JHooten

Not sure if this posted the first time...I apologize if it did twice.

My wife and I will be in Maui for 7 days in mid-March. We enjoy outdoor sports on the islands....snorkling, surfing, hiking, etc. Based on comments about the potential for rough seas on the north shore, and maybe more rain, it seems that the south or west might be a better option. Does anyone have an opinion about which area(Lahaina/Ka'anapali Coast vs. Wailea Area) might be our best option for both good hotels and central location?? Thanks!

Ida101

Kaanapali and Wailea are both fine.
Only Lahaina is much closer to Kaanapali, if you want to do shopping, whalewatch etc., then maybe Kaanapali is better.

jett

Kaanapali/Lahaina is fairly built up versus Wailea which is not as built up yet but is slowly getting there. We stayed in Wailea Area last October and loved it. Nice mix of peace and quiet and a bit of nightlife and shopping nearby. Whatever your choice I'm sure you will have a great time!

bertaron

You can't go wrong with the Lahaina/Kaanapali area with the surroundings and the weather is pretty nice. You mention that you are into outdoor sports so I wanted to throw a recommendation to you that you might want to try the zip line tour on Haleakala. It is alot of fun and they are extremely safe. My wife who won't ride a roller coaster with me did it and enjoyed it.

delor

Wailea. The beach at the Prince is the Best, best weather and where the local boat tours take everynone to see the turtles (at turtle town, near the Prince beach) for diving and snorkling.No need to go by boat, just swim to the left of the beach around the reef and enjoy. The hotel is at the base of Haleakela if you want your hikes uphill.A much shorter drive than from Lahaina. The end of the road at Makena, a few minutes from the hotel is an awsome and challenging hike over the old lava flow and along the coast.
Plenty to do in the area as there are great restaurants and shops within minutes and don't forget that Costco is on the exit road from the airport for an array of suppies, including boogie boards!

NEtripper

My personal favorite is Kaanapali. Love to stay at the smaller, but very Hawaiian and friendly Kaanapali Beach Hotel. It's also one of the least expensive. We loved to walk along the connected beach strip and try each of the different hotel restaurants and watch the sunset. Beware of the rip tides, was caught in one, but luckily knew what to do. We loved body surfing with the locals right outside our hotel.

Don't miss the Whale Watch tours on the catamarans that are launched from the beach. We went two nights in a row for the sunset "cruise" and both times had huge whales come close enough to almost touch. We'll never forget that experience! We were there in Feb or March.... at the height of breeding season and could see pods traveling in the ocean from the roads up near the coastline.
No matter where you go on the island you can't go wrong! Enjoy. Mahalo.