ac3

The hubby & I will be going to Maui next Saturday--our first time. I've only had about two weeks to plan this trip. Bought Maui Revealed and have read it cover to cover. Also, have been reading the posts on this site. Would love some feedback on my itinerary and answers to a few questions.

Bought the package through Hotwire.com so I can't change flight/hotel/car rental.

Flight: American
Hotel: Kapalua Bay Hotel-Gardenview
Avis: Midsize

Day 1: Arrive 8:50pm(the only drawback I found booking through hotwire) -- any suggestions where we can grab a quick bite to eat after arriving? figure after getting our bags and getting the car, it'll be about 10pm. Want something fast and on-the-go so we can head to the hotel asap

Day 2: explore Kapalua, Lahaina, Kaanapali
Lunch at Aloha Mixed Plate
Dinner at Roy's Nicolina

Day 3: 2am wakeup call for sunrise at Haleakala. Hike down Sliding Sands Trail as far as we can and back up. How long will this take? I doubt we'll make it to the bottom. Do we need the entire day for this?
Should we pack a lunch??
Dinner: Haliimaile General Store (assuming we'll be at the crater all day or will we not need so much time at the crater and should have lunch here instead of dinner)

Day 4: hanging at the hotel
Lunch??
Dinner: Old Lahaina Luau

Day 5: Molokini snorkeling trip with Four Winds; afternoon exploring Kihei/Wailea
Snack: Shave Ice at Local Boy (does anyone know the exact location?)
Dinner: Sansei

Day 6: leave hotel at 5:30-6am for Road to Hana; stop at Hana Bay Juice Co for box lunch and CD (what's the cost for a box lunch? what time do they open?)
We're planning to drive the "forbidden" roads on the south. What time should we expect to be back in the Lahaina area?

Day 7: Olivine Pools/Nakalele Blowhold/Paia/Hookipa Beach-- should we plan a whole day for this or should a half day suffice?
Dinner: Mama's Fish house

Day 8: If we can get a late check-out, we'll sit by the pool. If not, we'll probably drive around. Any suggestions? Our flight out is late, 11pm. Figure we'll get to the airport around 9pm.
Dinner: A Saigon Cafe or Manana Garage --opinions?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

here_today_gone2Maui

Quick bite to eat around 10 pm? There are some drive-through fast food places, Burger King on Dairy Road and Carls' Jr., on the pali road in Ma`alaea are open late. The Ale House serves dinner till 10 and pupus till midnight. Wow-wee Maui on Dairy Rd. is open late on Fri and Sat, but I have yet to have a meal from here that I would recommend. It is a late night option, but they continue to dissappint me. YMMV Your options ar elimited, as not much near the airport that is open late.

Roy's Nicolina has closed. Roy's Kahana Bar & Grill next door is still open.

On Haleakala you can spend all day hiking or just a few hours. You decide how far you want to go . Do be prepared for weather extremes and wet weather. It can be very damp and cold. When hiking Halaakala be sure to bring plenty water and remember that Haleakala is one of the most sacred places in the Hawaiian islands. Respect the quiet of the place and the kapus. Do not leave offerings, and do not disturb any that have been left. Be especially aware of what may appear to piles of stones.

Local Boy Snack Shop is at the Kalama Center. For better deal try the Shave Ice stand at the Rainball Mall, further south on Kihei Road, or from the Jawz Taco Truck

here_today_gone2Maui

Oops, I prematurely hit Post my reply .

Jawz Taco Truck in Makena. We rarely go down to Makena without a stop at the taco truck for a shave ice. I like half blue/half POG.

I don't think Hana Bay Juice Company opens until 8, but you can pick up your cd at Long's Drugs in either Kihei or Lahaina. CJ's in Ka`anaplai makes a box lunch for $10 and athey are open very early. I only know this because friends recently grabbed a lunch from them when theywere visiting. Maui Grown Market opens 6-ish and they do picnic lunches. They make great, huge sandwiches and the lunches include a home made brownie. You can call them the day before to order. They get kind of busy with the Hana mornign rush and calling ahead will get you back on the road.

here_today_gone2Maui

Sorry, that is twice it hit Post My Reply.

Anyway, to finish up allow a full day for both Hana and the Pali drives if you want to fully enjoy the experience. We see way too many people trying to rush along these drives like it some sort of race to finish. Take your time and take in the sights and smells and sounds. Spend some time just sitting in the quiet. The south road from Hana to Ulapalkua is not ther Dakkar to Paris Road Rally although you weill see those who think it is. The road is narow, and there is a lot of loose gravel in places. If there are rains you can encounter flash floods and swollen watefalls. And you never know when you might come round a bend to find yourself face-to-face with a cow or horse in the road, especially when you get to the ranch lands beyond Hana.

You might want to consider adding the I`ao Valley abd Wailuku to your Pali Rd. day.

