maui-oahu trip
 

Just wanted to post some details from my recent trip to Hawaii the 2 weeks before Memorial Day. Spent 6 nights at Hyatt Regency Maui and then 6 nights at Hilton Hawaiian Village on Oahu. I'll start with the hotels, and if anyone has specific questions I'll try to answer them. <BR> First the Hyatt on Maui. Beautiful hotel. Upgraded to Ocean View for $85. Using United certificates received 50% stay so upgrading was more affordable. Was told we couldn't upgrade for free using the certificates(possibly baloney, but wasn't in an argumentative mood). Anyway, a beautiful hotel and ocean view was worth the upgrade as we could sleep with the Lanai open with screen door and sleep to the ocean. Some problems we incurred. Pool in being renovated, so waterfalls, grotto bar and water slide are closed until June I was told. Still a nice pool, but no meandering through the falls like we had hoped. Had water backing up into our tub leaving silt and black grime every night. Hotel gave us free breakfast and $100 and sent housekeeping up every time it happened. This got old, but how do you repair plumbing problems? Didn't discover until the 3rd night so we didn't want to move. Beach is awful, and nobody swims there. Not a big deal, just walk down toward the Sheraton, or use the pool. Hyatt has the most potential of all the Kaanapali hotels, we just had an unlucky week. I'd stay there again.

More Maui hotel notes. Westin, Marriott and Sheraton were all very nice. Didn't see the rooms, but all looked very modern. None were decorated quite as nicely as Hyatt, but I don't think you would be too disappointed with them. Not sure why Sheraton chose such plain decor, but maybe beige is appealing to some people. The cliff diver at night was uneventful. The guy lit the torches, 3 of them blew out from the wind, and he jumped off after throwing a lei in the water. Lasted about 30 seconds. Waited 30 minutes, but got some good sunset photos. Kaanapali Beach hotel is the best spot for sunset photos. Great lawn. Many of us amateur cameramen had tripods set up here in the evening. Not a real fancy hotel, but looks like a great value. Ate dinner at the restaurant which was good,while listening to live music. Didn't walk past black rock. The Kaanapali beach walk along the hotels is fantastic and worth numerous strolls.

Hotels in Wailea: Wow! That's about all you can say. The Grand Wailea is amazing. Take an afternoon and go to the beautiful beaches in Wailea and stroll along their beach walk. Great photo ops and definitely first class. Talked to some people who paid $250 for a half day room so they could swim at the pool. Crazy in my opinion since water is water, but if you want, they offer you the opportunity. About 30 minute drive from Kaanapali, and very enjoyable. <BR> In Kapalua, the hotels looked nice, but it was so darned windy and we got rained on. Thus, our time in Kapalua was spent at the Dragon's teeth area and then we returned to Kaanapali.

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In Oahu, HHV we loved before, but stayed there free this time using Hilton Points. Got put in Rainbow Tower which is old and worn. Very disappointing. Stained carpet, torn lamp shades, duct tape on the drapes, and very small. The newer towers are much nicer. Grounds are beautiful, but the Super pool is small compared to Kaanapali pools on Maui. However, most of the Waikkiki pools at the hotels are tiny, so the Super pool is the biggest we saw. Get there by 10am or no chairs will be available. We like this hotel, but got the sense that since we were staying for free, our issues were less important to them. We were put in a smoking room and told no non-smoking were available. The room smelled awful. They sent an aerator up and said that was the best they could do. Oh well, all we paid for was parking, but I expected more. Not sure I'd stay there again unless we were in Kalia, Tapa or Ali'i towers.

O.K. not sure what the robinisfat thing is up there, but buddy, get a life. Anyway, some tour and activity info.<BR>Maui- went on Trilogy, drove to Hana, did Haleakala SUNSET( I don't get up before sunrise), did Old Lahaina luau. <BR>Due to rain the week before, there was a lot of island runoff making snorkeling anywhere atrocious. Saw all of zero fish on Lanai. They took us to shark's fin cove, and it was o.k., but they tried. Boat ride over was fun. I liked the Trilogy crew, but the women in the crew were bitchy at times. The two we had spoke to us like preschoolers and were quick with snappy answers to stupid questions. The guys on the crew were much more accomodating and entertaining. Good food, good trip, not worth $152pp the day we went. But still fun.

Toledo Dave, I loved our trip on the Trilogy too! We had great weather but that was 100 years ago or so it seems. I still have my t shirt but I must treat it with kid gloves for it to last until I can get another!!!!<BR>We stayed at the Hyatt too. Boo hoo on the pool! Mys son loved the slide and the one time I went down it the guy at the top said to me "That kid has been down like 50 times today!" I laughed all the way down. <BR><BR>One night we ate at the restaurant at the top of the waterfall. They were trying out a new table out on the point but becasue it only had light from the tiki torch the manager didn't think anyone would want to sit there. Is he crazy or what. It was the best table!<BR><BR>Have they redone the cafe area by the pool? Kind of where they serve breakfast. When we were there that was really the spot that needed attention.<BR><BR>Very good friends of ours are going to HHV in a few weeks. I feel like I should warn them as it is the parents 50th anniversary. <BR><BR>Thanks for a great trip report. Can't wait to get back to Maui in the fall!

just a side note on HHV. Coming from the Hyatt Maui, I'm not sure how impressed we could have been with any of the Waikiki hotels. I do like that HHV is more secluded, and I still have fond memories of my first trip there, but this time, the factors that made the first trip wonderful weren't quite the same. That being said, I went over to the Sheraton Moana Surfrider, the Hyatt, and the Outrigger Waikiki, and didn't find them to be better facilities than HHV. I think that the Waikiki area in general is too touristy and geared so much toward the Japanese market that it requires a lot of filtering on a travelers part to find the hidden gems on Oahu(of which there are many if you know where to look).

