My husband and I will be taking our first trip to Maui at the end of October. We will be spending 5 days in Maui. We want to do as much as we can while we are there, but not sure what things we shouldn't miss out on.

What hikes should we do? What about going to a luau? Tips on where to snorkel - should we rent our own snorkel gear and do our own thing or go on the Four Winds Molokini snorkel? What about good shopping places - especially for cheap souveniers.

Thanks for any help or advice you can give me!

If you guys are inclined to do a luau I would try to book Old Lahaina Luau right now. It may already be too late, but try anyway. We thoroughly enjoyed our night there, and felt like it was money well spent.

For snorkeling, we did a tour to Molokini crater (with the Quiksilver boat) that was awesome. The QS folks were very knowledgeable and patient, and that snorkel ended up being one of my favorite memories of the whole trip. BUT we also stayed on Kaanapali Beach so Black Rock was just a stone's throw (no pun intended) away. My answer to the snorkeling question would be yes to both . . . rent some gear to throw in the car and carry around with you and also do the boat tour.

Cheap souvenirs = ABC stores. You can't miss them as there's practically one on every corner.

You don't mention the road to Hana, but if it's open I would do that as well (don't know about recent earthquake damage). You get a true taste of paradise traveling past all the waterfalls and lush vegetation. Not sure if I would go all the way to 7 Sacred Pools again.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip!

I agree with the Old Lahaina Luau - we didn't get a chance to go because we DID NOT know that this is the luau to go to and apparently, you need to book way ahead of time. If you can't get a booking I read that there is an option to call them on the same day to find out if there are any cancellations.

Sunrise over Haleakala is another one not to be missed.

Things I liked: road to Hana, Iao Valley, Haleakala sunrise & strolling Lahaina.

The hike I liked best was the one upstream from Seven Pools. There are two waterfalls. First one is about 1/2 mile. Second one is about 2 miles.

Road to Hana is open.

Drums of the Pacific at the Hyatt has the best fire knife dancer on Maui. Old Lahaina Luau does not have a fire knife dancer.

Lots of info:

www.visitmaui.com

www.mauihawaii.org

www.alternative-hawaii.com Good narrative driving tours including Road to Hana. Also restaurant guide

www.hawaiiweb.com

www.driveguidemagazines.com Good maps & restaurant guide

www.thisweek.com This Week on Maui XXX

www.spotlighthawaii.com Maui Gold XXX

www.101thingstodo.com 101 Things To Do On Maui XXX

XXX - These also have free hard copy brochures that you can find at airport baggage area & other places on Maui.

Also pick up a free The Aloha MAPS of Hawaii.

Other sites/links:

www.hawaiitrails.org

http://www.mauimapp.com/information/hiking.htm

http://www.snorkeling-hawaii-insider...com/index.html

www.snorkelbobs.com Scroll to the bottom & click on Map'nTips

http://www.adigitaldreamer.com/snorkel/maps.htm

http://www.maui-vacation.net/snorkelmap.html

You have to copy & paste this one:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~volcano/te...Haleakala.html

http://www.hawaiianstylemedia.com/Gu...ana-Deluxe.htm

http://www.alohafriendshawaii.com/roadtohana.html

Old Lahaina Luau for a traditional large spectacular. Or Feast of Lele for a more dinner theater style performance.

I also enjoyed the show called U'lalena at Myth and Magic Theater in Lahaina. A cirque-de-soile style history of the islands thru music and dance.

The crater at Haleakala is a must-do. But our family was happy to go up mid-day, not get up in the middle of the night and drive in the dark to witness sunrise.

We did the Old Lahaina Luau, and while I'm glad we did it I wouldn't do another. I had been directed to Hilo Hattie's for souvenirs, but found it expensive; keep your eyes open in ABC stores or in Lahaina if you go there. We brought snorkel gear and my experienced partner said Honolua Bay was the best snorkeling he had ever done (including around Tonga/Tahiti).
Here's my trip report: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...keswords&fid=1

There are lots of trip reports for Maui on this site, so just keep searching and you'll find a plethora of good information.

Aloha!

I'm going to put in a vote for the Warren and Annabelle magic show. It's really good, but it too books up fast, so if you are interested, you need to book ASAP. We enjoyed hiking / walking around Iao Valley and we really enjoyed to walk to the blowhole (can't remember it's proper name). If you don't already have a guide book, get the Maui Revealed book for ideas, but remember not to tread on private property (the book sometimes encourages readers to pay no attention to no trespassing signs, etc.). Good luck and have a great trip.

Thanks for the help! We'll be staying in Lahaina so do you know about what time in the morning we would need to leave to do the Haleakala at sunrise?

It takes 2 hours 45 minutes to get there from Lahaina.

Sunrise about 6:30

To find accurate sunrise/sunset:

www.sunrisesunset.com

fin dHonolulu, click on: calendar