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We took a look at all the beautiful beaches in Hawaii and found these sandy spots, perfect for once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

The numbers are impressive: With a combined coastline of almost 725 miles, Hawai'i's most visited islands (Oahu, Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Kauai and the Big Island of Hawai'i) present honeymooners with so many sandy options that they could visit a different beach every day for a year and still not come close to seeing them all.

Because you probably won't have that much time on your honeymoon, we suggest you leave the heavy sifting to us. We've narrowed our list to six spectacular strands, each of which offers a uniquely Hawaiian experience.

A Surfing Safari

Waikiki Beach, Oahu

Newbies and wave warriors alike are stoked by the swells surrounding the island of Oahu, which has the largest number of surfing spots—almost 600—in all of Hawai'i. If you're ready to give surfing a shot, head to happening Waikiki Beach, where gentle, one- and two-foot-high turquoise waves pose ideal conditions year-round for getting your surfer legs.

On Waikiki Beach, you can take a one-hour surfing lesson from Didi Robello, one of several second-generation "Waikiki beachboys" manning the service stands scattered along the two-mile-long shore, and learn the basics. (Ask for Didi at Aloha Beach Services, near the Sheraton Moana Surfrider Hotel; 808-922-3111 ext. 2341.) When you're ready to take it to the next level, you can get in-depth pointers from a former pro surfer by contacting the Hans Hedemann Surf School, located on this beach; your pro will whisk you to and from spectacular surfing spots around Oahu, according to the day's surf conditions (hhsurf.com).

More of a voyeur? Drive along Interstate H2 and the Kamehameha Highway (State 83) to Oahu's less populated North Shore. Roughly an hour from Waikiki, this reef-protected, 20-mile-long coastline boasts some of the world's best surfing sites—including the broad, crescent-shaped Waimea Bay Beach County Park, the straight-edged Sunset Beach, Rocky Point (a favorite for surfers practicing risky, freestyle moves) and the Banzai Pipeline (where Blue Crush was filmed). Get there around 9 a.m., when surfing (and viewing) conditions are in their prime, and prepare to be thrilled as you watch the experts take on the big waves. Professional competitions, held here in the winter months, when multistory waves pummel these shores like a heavyweight prizefighter, are truly unforgettable. (Call 808-596-SURF for details.)

Whale-Watching

Makena Beach, Maui

Honeymooners aren't the only ones flocking to the Hawaiian Islands for warm weather and romance. Between late October and mid-May, nearly 3,500 North Pacific humpbacks head to Hawai'i to mate. February and March are peak whale-viewing months, but you can see whales in Maui County (an area that includes the islands of Maui, Lanai and Molokai) about 180 days per year.

Technically, you don't even have to board a boat to spot them—last year, the antics of male humpbacks showing off for the ladies actually created traffic jams among West Maui's mesmerized drivers. However, it's most fun to see whales from the sand. The 100-foot-wide, honey-colored Makena Beach, affectionately called "Big Beach" by kama'aina (locals), is a prime whale-spotting strand. Head over in the early morning or at sunset for the best viewing conditions (Makena Road off Wailea Alanui Drive, Kihei).

If the beach isn't close enough to the whales for you, you can always head out to sea for a from-the-water view. Scores of whale-watching tours leave from Lahaina or Maalaea, both of which are northwest of Makena Beach. Two-hour whale-watch tours, accompanied by a certified marine naturalist, are available from either port with the nonprofit Pacific Whale Foundation (pacificwhale.org).

Savoring Sunsets

Kaanapali Beach, Maui

Maui's Kaanapali Beach, with its water-sport concessions and attentive "beach butlers," may remind you of Miami's South Beach by day. Come dusk, however, its tawny, three-mile-long shore is Hawaiian through and through. At each of Kaanapali's 11 resorts, someone blows on a conch shell to announce the impending sunset. That's your cue to hit the beach path to Pu'u Keka'a (meaning "hill creating strength through enlightenment"), located near the Sheraton Maui. Pu'u Keka'a is a massive black lava rock that juts into the sea, dividing Kaanapali Beach in half and forming the focal point for a nightly torch-lighting and cliff-diving ceremony based on ancient Hawaiian legend and history.

