so many choices in maui - how to choose?
Oct 15th, 2003, 02:20 PM
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so many choices in maui - how to choose?
I've been studying up on Maui for our trip in Febuary. I bought the Maui Revealed book and they list so many fantastic things to do. Hard to decide what to do and what not to do. Of course I would do everything if I had the funds. 
Anyway -- we're staying for 10 days at the Noelani Condo Resort. We are adventurous 20 somethings. Please rate your favorite activities and maybe your least favorite. Thanks a lot.
Anyway -- we're staying for 10 days at the Noelani Condo Resort. We are adventurous 20 somethings. Please rate your favorite activities and maybe your least favorite. Thanks a lot.
Oct 15th, 2003, 02:52 PM
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If you're trying to save money, do the things that cost next to nothing, i.e.:
-Road to Hana- a day full of exploring bays, waterfalls, and snorkeling if you want
-Find the best snorkeling beaches and "do it yourself" versus spending over $100 each to do a sailing tour
-Skip the luau and eat local food at the restaurants (the food is better anyway) and you can see some of the Maui Marriott's luau from the beachside sidewalk - free
If you're in your 20's save your money - when you're older perhaps you'll better afford the expensive activities! Have fun
-Road to Hana- a day full of exploring bays, waterfalls, and snorkeling if you want
-Find the best snorkeling beaches and "do it yourself" versus spending over $100 each to do a sailing tour
-Skip the luau and eat local food at the restaurants (the food is better anyway) and you can see some of the Maui Marriott's luau from the beachside sidewalk - free
If you're in your 20's save your money - when you're older perhaps you'll better afford the expensive activities! Have fun
Oct 15th, 2003, 02:54 PM
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We have only been to Maui once, everything we did was our favorite - lol! Here's our top 3, in no particular order.
1. Sunrise on Haleakala, no bike ride, just snuggling on the summitt watching the show of colors. Then hiking a wee bit and breakfast at the Kula Lodge.
2. Road to Hana, playing in waterfalls, drinking in all the sights, sounds and smells, having a picnic lunch on the rocks at the Blue Pool, finding the most delicious coconut treat in Hana, and ending the trip with pu-pus and mai-tais at Mama's Fish House.
3. Feast at Lele, great food, entertainment and atmoshphere - a wonderful night!
1. Sunrise on Haleakala, no bike ride, just snuggling on the summitt watching the show of colors. Then hiking a wee bit and breakfast at the Kula Lodge.
2. Road to Hana, playing in waterfalls, drinking in all the sights, sounds and smells, having a picnic lunch on the rocks at the Blue Pool, finding the most delicious coconut treat in Hana, and ending the trip with pu-pus and mai-tais at Mama's Fish House.
3. Feast at Lele, great food, entertainment and atmoshphere - a wonderful night!
Oct 15th, 2003, 07:45 PM
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Maslow, I'd love to be there in whale time, you'll get a great view from there, especially the Orchid(Studio) building. Have stayed there twice, quite happily. I agree with previous poster, you don't have to spend a lot on excursions to have fun. Our first trip we went to Old Lahaina Luau which was good, great setting, also the show Ulalena (sp). We did a van tour of Hana & all way 'round back which was great (Ekahi Tours)but next time (very soon) we're doing it ourselves so we can stop when WE want to ! Even driving down to Wainapanapa State Park with a picnic & walking around there would be a good daytrip.
Drive around the west end, people fuss about Hana rd but there's some real narrow goat-path pieces between Kapalua and Wailuku ! Don't ignore "upcountry", different world.
Get the freebie guide from http://maui.gohawaii.com
Look at the book Maui Trailblazer by Sprout (has online excerpt, you can guess url) lots of stuff in there that doesn't require fees/tickets. Can't think of a least favourite (maybe Longhi's restaurant).. thought aquarium was a bit overpriced.
I have a few Noelani pics at:
http://members.aol.com/ourfoto
Have a great trip, Paul.
Drive around the west end, people fuss about Hana rd but there's some real narrow goat-path pieces between Kapalua and Wailuku ! Don't ignore "upcountry", different world.
Get the freebie guide from http://maui.gohawaii.com
Look at the book Maui Trailblazer by Sprout (has online excerpt, you can guess url) lots of stuff in there that doesn't require fees/tickets. Can't think of a least favourite (maybe Longhi's restaurant).. thought aquarium was a bit overpriced.
I have a few Noelani pics at:
http://members.aol.com/ourfoto
Have a great trip, Paul.
Oct 16th, 2003, 03:34 AM
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Hey thanks for the good recs so far. We are willing to spend some money on activities. We are thinking of the horseback ride on the sliding sands trail and maybe a kayaking trip. What do you think of these and what else? Keep the suggestions coming.
Oct 16th, 2003, 08:09 AM
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You also might want to check out Iao Park. It has a short, easy hiking trail. We thought it was very pretty. We also did the sunrise tour, but didn't bike down. We got some great sunrise pictures. However, if we ever get back to Maui, I would definetly want to do the horseback riding in the crater, or at least hike it.
Oct 16th, 2003, 11:51 AM
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My trip report from Maui has tons of info...we sound like the same kind of travelers, so you might enjoy a lot of the things we did--mostly cheap and adventurous and outdoors. You'd probably love a kayak trip, there's lots of info in the report about that too...it's at http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...1&tid=34436140
Also, someone once (well, someone asks a lot here)asked for "top ten" on Maui, these were my answers:
1. Kayak trip through La Perouse Bay (swim with spinner dolphins and turtles and snorkel the awesome coves Aquarium and Fishbowl, 120' visibility) with Maui Kayaks, they take only 8 people at a time...people who have done this and Molokini swear by this instead!
