last minute advice for Maui & Kaua'i
Oct 26th, 2004, 10:48 AM
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last minute advice for Maui & Kaua'i
First, mahalo for all of the great advice I've gleaned here for our first trip to the islands. We leave on Nov 2nd, for 5 weeks on the Maui and Kaua'i. Our proposed itinerary follows, although we haven't booked anything yet. In all of my research over the past couple of months, I have found that there is lots of availability , so hopefully we won't have a problem booking last minute.
We are a couple, mid 50's that enjoy great food, golf, snorkeling, beaches, hiking and biking, and we usually like to check out the area and rooms first and then decide if we want to stay. It has worked well in Europe and the South Pacific.
We originally were traveling with another couple , who have now dropped out. it was their idea to fly into Kapalua airport , so we are now stuck with that flight.
We arrive at 5:30 pm, so I am planning a 3 day golf package at Kapalua villas, before driving to Wailea. There we are hoping to stay at Makena Beach, the Polo Club, or Grand Champions for a couple of weeks. Then we are driving to Hana for 3 or 4 days , and will probably stay at the Hamoa Bay house , which at the present is vacant most of the month. from there , we plan to fly to Kaua'i for a couple of weeks.
I need specific answers to the following questions and any additional tips would be welcome, although I have been obsessed with this forum for a while, so I have a pretty good idea of what we want to do.
1. Should we have dinner at Mama's Fish house while we are in Kapalua or is it closer to Wailea?
2. Am I correct in thinking that we will drive to Hana from Wailea on the south road, weather permitting?
3.How long a drive is it to the airport from Hana? Which airport is best for flights to Kauai? I'm guessing that it doesn't make sense to drop the rental car at Hana and fly to Kauai from there. Am I correct?
4. I haven't spent as much time researching kaua'i , as Maui, so any suggestions on best condos to stay( best pool, beach, $250 per night max) probably a few days in the North and the rest near Poipu.
Thanks again in advance for your help, and I will post a report when we return. Cheers, Al
P.S. I am happy to help with your questions about Whistler, BC , if needed
We are a couple, mid 50's that enjoy great food, golf, snorkeling, beaches, hiking and biking, and we usually like to check out the area and rooms first and then decide if we want to stay. It has worked well in Europe and the South Pacific.
We originally were traveling with another couple , who have now dropped out. it was their idea to fly into Kapalua airport , so we are now stuck with that flight.
We arrive at 5:30 pm, so I am planning a 3 day golf package at Kapalua villas, before driving to Wailea. There we are hoping to stay at Makena Beach, the Polo Club, or Grand Champions for a couple of weeks. Then we are driving to Hana for 3 or 4 days , and will probably stay at the Hamoa Bay house , which at the present is vacant most of the month. from there , we plan to fly to Kaua'i for a couple of weeks.
I need specific answers to the following questions and any additional tips would be welcome, although I have been obsessed with this forum for a while, so I have a pretty good idea of what we want to do.
1. Should we have dinner at Mama's Fish house while we are in Kapalua or is it closer to Wailea?
2. Am I correct in thinking that we will drive to Hana from Wailea on the south road, weather permitting?
3.How long a drive is it to the airport from Hana? Which airport is best for flights to Kauai? I'm guessing that it doesn't make sense to drop the rental car at Hana and fly to Kauai from there. Am I correct?
4. I haven't spent as much time researching kaua'i , as Maui, so any suggestions on best condos to stay( best pool, beach, $250 per night max) probably a few days in the North and the rest near Poipu.
Thanks again in advance for your help, and I will post a report when we return. Cheers, Al
P.S. I am happy to help with your questions about Whistler, BC , if needed
Oct 26th, 2004, 01:26 PM
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Given the time of year you are going, you will probably want to stay on the south shore of Kauai (Poipu) - much less rain and much gentler surf than in the north. Condos in your price range would include Kiahuna Plantation - great beach, tennis courts, two golf courses (one is a PGA championship course) located near the property, and some of Kauai's best restaurants are in the general vicinity.
Oct 26th, 2004, 01:43 PM
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1. Mama' s is about as far from Kapalua as you can get; I'd wait till you are staying in Wailea for that meal. Do consider a meal at the Plantation House in kapalua though.
2. Out of curiosity, why are you considering the south road to Hana? It is unpaved, includes blind pali-hugging turns, the scenery is mostly dry, scrub ranch lands, and it takes longer to reach Hana town than traveling the "Road to Hana." All of the guide books and CDs will be uselss, as they follow Hana Hwy on the north side. Taking Pi`ilani, the round on the south will still require that you first drive to Kahului, and then backtrack down through Kula and around. There is no road from Makena directly to Kaupo.
3. There is a small airport in Hana. You may be able to fly from there, but I think Dollar is the only rental company in Hana and you most likely have to pay the Hana rental rate, which is gosh-darned high. Otherwise, you should allow yourself three hours from Hana to the airport, in case anything happens on the way. You never know when you might encounter a horse in the middle of the road who just doesn't want to move for you (happened to my husband once), or get behind a truck, or encounter roadwork, get caught in a little downpour, or, God forbid, come across an accident.
2. Out of curiosity, why are you considering the south road to Hana? It is unpaved, includes blind pali-hugging turns, the scenery is mostly dry, scrub ranch lands, and it takes longer to reach Hana town than traveling the "Road to Hana." All of the guide books and CDs will be uselss, as they follow Hana Hwy on the north side. Taking Pi`ilani, the round on the south will still require that you first drive to Kahului, and then backtrack down through Kula and around. There is no road from Makena directly to Kaupo.