At one time Hawaiians believed that Pu'u Keka'a was sacred—the place where the souls of dead warriors leapt into the ancestral world. Shortly before every sunset, in a tribute to this legend, a loincloth-clad "warrior" ignites a series of torches leading to the crest of Black Rock (where the Sheraton Maui Resort now sits). The warrior then raises an orchid lei toward the sky in all four directions. Just as the sun dives below the horizon, the barefoot warrior takes a 30-foot plunge into the inky ocean below. Your best vantage points: the beach across from Black Rock, or the Sheraton Maui's Lagoon Bar. Arrive an hour early to hear the bartender "talk story" about the time when Kaanapali Beach was a favored playground of Hawaiian royalty. Heady experiences like these, combined with the sensuous movements of a nearby hula dancer, will serve as a potent reminder that you're not in Kansas anymore (2605 Kaanapali Parkway, Lahaina; sheraton-maui.com).

Swimming with Sea Turtles

Prince Kuhio Beach Park, Kauai

If you didn't know about Prince Kuhio Beach Park, or its neighbor, Lawai Beach, you might drive right by them. But don't let appearances fool you. Rocky, postage-stamp-sized Prince Kuhio Beach is the place for snorkeling encounters of the green-shelled kind—that is, with the group of green sea turtles that regularly graze and snooze amid the seaweed-draped rock ledges here.

In Hawaiian mythology, these graceful, speckled creatures, called honu, acted as aumakua, or godlike guardians. Today, the law requires that you keep a respectful distance from this protected species; however, if you are swimming near them, one or two gentle giants may paddle a little closer to check you out. Because ocean currents here can be tricky, go with a knowledgeable guide, like those from Aloha Kauai Tours. The company's snorkeling trip also stops at adjacent Lawai Beach, an unassuming strip of sand where the waters teem with up to 140 sea-life species, including prison-striped Moorish Idols, unicorn fish and octopi (alohakauaitours.com). Finding Nemo should be a cinch!

Private Time

Red Sand Beach, Maui

East Maui's secluded Kaihalulu ("Roaring Sea"), a.k.a. Red Sand Beach, may be one of the most beautiful and exotic swimming spots on the planet—a breathtaking Grand-Canyon-meets-the-sea landscape carved from evergreen-draped walls of red volcanic rock and carpeted in crimson-colored sand. But don't try to get there if you're afraid of heights: This beach can only be reached via a narrow, mountainside footpath high above the Pacific. The sometimes harrowing hike takes a little over 10 minutes from the trailhead, but might feel longer if conditions aren't good. (Wear sturdy shoes, and don't attempt the hike if the ground is wet or the forecast threatens rain.)

Even beyond the landscape, you may get an eyeful here: Despite laws against nude sunbathing, this secluded cove sometimes attracts proponents of it. Most folks are too busy frolicking in the pools created by the volcanic rock formations to even notice. (Red Sand Beach is located at Uakea and Hauoli roads, in Hana. Follow the overgrown trailhead near the Hotel Hana-Maui's Sea Ranch Cottages.)

Sun- and Sports-Lovers

Mauna Kea Beach, The Big Island of Hawai'i

If your idea of bliss is lounging on a silky white beach, while his involves slicing away at a sand trap (or vice versa), both of you can satisfy your needs at Mauna Kea Beach, on the Big Island. This gorgeous strand, named after the resort located there, fronts Kaunaoa Bay and has won about every beach beauty contest in existence. Best of all, like every Hawaiian shore, this flawlessly maintained, palm-fringed piece of perfection is open to the public. Free public parking and beach passes are limited, so if you're not a guest of the resort, you should plan to arrive early.

Nonguests are also welcome at the resort's Robert Trent Jones Sr.-designed Mauna Kea Golf Course. These championship greens are renowned for dazzling ocean vistas and for a series of 120 bunkers, filled with 1,000 tons of sand. The course's stunning topography, like the third hole (requiring a 265-yard drive across a swirling inlet), gives golfers an impregnable excuse for missing a shot—and memories they'll keep forever (62-100 Mauna Kea Beach Drive, Kohala Coast; maunakeabeachhotel.com).