2. Stay a night or two in Hana at the end of yr trip to really explore.
3. Get up at 5am and snorkel snorkel snorkel as many South Maui places as you can when it's super calm and there's no one out then dry out on the soft golden sand and do it all again...Palauea and Po'olenalena were two of our favorites south of Wailea...don't worry, neither the air nor water temps are much cooler that early, the water was very warm
4. Olivine Pools, it's like God's waterpark
5. Shaved ice with coconut ice cream on the bottom...we went to Local Boy in Kihei, it was incredible
6. Take the Pipiwai Trail (across the street from the Seven Deadly Pools) two miles out to Waimoku Falls...it follows the stream the whole way so it's constant waterfall/pool swim opporunities, gorgeous, easy hike, and the 400' Waimoku Falls at the end is breathtaking
7. To me a wonderful meal at a great restaurant right on the beach is way more worth yr time and money than a cheesy luau...we sat right at the edge of the sand on Keawakapu beach at Sarento's and wouldn't have traded it for a second for a night at a goofy luau
8. I have to agree, that even though the "sand" you eat with yr feet in at Hula Grill is like kitty litter, having drinks at their bar was a lot of fun, terrific ambience there and delicious drinks...avoid the Lahaina area as much as you can though, it's a real tourist trap and kind of a let down after a wonderful tropical day
9. Have some kids teach you how to really catch the waves on a boogie board...we had so much fun and it was even more fun surrounded by little kids who got a kick out of US
10. Catch the sunset, every night, from the beach...we watched it a few times on Black Sand beach in Makena, backed by a huge black cliff and totally empty except for the little crabs and the sea turtles floating near the shore
Least favorite? Lahaina--felt like Ft Lauderdale, very un-tropical feeling, tacky, tshirts everywhere. Glad we had a wonderful dinner at Sarento's instead of a cheesy luau. Not much else we didn't like there because we planned so well and knew where the throngs of people would be and instead tried to focus on the outdoors and finding quiet places, which we did.
There are so many wonderful things to do on Maui that are free if you're adventurous and MR is a great resource, it's what we used.
love
roxy
Also, someone once (well, someone asks a lot here)asked for "top ten" on Maui, these were my answers:
1. Kayak trip through La Perouse Bay (swim with spinner dolphins and turtles and snorkel the awesome coves Aquarium and Fishbowl, 120' visibility) with Maui Kayaks, they take only 8 people at a time...people who have done this and Molokini swear by this instead!
2. Stay a night or two in Hana at the end of yr trip to really explore.
3. Get up at 5am and snorkel snorkel snorkel as many South Maui places as you can when it's super calm and there's no one out then dry out on the soft golden sand and do it all again...Palauea and Po'olenalena were two of our favorites south of Wailea...don't worry, neither the air nor water temps are much cooler that early, the water was very warm
4. Olivine Pools, it's like God's waterpark
5. Shaved ice with coconut ice cream on the bottom...we went to Local Boy in Kihei, it was incredible
6. Take the Pipiwai Trail (across the street from the Seven Deadly Pools) two miles out to Waimoku Falls...it follows the stream the whole way so it's constant waterfall/pool swim opporunities, gorgeous, easy hike, and the 400' Waimoku Falls at the end is breathtaking
7. To me a wonderful meal at a great restaurant right on the beach is way more worth yr time and money than a cheesy luau...we sat right at the edge of the sand on Keawakapu beach at Sarento's and wouldn't have traded it for a second for a night at a goofy luau
8. I have to agree, that even though the "sand" you eat with yr feet in at Hula Grill is like kitty litter, having drinks at their bar was a lot of fun, terrific ambience there and delicious drinks...avoid the Lahaina area as much as you can though, it's a real tourist trap and kind of a let down after a wonderful tropical day
9. Have some kids teach you how to really catch the waves on a boogie board...we had so much fun and it was even more fun surrounded by little kids who got a kick out of US
10. Catch the sunset, every night, from the beach...we watched it a few times on Black Sand beach in Makena, backed by a huge black cliff and totally empty except for the little crabs and the sea turtles floating near the shore
Least favorite? Lahaina--felt like Ft Lauderdale, very un-tropical feeling, tacky, tshirts everywhere. Glad we had a wonderful dinner at Sarento's instead of a cheesy luau. Not much else we didn't like there because we planned so well and knew where the throngs of people would be and instead tried to focus on the outdoors and finding quiet places, which we did.
There are so many wonderful things to do on Maui that are free if you're adventurous and MR is a great resource, it's what we used.
love
roxy
Oct 21st, 2003, 09:04 AM
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even tho you will see whales from your condo, you have to go out whale watching with Captain Steve - check out his website & you'll see why. I go to Maui every year, and I've never used another company to whale watch since 1995. I agree with the suggestion to do kayaking in La Perousse bay - great! The road between Kapalua & Wailuku is very adventurous, but beautiful sites! Do some swimming/snorkeling at Olivine Pools. Sunrise at Haleakala is beautiful, but you could also do sunset.
Oct 24th, 2003, 08:57 AM
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