Where do well-heeled privacy-seekers stay when visiting the Magic Isle? In unique oceanfront luxury homes, of course! From ultra-chic party-palaces to intimate tropical hideaways, private vacation rentals include the priceless benefit of feeling right at home in paradise.

Golden Sands

This house tops the list of Maui’s most exclusive, jaw-dropping rental properties. The 11,000 square foot home occupies an entire acre directly on the widest, most serene stretch of Kaanapali Beach, just north of Black Rock. The Mediterranean-style estate features four pools (a lap pool, a children’s wading pool, an infinity pool and oversized hot tubs) set in an Asian-inspired pavilion. Its eight bedrooms and nine-and-a-half baths feature Balinese antiques and gilded silk window treatments and bedding.

Sunken jacuzzi baths and glass-enclosed showers give each bathroom the ambiance of a private spa. The open-air Great Room offers views of neighbor islands Molokai and Lanai. A billiards room, library, indoor gym and high-tech big-screen media room provide indoor diversion - when lounging by the pool or playing in the surf become just a bit too much. Golden Sands is ideal for family reunions or group getaways - with outdoor seating for 20, built-in gourmet barbecue, Bose stereo system with property-wide amplification, and an expansive beach front lawn perfect for picnics or impromptu ultimate-frisbee games. Rates for Golden Sands start at $7,334 a night.