We are just about to put down a deposit on a room at the Fairmont Kea lani in Maui for the Christmas break. What, besides R & R should we be sure to do there? what about favorite restaurants? Right now, from Boston, the airfare is over $1,000. Should we book now or take a chance that the fare will go down? Are we crazy to fly all that way for just a week? Thanks.

We're from the Boston area, too, and have been to Hawaii 4 times (twice to Maui). We've always gone for 2 weeks because we've had the luxury, but IMO, it's definitely worth it for a week as well. Yes, it's a long flight, and we travel to the Caribbean, too, but Hawaii is just so beautiful and special.

For restaurants, check out: Tommy Bahamas, Roy's, Hula Grill, I'O, Pacific'O, and Cheeseburger in Paradise.

As for the airfare, I would doubt it would go down. Christmas is a busy time. We've always gone in August, and paid about $700pp, but with fuel/oil prices, you might be stuck at about $1000pp or even more for Christmas week.

Thanks for your suggestions. Right now, we are booked on a flight out of Maui in the afternoon and then the redeye back from LA. Is that the best way to do it? Should we rent a car? For anyone who has stayed at the Fairmont, we have an Oceanview room-is there any particular part of the hotel we should request? Thanks.

I think all the flights from Hawaii back to the East Coast are in the afternoon/evening and go overnight. And, yes, definitely rent a car! I haven't stayed at the Kea Lani (eaten dinner there, though, definitely eat at Nick's Fishmarket there!) so I can't help you with the room question.

For activities:
Old Lahaina Luau
U'lalena at Myth & Magic Theater
Feast of Lele
drive up Haleakala
self-guided walking tour of Lahaina

I too am from Boston and just returned from Maui. We were only there for a week but loved it. Keep an eye on your flights as I did find they went down $230. Paying the $100 change fee, I got $130 credited to my credit card. Another option was to take the entire $230 in a airline voucher. You never know when they'll have a sale ;-)

I agree that Nick's Fishmarket is great - the best of all the places we ate while there.

If you are divers, check out Molokini crater. It is awesome.

Maui is fantastic. We love Maui! You can also hit Lahaina which is off the beaten path. Kihei is great, but expensive, but that is mostly where we hung out. We've been 3 or 4 times. You'll fall in love with Maui!

Lahaina off the beaten path? Kihei expensive? I'm not sure when you were last in Maui, but Lahaina is sort of the center of the "action" in Maui, and Kihei is considered one of the less expensive areas (maybe you're thinking of Wailea, which is near Kihei and is where the super-fancy resorts are?)

Hi Neglex -
We just returned from Maui, and I think a week will be great. We had such a great time, and I think Christmastime there will be amazing.
I definitely agree with the Old Lahaina Luau - we did that on our first night and it was a great kickoff to our trip.
We loved the snorkeling...we snorkeled at Molokini with Pacific Whale Foundation and did some on our own at Black Rock (great sea turtles here!) and other spots I found in Fodor's guide to Maui.
We loved the drive to Hana, and we also drove around the opposite side of the island, form Kaanapali around to Kahakuloa and back. That was an amazing drive too!
We did lots of browsing in Lahaina and really enjoyed the different shops and people watching. BJ's Chicago style pizza is there Front St., and we loved it! We had a great meal at Canoe's in Lahaina, and we also had the best shaved ice at a little kabob stand on Front St. in Lahaina.
Whaler's Village is a great shopping area in the Ka'anapali area, and they have a Honolulu Cookie Co that makes amazing shortbread cookies!
Enjoy Maui - I can't wait to go back!

Rent a car. Definitely.

I didn't think Molokini itself was very interesting snorkeling, but the boat trip is nice, and in December, you might see whales.

No way airfares are going to go down. The planes are all full, too, as the number of available seats is reduced due to the shutdown of Aloha and ATA to Hawaii.
Kihei is not expensive, I think perhaps wanderlust5 is mistaking it for Wailea or Makena.

the prices on the tickets won't go down and most people only vacation in Hawaii for a week.

For activities, watch the sunrise at Haleakala (dress warmly!), take the Trilogy tour to snorkel Molokini, do the Old Lahaina Luau (book before you do since it sells out), drive the road to Hana, and relax on the beautiful beaches. Our favorite restaurant was Nick's Fishmarket.

Hi neglex

Most of my fav restaurants are somewhat of a drive away from where you'll be staying but just in case:

Mama's Fish House (for lunch)
Plantation House
Sansei
Banyan Tree

Things to do:

Drive Hana Hwy and hike Pipiwai Trail to Waimoku Falls
Snorkel Honolua Bay
Drive up Haleakala
Check out Iao Valley
Check out Saturday Maui swap meet for cheap souvenirs, fun items and local food
Rent a poolside cabana and be lazy for one day

take the Trilogy tour to snorkel Molokini

Friends of ours and other people on this board also highly recommend Trilogy, but many recommend the Lanai trip instead of Molokini, because you get choices of activities - not only the beach/snorkeling part, but the option of a trip into Lanai town, which a lot of people like. Anyway, everyone I know who's done it says Trilogy is a fantastic operator.

We really did enjoy Trilogy. They cooked BBQ chicken on the boat, and we had a great time; I liked the boat ride over and the great lunch even more than the snorkeling. We also did Whale Watching with the Pacific Whale Foundation.

Agree with previous posts that The Trilogy trimaran to Lanai is fantastic. We reserved it in late November 2007 and the only day we could get was December 26. We were at Wailea for two weeks and had a fantastic time for Christmas 2007. Recommend you get the concierge at the Kea Lani to make all your dinner reservations ahead and to especially drive to Mama's Fish House for lunch one day. Christmas on Maui is fabulous, but without reservations, you won't get to do the things you really like.

On and the trip to Haleakala is fantastic and takes about 4 hours to drive up and back.

We loved the Safeway outside of Wailea on the highway and had several picnic lunch sandwiches made for us. If you get a card, you get a discount on all your purchases.

Also the little deli at the Kea Lani makes great sandwiches.

We recently enjoyed the Four Winds II boat immensely. Check out their boats at www.mauicharters.com

Also, I loved Kimo's restaurant in Lahaina right by the water on Front Street.

Wow! I have been out of touch for a few days. Thanks everyone. We have made reservations and have two free tickets on United (frequent fliers points). These are all great suggestions. We can't wait to go.

Thanks again,

Nancy

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