In 2014 we decided to take some of the money from the sale of our home (not really profit, just some cash that ended up in our bank account) and take a fancy vacation. We'd never done one before. We typically would drive down to B.C. or Alberta for a week or two in the summertime (we live in Whitehorse, Yukon) and stay with friends and relatives. This was a vacation of a different magnitude. My wife very early on decided on Hawaii. I was a little concerned - about the heat and the possible boredom. I'm not a person who enjoys sitting on a beach for hours on end. I'm glad I was convinced. There was no boredom on this vacation.
We ordered guidebooks from Amazon. My recommendation goes to Maui Revealed. This was the most useful of the several books we bought. I also bought the Maui Revealed App which I'd also recommend - it can track where you are, you can use the app offline, and the ability to click on your location and reveal nearby locations was very useful. I didn't purchase any roaming data for my phone while in Maui, so I really got good value out of this app.
I appreciated a few of the webpages that offered itineraries for their 5 or 10 day vacations, so I thought I would offer ours for other like-minded individuals. We were travelling with our 9 and 11 year old children and I'm sure this affected the activities we pursued. We typically tried to rise early and get to bed early so we could hit the beaches in the morning. We didn't hit our target of a different beach everyday, but you certainly could. Maui has a ridiculous number of fantastic beaches.
Note: Many, but not all, of the pictures below are mine. Please contact me if you have an issue with the images I've borrowed, and I will happily replace them.
We ordered guidebooks from Amazon. My recommendation goes to Maui Revealed. This was the most useful of the several books we bought. I also bought the Maui Revealed App which I'd also recommend - it can track where you are, you can use the app offline, and the ability to click on your location and reveal nearby locations was very useful. I didn't purchase any roaming data for my phone while in Maui, so I really got good value out of this app.
I appreciated a few of the webpages that offered itineraries for their 5 or 10 day vacations, so I thought I would offer ours for other like-minded individuals. We were travelling with our 9 and 11 year old children and I'm sure this affected the activities we pursued. We typically tried to rise early and get to bed early so we could hit the beaches in the morning. We didn't hit our target of a different beach everyday, but you certainly could. Maui has a ridiculous number of fantastic beaches.
Note: Many, but not all, of the pictures below are mine. Please contact me if you have an issue with the images I've borrowed, and I will happily replace them.
Arrival
We arrived in Kahului at about 10 PM. We flew Air North out of Whitehorse. This was by far the best flight experience we had on the whole trip. Air North still believes in customer satisfaction. Once in Vancouver we traveled Alaskan Airlines to Portland and then Maui. On entering the airport we were met with warm moist air. The airport itself has an interesting design - much of it is open to the outdoors - no windows necessary.
A friend who had arrived the previous day met us at the airport. I knew he was coming - it was a surprise for my wife and kids! He was with us for the first 4 days. We had a car rental arranged through Budget. A shuttle ran from the airport to the rental agencies. Budget was closed by that time but Avis honored the reservation. I made the very wise decision of upgrading from the sub-compact I'd originally booked to a 4 door sedan. I doubt our luggage would have fit in the sub-compact, and we spent our time lugging around boogie-boards, snorkeling gear, and a cooler. It was worth the upgrade just for the trunk room. A car rental is an absolute must for Maui unless you're just laying on the beach outside your accommodations.
Once we had the car, and my wife had figured out how to adjust the seats, we drove about 30 minutes to our condo in Kihei. We had arranged the condo through VRBO, had spoken with the owner, made an early deposit and paid the balance a week before leaving. We were staying in Village by the Sea in the northern part of Kihei. We had selected Room 108, which had good reviews and looked like it would meet our needs. When we arrived it was clean, the lights were on, and all was as promised. We were happy with the condo - it was affordable, we liked being on the ground floor, the condo offered a nice pool and BBQ area, but probably our favorite part was the location. Village by the Sea was more central to the rest of the island than many other condos in South Maui and seemed to be in a much quieter location. Some people online had complained about Kihei in particular, stating that the wind was a problem for them. We loved the wind - it kept the heat down and was always appreciated. We would rent this room again - it wasn't luxurious, it was a little cramped, but met all our needs very well.
A friend who had arrived the previous day met us at the airport. I knew he was coming - it was a surprise for my wife and kids! He was with us for the first 4 days. We had a car rental arranged through Budget. A shuttle ran from the airport to the rental agencies. Budget was closed by that time but Avis honored the reservation. I made the very wise decision of upgrading from the sub-compact I'd originally booked to a 4 door sedan. I doubt our luggage would have fit in the sub-compact, and we spent our time lugging around boogie-boards, snorkeling gear, and a cooler. It was worth the upgrade just for the trunk room. A car rental is an absolute must for Maui unless you're just laying on the beach outside your accommodations.
Once we had the car, and my wife had figured out how to adjust the seats, we drove about 30 minutes to our condo in Kihei. We had arranged the condo through VRBO, had spoken with the owner, made an early deposit and paid the balance a week before leaving. We were staying in Village by the Sea in the northern part of Kihei. We had selected Room 108, which had good reviews and looked like it would meet our needs. When we arrived it was clean, the lights were on, and all was as promised. We were happy with the condo - it was affordable, we liked being on the ground floor, the condo offered a nice pool and BBQ area, but probably our favorite part was the location. Village by the Sea was more central to the rest of the island than many other condos in South Maui and seemed to be in a much quieter location. Some people online had complained about Kihei in particular, stating that the wind was a problem for them. We loved the wind - it kept the heat down and was always appreciated. We would rent this room again - it wasn't luxurious, it was a little cramped, but met all our needs very well.
