Maui
 

My husband and I are going to maui in October. We are 35 years old, very active and like different places to eat as well as night life. We are planning on doing the volcano excursion, snorkeling, and road to Hana. We are deciding between staying in Wailea and Lahina. I would love to hear what you all think and which place is best. We will not have a car except for one day. Thanks.

We loved the FS in Wailea. We did much of what you are talking about, and found it very easy to do it from there.

You will need a car in my opinion.

We loved Wailea - beautiful and romantic. We were glad we had a car the entire time we were there though.

You should rent a car for the entire trip.

The Lahaina area usually really refers to the hotels along Kaanapali area, not in Lahaina, itself.

Wailea hotels are more secluded and can be more expensive.

You won't find nightlife much on Maui. If this is important, maybe you should consider Oahu.

If finding good places to eat is a priority, you will usually want to get out of the resort area and a car would make that much easier. Generally like everyone else I would highly recommend a car to get around Maui. It's not that expensive on priceline and some of the hotels like the Hyatt don't charge for parking (at least they didn't when I was there).

Rent the car, especially since you plan on doing both the trip to Haleakala and Road to Hana.

Try: discounthawaiicarrentals.com

Got a good price on a car from Avis from them my last trip.

Maybe we will consider renting a car. I just thought that with most of the excursions they pick you up and drop you back off. Other than that we will be spending time at the beach. Maybe I misuderstood. We are not looking for dance clubs and major night life. Just a few differnt places to get a fluffy drink. We went to Oahu two years ago and we loved all the options in Waikiki. It was fun to walk around other hotels and all the high end shops in the evening. I guess we are looking for something like that in the evening. The other thing we are looking for is what is most central for tours. Is it Wailea or Kanapoli? Thanks for sharing=)

You don't need to pay for an excursion. The way you describe yourselves, you sound perfectly capable of driving to Hana and driving up to Haleakala by yourselves. Why do you want to pay someone to drive you around in a bus?

You are going to find yourselves about 50 years younger than most people on those tours

From your descriptions of what you enjoyed on Waikiki, then I think you should look at staying in Ka'anapali rather than Wailea.

You might also want to read the postings on the Hawaii board of Trip Advisor. www.tripadvisor. com

Thanks so much for all your help. it looks like we are going to be renting a car!! I may have more questions once we figure out exactly where we are staying. It is either a time share about 10 minutes from Lahina (in that case we need the car), or at the Marriott Wailea.

Marriott Wailea would be my choice, a little ritzyer than Lahaina and easier to access the volcano and Hana areas. It's good you've decided to rent a car. You should check how much parking is going to be at the Marriott instead of getting a surprise. Since you said you are active my suggestion is to buy the Maui Trailblazer guidebook for driving around and finding out the best stops for hiking and beach walks. They can be hard to spot if you don't know. Also, the previous replier was right when he said there's not much nightlife on Maui, however, the restaurants are super, like Mamma's.

You aren't going to find a Waikiki-like atmosphere of shops and restaurant for strolling around after dark in Wailea.

That's why I would recommend the Ka'anapali area.

What's the possible time share 10 minutes from Lahaina?

I add my vote for Kaanapali, but I haven't stayed in the Wailea area. I just really like the beachwalk in Kaanapali (that Placename talks about, for strolling around after dark -- that's my "nightlife")

We really enjoyed our stay last year at Marriott Wailea. We requested a non ground floor non children pool area and were accomadated in the tower. The adult infinity pool was peaceful with friendly service.

It really depends on what you're looking for; Wailea seemed quieter and more upscale to us which we liked, but if you're looking for a lot to do, you might like staying in Lahaina.

>> It is either a time share about 10 minutes from Lahina (in that case we need the car), or at the Marriott Wailea.

In both cases, your trip will be *much* more enjoyable with a car.

Placename, the shops at wailea are directly behind the marriott.
Wailea has an oceanside path between all the resorts for evening and morning strolls.
Both areas have much to offer. The Wailea Marriott has hotel rooms with coin operated laundry available. Not sure what the timeshare is or if it offers a more condo type experience with a couple of rooms and kitchen.
A car is a must for a very active couple hoping to explore. Paid excursions, not so much.

Yeah, but the shops are Wailea are half an afternoon's worth.

<<<Yeah, but the shops are Wailea are half an afternoon's worth>>>

And the one's in Lahaina and Kaanapali are worth ____ hours??? (seriously, Lahaina is fun for an evening or part of a day, and Kaanapali is good for an after dinner stroll, but you just go back to the same stores over and over :-) ) (I have no idea what stores or how many there are at the Wailea shops)