rjscott

Just back from 7 wonderful days on Maui. Arranged (and rearranged!) our flights and condo through Bryan Brown. Checking in online to AA the day b/f departure was able to snag exit row seats for all flight segments to/from Maui. DH was thrilled as he is 6’4” and gets rather cranky after biting on his knees for hours.
Arrived late afternoon at OGG, received our lovely lei greeting, and DH was off to pick up our car at Hertz while I collected our luggage. We had reserved through Hertz, as DH is a frequent renter for business and usually gets a very good rate, plus points we can use for free rentals. Another plus is that Hertz does not charge for me to be an additional driver. I checked our price for the rental several times online and cancelled and rebooked it three different times, as I found better rates each time. We had reserved a full-size, which usually is a Taurus with Hertz. Much to my surprise, DH arrived in a Saturn Vue. This was a nice (free) upgrade, as we planned to take several drives around the island and the SUV provided better visibility.
Off we went to the Maui Kai, where we had a one-bedroom oceanfront condo. We had just enough time to change and meet up with our friends from Las Vegas, who were joining us at the Maui Kai for the week. The four of us went over to Hula Grill for dinner. After dinner, off to Hula Scoops for Roselani ice cream. We hit Star Market to stock our condo’s, and called it a night, as it had been a long day of travel for us from Ohio.
The next morning, DH and I strolled the beach a bit, then breakfasted in our condo. When our friends were ready to go, we decided to take the drive up past Kapalua down to Wailuku. This was a beautiful day for the drive, and the scenery was breathtaking! We stopped in Kahului for lunch at Manana Garage. Very good food and service here. I had a fish chimichanga here, and it wasn’t the least bit greasy, as chimichangas often are. Did a bit of shopping in Kahului, then stopped at Safeway to complete our grocery list for the condo’s. DH was happy to find the Roselani Haupia ice cream at Safeway, as he’d greatly enjoyed it at Hula Scoops. For dinner, we got takeout at Okazuya Deli. I’d always wanted to try this place, and I wasn’t disappointed. Delicious Mahi in a caper sauce. Yum!
In the morning, we went to Kapalua Beach to snorkel. Saw a nice variety of fish, but the water was a bit murky and rough. Headed to Aloha Mixed Plate for lunch. Tried the coconut shrimp this time and they were great. Had a table close to the waterfront, and enjoyed watching the parasailers. From there, we went to Hookipa Beach to watch the windsurfers. It was such a beautiful day and there was lots of action on the water. It made me tired just watching those windsurfers! From there we went to Makawao and wandered around there for a bit. I loved Hot Island Glass. Such beautiful workmanship. I bought a pair of earrings there as a gift, but I really wanted one of the jellyfish for myself (sigh). For dinner, we had burgers from Okazuya Deli. My teri burger with mushrooms was delicious, but messy to eat.
Next day, Saturday, went to the Swap Meet in Kahului. I can’t believe I left there with no purchases, but my friend made up for it, buying souvenirs for her children and grandchildren. After the Swap Meet, our friends wanted to swing by Queen K Mall, so while there, we had lunch at Ruby’s Diner. Normally I don’t like to eat at chain restaurants while on vacation, but that’s where they wanted to eat. I was pleasantly surprised that one of the new items on the menu was a kalua pig taco plate. The taco’s were huge and very tasty. We headed back to the condo to chill for a couple of hours b/f heading down to Front St to watch the lighting of the Christmas lights at the Banyan Tree. We wandered around Front St for awhile and then checked out the crafts for sale under the tree. However, before the lighting of the tree, our one friend started feeling under the weather suddenly, and we had to run him back to his condo. DH and I debated going back to Lahaina afterwards, but decided to just have some dinner in. Another trip to Okazuya Deli, this time for salmon in sweet chili sauce and a caesar salad, which we shared. It was very good.
On Sunday, we snorkeled at Kahekili Beach. Saw lots of fish, an eel and a turtle. We had lunch at Aloha Mixed Plate and drove to La Perouse Bay, the site of the last lava flows. What a beautiful spot! Really, just amazing. Dinner was at Maui Taco’s at Napili Plaza. Very good fish (ahi) enchiladas.
Monday was the Road to Hana. We left the condo very early, stopped to get our CD and gas up at the Shell station and called ahead to Picnics for lunches to go (the curried shrimp sandwich is ono!). I did the driving, so that DH could take pictures and video. It was a spectacular day to do this drive and not terribly busy, although I was careful to be mindful of cars behind me, and pulled over frequently to let traffic pass. That night we had dinner at Giovanni’s Tomato Pie at Kaanapali. The pasta dishes were just ok, but the garlic bread and caesar salad were very good.
Tuesday DH and I took the Alii tour to Molokai. We had run into a couple on the beach at our condo who highly recommended this tour and so we decided to do it. It was a fun way to spend the day and very interesting to see and learn about the island. Had one of those “it’s a small world” moments when I found that a saleswoman at a gallery there was from our area. We thought the ferry ride to Molokai was rough, but it was smooth compared to the ride back. It was incredibly rough, and several people were ill. Luckily, we were not affected by the rough seas. Our friends met us in Lahaina after our return from Molokai and we had dinner at Kimo’s. DH and I both had Ono, but with different preparations. Very good. We had a lovely view of the water, and it was so clear and still, it almost looked like a painted backdrop on a movie set.
Our last morning, we snorkeled at Black Rock. In the past, we’ve snorkeled on the west side of Black Rock, between the Sheraton and the golf course, where we’ve always seen a nice variety of fish, as well as some lobsters and other sea life. This time we decided to try the other side, in front of the Sheraton, as I’d read so many raves about the snorkeling there. Maybe it was the day we went, but it wasn’t the best we’d seen this trip. The water was rather murky, and there was not the variety of fish we’d seen at other spots. I was also quite disturbed to see one snorkeler trying to spear fish there. I moved away from him quickly, as I didn’t want to see whether he managed to catch any fish. Ugh! Still, altogether, it was another beautiful morning. Back to the condo to change and pack. We dropped off our snorkeling film at Wal-Mart while we lunched at Da Kitchen. Great food at great prices. We then browsed for awhile at Hawaiian Rugs at Maui Mall. Beautiful rugs. So many choices, we decided to check out their website before making a (hasty) decision. On to the airport to leave sunny Maui for our cold and snowy home.

likeswords

Great report--thanks for spreading a little aloha around. When we were in Maui, the Okazuya deli was closed for a week, but your report has strengthened my resolve to return. Mahalo!

OldSouthernBelle

rjscott: Which room did you stay in at Maui Kai...we were in 208 (a corner room)last summer and loved it!

I agree with your assessment of Black Rock...it was the same when we were there.
Honolu'a Bay was much better!

I, like you was disconerted to see someone with spear fishing gear where so many people were! Aren't there regulations about avoiding snorkeling/swimming areas to do that activity?

Thanks for the TR!
Belle

cmcfong

Mahalo for the trip report.

rjscott

Belle, we were in unit 605. Our friends were in a corner unit, but were unhappy that our unit was much larger. We really liked the Maui Kai, and would gladly stay there again. Good location and good value for the money!