3. There is a small airport in Hana. You may be able to fly from there, but I think Dollar is the only rental company in Hana and you most likely have to pay the Hana rental rate, which is gosh-darned high. Otherwise, you should allow yourself three hours from Hana to the airport, in case anything happens on the way. You never know when you might encounter a horse in the middle of the road who just doesn't want to move for you (happened to my husband once), or get behind a truck, or encounter roadwork, get caught in a little downpour, or, God forbid, come across an accident.
Oct 26th, 2004, 01:54 PM
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WhistlerAl, I think the Maui Prince Hotel is having a special, if you stay 5 nights one of those nights is free; we're staying there in January and that's the special we have. I also heard that the Hotel Hana Maui has a special also...not sure how many nights you need there to get the free night...I think you need 4 nights, not sure.
I have been to Kaui and have been researching our trip to Maui. so I know that to take the south road on Maui from Hana to Wailea, you can't actually get to Wailea directly...there's no connecting road. so you would be driving south, then turning north towards Haleakala, then heading back south again. so it's longer than it looks on the map...heard from others it's maybe 3 hours. I know from Hana to the airport taking the Hana Highway north from Hana is 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
We loved Kaui when we took a family vacation there several years ago. We preferred the north side because it's greener, lush and beautiful. some good hiking up there. this was June so the beaches even on the north side were calm enough to snorkel, but you're going in November so don't know about the beaches in November. The south is drier on Kaui, near Poipu is quite built-up, we didn't care for it. But it's a great idea to stay on both the north and south sides, because if you want to drive up into the Waimea Canyon area (spelling is bad?) you want to stay on the south side for a few days. the east side has some interesting things to explore. We drove all the way up the west side but it gets desolate up there, beaches weren't swimmable, too rough, and some people were camping on the beach who didn't seem to want us there.
Nice condos near Poipu but they are NOT on a swimmable beach: they are now called Castle Makahuena at Poipu. When we stayed there several years ago they had a different name. Our condo with a nice partial ocean view even had a washer and drier and a balcony. At that time they offered a nice breakfast and a free shuttle ride into town. You can drive from these condos to the swimmable beach at Poipu. We enjoyed the relative isolation of these condos but some people might rather be on the busier Poipu Beach.
I have been to Kaui and have been researching our trip to Maui. so I know that to take the south road on Maui from Hana to Wailea, you can't actually get to Wailea directly...there's no connecting road. so you would be driving south, then turning north towards Haleakala, then heading back south again. so it's longer than it looks on the map...heard from others it's maybe 3 hours. I know from Hana to the airport taking the Hana Highway north from Hana is 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
We loved Kaui when we took a family vacation there several years ago. We preferred the north side because it's greener, lush and beautiful. some good hiking up there. this was June so the beaches even on the north side were calm enough to snorkel, but you're going in November so don't know about the beaches in November. The south is drier on Kaui, near Poipu is quite built-up, we didn't care for it. But it's a great idea to stay on both the north and south sides, because if you want to drive up into the Waimea Canyon area (spelling is bad?) you want to stay on the south side for a few days. the east side has some interesting things to explore. We drove all the way up the west side but it gets desolate up there, beaches weren't swimmable, too rough, and some people were camping on the beach who didn't seem to want us there.
Nice condos near Poipu but they are NOT on a swimmable beach: they are now called Castle Makahuena at Poipu. When we stayed there several years ago they had a different name. Our condo with a nice partial ocean view even had a washer and drier and a balcony. At that time they offered a nice breakfast and a free shuttle ride into town. You can drive from these condos to the swimmable beach at Poipu. We enjoyed the relative isolation of these condos but some people might rather be on the busier Poipu Beach.
Oct 26th, 2004, 02:10 PM
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Aloha Al,
5 weeks!! I'm terribly jealous.
Don't miss staying on the north shore of Kauai for part of your stay. While Poipu may be drier, there is certainly no more beautiful spot on the island than the north shore, rain OR shine.
We stayed at Pu'u P'oa set on a cliff just a short walk down the street from the Princeville Resort. Very spacious condo, clean and breathtaking views!
Have a wonderful time.
5 weeks!! I'm terribly jealous.
Don't miss staying on the north shore of Kauai for part of your stay. While Poipu may be drier, there is certainly no more beautiful spot on the island than the north shore, rain OR shine.
We stayed at Pu'u P'oa set on a cliff just a short walk down the street from the Princeville Resort. Very spacious condo, clean and breathtaking views!
Have a wonderful time.
Oct 26th, 2004, 02:35 PM
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HI,
I don't know much about Maui, but we travel to Kauai every summer and have some info on favorite things to do typed up. Email me at [email protected] if you'd enjoy that. Good luck with your trip.
I don't know much about Maui, but we travel to Kauai every summer and have some info on favorite things to do typed up. Email me at [email protected] if you'd enjoy that. Good luck with your trip.
Oct 26th, 2004, 03:52 PM
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Thanks for the prompt response. What an amazing forum this is. I have used it to research trips to France,Finland, and now Hawaii, and can't believe not only how knowledgable and well traveled you all are, but also how willing you are to help others.
Thanks for all of the advice so far. I just checked the web, and may stay at the Ritz in Kapalua for the first four days. It means not being able to cook in, but for the start of the trip, it will be a nice treat. Has anyone eaten at Sansei ( sp?) at Kapalua. We are big sushi fans. I'm sure with four nights there, we will try them all. keep the tips coming, they are much appreciated. Cheers, Al
Thanks for all of the advice so far. I just checked the web, and may stay at the Ritz in Kapalua for the first four days. It means not being able to cook in, but for the start of the trip, it will be a nice treat. Has anyone eaten at Sansei ( sp?) at Kapalua. We are big sushi fans. I'm sure with four nights there, we will try them all. keep the tips coming, they are much appreciated. Cheers, Al
