's license is covered at Mākena under the posted rules. At Kamaʻole, the County's published rules name only the driver's license.
Mākena's hours also cut shorter than many beachgoers expect. Oneloa and Oneuli are open daily from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., extended to 7:45 p.m. in May, June and July. Puʻu ʻŌlaʻi closes at 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays and at 7 p.m. on weekdays. For a weekend sunset at Little Beach, the state's posted hours mean planning for somewhere else.
| Kamaʻole I and III | Mākena State Park | |
|---|---|---|
| Run by | County of Maui, Park Maui, Zone 797 | Hawaiʻi DLNR Division of State Parks |
| Resident proof | Hawaiʻi driver's license barcode, scanned at a kiosk or in the app | Hawaiʻi State driver's license or Hawaiʻi State ID |
| Resident cost | Free | Free entry and parking |
| Nonresident cost | $10 per day, $50 per week, $150 per month | $5 per person entry plus $10 per vehicle |
| Resident-only time | Before 10 a.m. on weekends and County holidays | None posted |
| Weekend hours of note | Beach parks open to all | Puʻu ʻŌlaʻi closes at 4 p.m. |
The parts of the map that are still unsettled
Kamaʻole II was left out of the July launch while South Kīhei Road was being repaired after the March Kona low. The road was damaged along a roughly 150-foot section, and P.B. Sullivan Construction Inc. got the repair contract in May. The County's original estimate had it finished this fall. Instead, the first vehicles drove past Kamaʻole II at 11:25 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. As of early October, Park Maui's beaches page still lists only Kamaʻole I and III. We found no announced date for adding Kamaʻole II.
The dirt lot across from Kamaʻole I, next to the ABC Store, is in the same position. At launch the County said the lot would join Park Maui after the road reopened, and that until then it would stay free from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. for beachgoers and for employees and customers of businesses near the Kamaʻole Shopping District. The road reopened weeks ago. We haven't found an announcement that the lot has switched over, so check the signs there before assuming either way.
Enforcement has also changed since the start. In launch week, ambassadors employed by a contractor told The Maui News they were giving warnings during a "transitional period," not tickets. No published source we reviewed says when that period ended, and the County hasn't posted a citation amount we could confirm. During an Aug. 14 weather advisory, the County said Park Maui operations and enforcement at Kamaʻole I and III could be suspended if related County facilities were affected.
Expansion is a possibility, not a plan. In December 2025, Takamori said that once Phase 1 was evaluated, the program could expand to other County beaches in South Maui later in 2026 or in 2027, according to Maui Now. Council and department officials also floated Baldwin Beach Park in Pāʻia, Launiupoko in Lahaina and Hoʻokipa on the North Shore. We found no announcement since launch naming another South Maui lot.
Mākena's parking areas are changing too, but slowly, and without a booking system. On July 23, 2026, the Maui Planning Commission voted 6–1 to approve DLNR's revised plan for two restroom and shower facilities and designated-parking improvements. The revised plan favors pervious surfaces and keeps a limited number of paved ADA stalls. Each facility will have one shielded, downward-facing light that shuts off at 8 p.m. The commission also required a carrying-capacity study by July 31, 2028. A County memo had asked the applicant to address a virtual reservation system and resident priority. In June, the State Parks administrator said the project would not add a reservation or shuttle system. No construction start date has been announced.
A weekend routine that works at both beaches
- Bring the right card. A Hawaiʻi driver's license gets you free parking at both Kamaʻole I and III and Mākena. A Hawaiʻi State ID is listed for Mākena only.
- Scan every visit at Kamaʻole. Each session is tied to your plate, so a scan from last week doesn't cover today.
- Arrive before 10 a.m. on weekends and County holidays if you want the resident-only window at the Kamaʻole I and III paved lots.
- Check the signs at Kamaʻole II and the ABC Store lot. Both were set to join the program after the road reopened, and neither change had been announced as of early October.
- Plan Little Beach for weekday evenings, since Puʻu ʻŌlaʻi closes at 4 p.m. on weekends.
- Bookmark ParkMaui.com and the DLNR Mākena State Park page. Those two pages are where rule changes will show up first.
At Kela Fernandez, we follow changes like these because they shape everyday life in South Maui, starting with how easily you can get to the water on a Saturday morning. If you're thinking about a move within Kihei, Wailea or Makena and want to talk through how beach access fits your plans, schedule a personal consultation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
