We have booked our flights and now are trying to figure out where to stay in Maui. We have three boys ranging in age from 7 to 14. We are looking for a resort that has a nice beach for the boys, within walking distance to a variety of restaurants, and centrally located to sights/activities. From what i have read, it sounds like the hotels on the south side will have better weather and gentler waves-- is this correct? What do you think?

The Ka'anapali area is a great place for a family. Depending on your budget, there are several possibilities for hotels.

We stayed in South Kihei right next to Kamaole beaches (specifically, across the street from Kamaole II) and were very pleased with our proximity to gentle beaches, restaurants, to Makena and Wailea. Here is a link to Yelp reviews: http://www.yelp.com/biz/kamaole-beach-iii-kihei

Many beaches in Maui have sharp drop offs once you enter the water. This is not so good for kids. The beach I would recommend for kids is Wailea Beach in south Maui. It has a very gradual walkout into the water and usually gentle waves. There are several excellent resorts at or near Wailea Beach.

Ka'anapali Beach area has a variety of hotels and condos that will fulfill your request, depending on your budget.

I second Ka'anapali beach for the kids. LOTS to do within walking distance.

The Sheraton sits on Black Rock, a great snorkeling area, and because it is a small, fairly protected area, the water is fairly calm. The Westin is a good place for families as well - they have a huge water slide and there are numerous water activities on the beach right at the Westin.

Another plus with any of the resorts is that most of them have scheduled kids' activities and classes - lei making, sand castle building, etc. Your 14-year-old may be too old for some of the activities, but your younger ones might enjoy a few of them.

If you are checking the Kanaapali area, I stayed at the Hyatt last summer and was very nice and seemed kid friendly.

This is an innocent question, not a critique: when I was in Maui in 2009, there was a lot of construction going on in Ka'anapali. Is it still the case?

The other good thing about Kaanapali Beach, especially with kids, is the Whaler Village right in the middle of it all - shops, restaurants, etc. It's between the Westin and the Whaler condos. There's also a walking path that goes all the way from the Hyatt to the Sheraton.

Are you thinking of staying at a hotel, or a condo (personally, I like a condo because I like having a kitchen, even though I don't cook, just make coffee and english muffin, but mostly because I like having a living room). If you're thinking of a condo, look at the Kaanapali Alii Condos (between the Hyatt and the Marriott Villas) and the Marriott Villas. There's also the Whaler, which many people love (but I'm not one of them).

Tom, there is currently no construction going on in Kaanapali except for remodeling on The Whalers condo.

think you meant that for Tentek. I was there in August and as you said, the only construction was around the Whalers condos.

Thanks for your suggestions. We were leaning toward Wailea but will look into Kaanapali as well. How is the weather in Kaanapali in March?

Suggested activities?? My boys want to go surfing, ziplining, and scuba or snorkeling-- where would you recommend that we go for these activities? Is it easy to get around by a taxi or should we rent a car? We also are interested in going to the volcano for sunrise-- how long will it take us from Kaanapali to get there?

March weather in either area is excellent. Warm, sunny, tropical with occasional short bursts of light rain showers --- every other month in Maui has this same weather pattern, except for occasional prolonged rain storms in the winter. Scuba or snorkeling is excellent in Wailea or Kaanapali .

You will definitely need to rent a car. There are many rental agencies to choose from, just go with the one with the best price. Make a reservation, but keep checking the rates to see if they go down. You can always cancel and rebook if a less expensive rate comes up.

Taxis are not a practical option for getting around Maui. Rental car is a must. At the baggage claim in the airport and outside most grocery stores you will find stands with free brochures regarding zip lining and surfing lessons. I would also recommend a whale watching tour. The drive from kaanapali to the top of Haleakala is about an hour and a half. Bring warm layers --- at 10,000 feet it gets cold.

How long is the drive from Wailea to Haleakala?

Hi - We've taken our boys (same ages as yours) to Maui 3 times and they love it. You absolutely need a car. It is a beautiful island and there is so much to see! For the activities you mentioned here are some thoughs:
Snorkeling - as soon as you arrive go to Boss Frog's or Snorkel Bob's and rent equipment for the week for the whole family. There are so many places to snorkel right off the beach. It is inexpensive (less than $20 per week per person) and the best value you will get. You can do surfing lessons at any resort, but the best value we found was in Kihei (near the Wailea resort area) at Maui Waveriders. We also got an extra discount from our Marriott Aloha card or something similar. Ziplining is expensive and we ended up not doing it. Something for next time.
One other suggestion, there is an outdoor roller rink in Kihei right on the beach that is open to the public a few nights a week. It is like $2 to rent roller blades and the boys loved it.
As for resort locations - Kannapali or Wailea, both are nice. If you have a resort in mind folks on this board can advise.

According to Google Maps, the drive to the summit of Haleakela is 1 hr 52 min from Wailea and 2 hr 13 min from Kaanapali.

Suzette, thank you so much for all of your suggestions!!! Do you have any restaurants to recommend? The boys are fairly well behaved and enjoy trying all sorts of foods.

We have a few favorite restaurants. We try to go to inexpensive places because if you go to the right places and get fresh fish it is as good as the more expensive places.
Near kannapali we were pleasantly surprised by Lui Lui in the Cannery mall. my boys loved the malasadas (doughty like dessert)
In kihei we like wok star, an outdoor noodle house
Paia is a great little town with many really good eateries. The best is Paia fish market. I also like Milagros across the street.
We ended up in Makawao one day and there is the rodeo general store with great gourmet food to go.
I hope this helps