Mañana Garage or Saigon Cafe are both good choices. One is latin inspired, the other is Vietnamese. It is impossible to compare the two as they are so different. For your last day, if you don't hang by the pool you could spend some time upcountry. I don't see where you have schedule time for Pa`ia or Makawao. And it does appear that you scheduled nearly every moment! Why not leave some time to just let Maui talk to you?

One last note: Do bring/wear a bathing suit when you are out touring the island. You never know when you might have the urge to swim. We always keep an extra suit in the truck. Sometimes you just have to get wet!

ac3

Thanks for all the great advice. I'm planning on going to Paia the same day as the Pali drive. I guess we'll schedule a whole day for this.

Just a few more questions.

Where is Maui Grown Market located?

On the day we do the Road to Hana, since we're staying in Kapalua, should we take the North/Pali roads or go around the west/Lahaina way?

Re. Haleakala, is it possible to bike down into the crater? I thought my options were either hike or horseback and the biking tours only go down Hwy 378.

travelinandgolfin

Lot of rent a car companies don't allow you to take a car around the north section of west Maui (Kapalua side). You have to stay on the main road (through Lahaina and the south shore). Best to double check with your company.

here_today_gone2Maui

Maui Grown Market has two locations, but I don't think the one in Pa`ia has any food. I haven't been in there for a few months, but, still pretty sure you can only get sandwiches at the Peahi location. It is on Hana Hwy at Ulumalu Road, before Mile marker 0.

If you do go to Pa`ia after doing the Pali road, plan on getting there later in the day. And be aware that the taffic into Pa`ia gets bad in the late afternoon. You can spend a good amount of time waiting in rush hour traffic, thanks to the lone signal light at Baldwin Ave.

When you go to Hana- you will want to go aorund the south on Hoapiilani. Going arounf the pali will take longer. It is single lane in many places, versus a real gosh-darned highway on the south.

My husband is a mountain biker and he has done many rides up on Haleakala, but these are serious mountain bike rides. There are no commercial operators offering bike trips other than the downhill, although there is at least one adventure tour operator who was doing private mountain bike trips on Haleakala. I am not sure they are still even doing that, as there has been a lot of resistance to allowing such operators to use a sacred and ecologically-fragile place as Haleakala for profit.

gyppielou

Hey there here-today, and I hope you don't mind me hijacking your post ac3....please could you explain these piles of stones that I have seen so much of during my stays, mostly on Maui and Lanai....always wondered their true significants, knew they were an offering of some kind, but would love to get an educated explaination of them. There is an area past Kapalua when the road narrows that has a lot of these that has always intrigued me. Mahalo.

travelinandgolfin

Don't know about the ones on Maui, but the ones on Lanai in the Garden of The Gods are nothing more than decorations started up by visitors.

Check out the Lanai website for more details.

here_today_gone2Maui

The piles of stones are called ahu, and they have various significance. The islands were once divided up in districts called ahu pua`a, because the survey lines were marked by ahu, upon which was placed an image of a pigs head carved from kukui.

Ahu were also used to mark trails and to deignate places to rest along trails. They were used to mark burial sites. Three stone ahu are tributes to a particular diety.

There are ahu found in archelogical sites, such in Ahihi-Kinauand there are ahu found just beyond Hana in Kipahulu and along the east of the crater in an area called Pakihi. These ahu are historical, but most of the ahu you will encounter along the road to Hana, or in the west Maui mountinas are built to honor loved ones who have passed away. A tutu in my neighborhood taught me about the ahu, telling me how she went to visit a place where her family has built ahu for some generations, over near Wailua. She is always saddened when she she goes to visit the ahu she built for her late husband and finds that others had come along and built their own piles of rocks, disturbed her ahu and even removed the lei she has left there. Visitors come, and see the piles of rocks and think it would be neat to build one of their own. Sometimes people add rocks to existing ahu.

On Haleakala there are many places where historic ahu stand today, but there are even more ahu that were built by visitors. The ones by Kapalua were most likely a few that were built to honor a fmaily member and a whole bunch more that passing visitors erected for the the "fun" of it.

ac3

here_today, thanks for all the info once again.

gyppielou, no worries on the hijacking, this kind of info fascinates me.

I will definitely remember not to disturb any ahu.

If anyone else has any suggestions/comments, I love to hear it. Especially lunch options for days 4,5,7 & 8 -- local not touristy places in the areas we'll be on those given days.

Oh, one other thing, I know here_today provided me with options near Kahului for a late night "dinner" when we arrive, my thought was to land and eat asap. But since options are limited in that area, I was wondering if there are any places I can stop on the way to the hotel, like in Lahaina or Kaanapali?

As you can see, I'm all about food and eating...

here_today_gone2Maui

Lahaina Cooler is my favorite late night nosh joint in Lahaina--very casual and they make a wicked ahi burger. They serve until midnight.

Lahaina Fish Company and BJ's Pizzaria both have food until 11.