What are the MUST DOs and DO NOTs in Maui?
 

My husband and I are planning a five night stay in Maui. We are considering doing a zip line tour, and a few other things, but we are wondering what are the musts when we are there. We will be staying at the Maui Prince Hotel which is in South Maui. If you have any feedback on the hotel that would be appreciated as well. Also what tour book of Maui would you recommend?
Thanks in advance.

The road to Hana.

Haleakala

Kristi10, JMHO......but if this 5 day trip to Maui is the sole time you'll be in the Hawaiian Islands, then I would probably skip the famous road to Hana. You will get people who love it and people who hate it, but in any case, it will take up an entire day and be very tiring, and if I were on Maui for just five days, I would enjoy the beaches, Haleakala, Iao Valley and other sights, and save Hana for another trip. Whatever........ have a great trip! ((r))

Maui Prince...Enjoy the beach in your backyard. It is one of the nicest on the island.
-Bill

In addition to the above suggestions, take a ride to Lahaina Town - visit the shops, have dinner at Kimo's and enjoy a "Hula Pie" for dessert. "Do" consider spending at least a couple of more days on the island. The best tour book IMO, is Maui Revealed by Andrew Doughty & Harriett Friedman. Have a great time in Maui!

Whatever you do - DON'T - research this question here on Fodor's. You'll find far too many times it has already been answered.

Road to Hana and beyond to Seven Pools.
Haleakala at sunrise.
Iao Needle.
Stroll Lahaina.

Good websites to check:

www.gohawaii.com (official Hawaii Visitors Bureau) They will send a free brochure.

www.spotlighthawaii.com (Maui Gold) You can also order a hard copy of this for a few $$

www.thisweek.com (This Week Maui) You can also order a hard copy of this for a few $$

www.101thingstodo.com

www.alternative-hawaii.com

www.hawaiiweb.com

This Week Maui, Maui Gold and 101 Things to do Maui you can pick up at the airport baggage area for free. Also many other news stands and hotels. Many good coupons in these.

Kristi10, we loved the Maui Prince. It's on a good beach for snorkeling, the Maluaka beach. You might see turtles...my husband saw one. Snorkel in the morning because it's calmer and clearer then. Winds pick up by noon all along the coast and then the snorkeling isn't as good.

We enjoyed the fact that this beach isn't crowded like some others. Nice grounds at Maui Prince. Nearby is Wailea, a very close drive, a nice up-scale area.

What type of room do you have at the Maui Prince? We had a Prime Ocean View room and were able to hear the ocean while falling asleep by leaving open the door to our private balcony and closing the screen. Romantic.

Excellent staff at the Maui Prince. Whatever you need, if you have any problems, talk to the front desk or the concierge. They are great.

Aloha!

Haleakala-we found a place that lets you go on your own rather than with a group. It was fabulous, but dress in layers, you'll coast down through a few different climates, peeling layers as you go. The Hana road was good for the first hour, then it was slow and took all day. Other than that, great golf, gorgeous beaches and Lahaina was charming with several good restaurants. What not to do? Our friends suggested a sunset dinner cruise-the food was terrible and we didn't cruise much, the boat just sat in the water for a few hours. Have a great trip!

We were just there for 5 days (not nearly enough time!) We passed on the road to Hana because people told us it was an all-day trip. We did the helicopter trip over that area and the volcano and loved it. (Probably more fun to see things up close, but 5 days is a short time.) I agree with checking out Lahaina town - we went there several times - a really interesting little town with good mix of historical things to see, along with good places to eat and shop. LOTS of great shopping. I also liked looking at all the art galleries, even though I don't know anything about art. We did not enjoy horseriding with the Pony Express, but mainly due to weather. I wish that I would have had time to check out some more of the beaches. I've seen beautiful pictures of Maui beaches, but in person, I unfortunately missed them. Make sure to take some time to just sit on your lanai at six in the morning, drink some awesome kona coffee, and smell the ocean breeze and unique floral smell of Hawaii float through. P.S. Also saw the most amazing rainbows of my life!

I would second the book Maui Revealed....it is not only a good tour book but any trip to maui is 1/2 a trip without it. Yes,IMO it is that good. DO: stop for banana bread at 1/2 way to Hana. DO: have macadamia nut pancakes. DO: sunrise at Haleakala.
DO: Show at Warren and Annabelles!
Dont: Drive straight thru to Hana. This drive is about the exploring get out and see the island.We barely made it to Hana before dark and didnt see as much as we would have liked.
Dont: Forget Maui Revealed!

Kristi10, in my previous post on this thread, I said:

"Kristi10, JMHO......but if this 5 day trip to Maui is the sole time you'll be in the Hawaiian Islands, then I would probably skip the famous road to Hana."

I was in a hurry, and that is not what I meant to say! :-( I MEANT that if Maui is your sole destination in the Hawaiian Islands, you're flying there for five days then back home (no other islands), then I would not spend an entire exhausting day on the Road to Hana and back. The scenery is pretty on "the Road" but there's many other beautiful sights and things to do on Maui that aren't nearly as tiring... :-)

With only 5 days I would skip the major activities like the Road to Hana and Haleakala, Hana will take an entire day and Haleakala most of the day. Try the 'Iao Valley or Upcountry instead. I found the 'Iao Valley to be much more scenic and accesible than Hana, in fact it reminded a lot of Kauai. Enjoy the beach at the Maui Prince, maybe also visit Po'olenalena Beach in South Maui. You might also consider a snorkel trip to Molokini Crater. I believe there is a boat that leaves directly from the Prince. I also recommend Maui Revealed, but only as a general guidebook.

Haleakala but mid-day is fine you don't have to go at sunrise. Skip road to Hana. See Lahaina. If you are interested in shows I'd pick one from Feast of Lele, Old Lahaina Luau, or U'lelena. We used the Moon handbooks 'Maui' guidebook.