sorry if this gets too long. I wanted to briefly address the major trip highlights. On to the road to Hana. This was my favorite part of the trip. The book Maui revealed is a marvelous tool. I turned the CD in the car off as it was getting annoying. Popped in some Jimmy Buffett(was just in that mood) and kept the book nearby. Left hotel at 6:30am. Stopped in Kahului for breakfast at McDonald's and were out of Kahului by 7:30. Still wasn't enough time. Arrived at the Ohe'o gulch at 4:30pm. I cannot stress this enough, and it has been said many times before. If you zoom past everything to get to the pools, you will be disappointed. The least enjoyable part for my wife and I was arriving at the Ohe'o gulch and being surrounded by 100 people whose kids were peeing in the pools(this is no joke..little girl announced it to all). A woman sunning on a rock would not move so we could cross without getting in the water, and the sun is shining directly at you in late afternoon making photo ops difficult without glare. So our highlights were in order: Blue Pool:-rocky drive, but breathtaking and shared it with about 6 people. Nice swim in a dreamlike setting. 2.)Banana bread in Ke'anae. 3) Driving to Nahiku- outstanding waterfalls and streams. 4.)Waianapanapa park: ate lunch, relaxed, great photo ops and overlooks. <BR> Now about the back side. Do it, do it, do it. Had a Toyota Camry. The bumpy stretch we metered to be 10 miles almost exactly. It is bumpy for sure and we went 5-10 mph. After this, it is as smooth as can be the rest of the way and you can go 35 to 40mph. Saw rainbows over the ocean, beautiful grassy slopes, and you get to see the sunset as you approach the western side of the island. If it is raining, you may want to think twice due to potential rocks sliding into the road, but if it is sunny, you can make it with no white knuckles. ( I am hardly a daredevil driver either). Do NOT take a tour to Hana if you can drive with reasonable ability. You simply cannot personalize your experience this way. And I was within a mouse click of booking a tour because I was nervous about a winding drive that might be treacherous or make me carsick. Not only did I not get carsick, but thoroughly enjoyed the drive. I did take Bonine as a precaution.

Old Lahaina Luau was very nice. At the Hyatt hotel the Drums of the Pacific Luau takes place, and you can watch some of it from the beach walk. You can see people crammed shoulder to shoulder on white fold up chairs looking crowded and uncomfortable. Not so at Old Lahaina. Nice wooden chairs comfortably placed at nice tables. I wouldn't do the traditional seating. Saw an awful lot of middle aged men trying to stretch their knees as they were getting cramped sitting Indian style all night. If you don't mind sitting this way and your back is in good shape, go for it. The folks at my table and I all booked about 9 months ahead of time. Sat right in the front behind the traditional seats and were first to go to the buffett. Plenty of Mai Tai's(not very strong, but good). Excellent service with nobody asking for tips or gratuity at the end which I had fully expected. Show was o.k. Don't expect fire dancing or a circus act like you might see at other shows. As advertised, it is very authentic, much slower paced, but very nice show. Food is good as far as luau's go, and I would do it again. People at our table were from Boston and we enjoyed our tablemates. This is contrary to the Paradise Cove Luau we did in Oahu which was a fun show, beautiful setting etc., but sat next to a family with teenagers who complained the whole time about anything they could think of, and brought no engaging conversation to the white plastic table at all. Highly recommend Old Lahaina Luau over the others.

Haleakala: Went up to the crater at sunset. Advantages for sunset: no bikers, no crowds, driving up in daylight, sleeping in, taking your time going up since there is no rush if you leave by say 2:30pm. And it stays warm all the way up until the sun goes down. Then it gets pretty darn cold. I was in shorts and t-shirt until about 30 minutes before sunset, then broke out the sweatshirt, and about 10 minutes after sunset I had to go to the car. For sunrise, I imagine it is the opposite. Sunset was very pretty.<BR>Disadvantages: when the sun Rises, it rises over the crater casting light into it and illuminating it in many colors. I didn't see this, but simple logic tells me that the eastern sun rises as you are facing east toward the crater. At sunset, you are facing west with your back to the crater, and the crater is dark. However, if you are up there an hour before sunSET, it is quite beautiful in the crater, and then an hour later it is beautiful over the island and clouds. Drive up is pretty easy although driving through the clouds was rough for about 10 minutes.

Briefly, other highlights- dragon's teeth in Kapalua made for some good photo op's. Nobody else there, so I could set the tripod up and my wife and I pose for pictures. Very, very windy, and we got rained on briefly. Nakalele blowhole was even more windy. Could barely keep my camera still. Loved the beaches at Wailea. If it's a partly cloudy day and you want a little more sun, head to Wailea for a few hours or more of beach fun. Strolling Lahaina was fun. Ate lunch at Leilani's- the downstairs menu. Simple burger's, sandwiches and pizzas, but fancier upstairs. Eat lunch downstairs when they first open at 11am, sit by the beachwalk, watch the people walk by and if you eat anything at all, order a slice of hula pie! A mountain of ice cream, chocolate fudge and macadamia nuts, and then go to the hammocks for a nap. Ahhhhh, what a vacation. I'll post the rest of my Oahu stuff in a different post. It simply cannot be put here after the Maui stuff. (although I did enjoy Oahu). Well that's all I'm going to post about Maui. If any questions come along, I'll try my best to answer them. For those of you going soon, consider yourselves the luckiest people on earth for the time you are there because the rest of us are jealous.

My husband and I were just at the Hyatt Maui last week and although the waterfalls and grotto bar were closed the slide was open and was tons of fun...and our room was wonderful ...spotless, very comfy beds with down comforters, and our plumbing worked great.