Day One - Monday
We had to wait until 9 AM the first morning to properly check-in with the front desk at the condo. We'd been given the key code for the room by email to get in the night before. Our friend met us at our condo - he was staying down in South Kihei at the Days Inn on Keawakapu Beach. He was also very happy with his accomodations. He was right on the beach for a fair price.
Once we were checked-in, since we hadn't done any shopping yet, it was off to Denny's for breakfast. I'd previously had a bad Denny's experience and had sworn off them, but it was actually quite good. Again, as with many places on Maui, it was open to the outside and the birds were flying into the restaurant. These birds were one of my favorite parts of Hawaii. Mostly they prefer to run around on the ground, using flight as a last resort. Bird-song was pervasive our entire time there.
In the same building as Denny's there was a Maui Dive Shop. We rented snorkeling gear for ourselves and the kids. After this it was off to buy some groceries. We planned to eat a meal or two a day in the condo. The Safeway was about 1.5 km from our condo. Many people had recommended Costco and eventually we succumbed and bought a membership, but in my opinion it was totally not worthwhile. We don't have a Costco where we live and the $50 membership cost made shopping for a few groceries (which had to be bought in bulk) probably more expensive than otherwise. Both Safeway and the Foodland were reasonable. We headed up to Costco in Kahului but ended up just picking up a couple of things at the KMart around the corner.
As we found ourselves in Kahului at lunch time, we used our guidebook for a recommendation. Da Kitchen was one of the best eating experiences we had on Maui. We ate there three times. The portions are huge and the food is great. They offer Hawaiian Plate Lunches among many other options.
Once we were checked-in, since we hadn't done any shopping yet, it was off to Denny's for breakfast. I'd previously had a bad Denny's experience and had sworn off them, but it was actually quite good. Again, as with many places on Maui, it was open to the outside and the birds were flying into the restaurant. These birds were one of my favorite parts of Hawaii. Mostly they prefer to run around on the ground, using flight as a last resort. Bird-song was pervasive our entire time there.
In the same building as Denny's there was a Maui Dive Shop. We rented snorkeling gear for ourselves and the kids. After this it was off to buy some groceries. We planned to eat a meal or two a day in the condo. The Safeway was about 1.5 km from our condo. Many people had recommended Costco and eventually we succumbed and bought a membership, but in my opinion it was totally not worthwhile. We don't have a Costco where we live and the $50 membership cost made shopping for a few groceries (which had to be bought in bulk) probably more expensive than otherwise. Both Safeway and the Foodland were reasonable. We headed up to Costco in Kahului but ended up just picking up a couple of things at the KMart around the corner.
As we found ourselves in Kahului at lunch time, we used our guidebook for a recommendation. Da Kitchen was one of the best eating experiences we had on Maui. We ate there three times. The portions are huge and the food is great. They offer Hawaiian Plate Lunches among many other options.
By late afternoon we headed to the beach outside our friend's hotel: Keawakapu Beach. This my and my kids first experience snorkeling and after a few minutes, my daughter and I had it down. My son took a little longer, but he's stubborn and had to figure it out his own way. We are all very fair-skinned and were concerned about burning in Hawaii, so brought some skookum sun-screen with us. We planned to never be at the beach between 11 and 2 and to only stay at a beach for a couple of hours at a time. This philosophy seemed to serve us well - none of us burned. The UV Swim shirts we purchased prior to coming probably also helped.
After a swim we headed back to our condo and barbecued some steaks and hot dogs for the kids, and then to bed.
Oh, I did quite like the Bloody Mary mix I picked up at the store. Makes a reasonable Michelada. I've never found this in Canada - it's a little spicier than Clamato.
After a swim we headed back to our condo and barbecued some steaks and hot dogs for the kids, and then to bed.
Oh, I did quite like the Bloody Mary mix I picked up at the store. Makes a reasonable Michelada. I've never found this in Canada - it's a little spicier than Clamato.
Day two - Tuesday
We decided early on in our planning that, although we absolutely wanted to drive up the volcano, we didn't particularly care about getting up at 3 AM to do so. We'd skip the sunrise. We had breakfast at the condo and picked up Peter at his hotel by 7:15. The drive up Haleakala was magnificent. I loved seeing the different micro-climates at each different altitude. Were I looking to live on Maui, I would likely choose to live up-country. It's definitely cooler and just a different kind of beautiful. Kula is the town for me. My wife might be living elsewhere though - she prefers the beach.
As we hit the switchbacks though, it became apparent that my son's cold was going to be a problem. While everyone else's ears were popping all the way up to 10,000 feet, his were holding in the pressure and becoming quite painful. We took a short look around up top, skipped any trail walks, and headed back down.
As we hit the switchbacks though, it became apparent that my son's cold was going to be a problem. While everyone else's ears were popping all the way up to 10,000 feet, his were holding in the pressure and becoming quite painful. We took a short look around up top, skipped any trail walks, and headed back down.
Once back down to Kula, we headed to the Kula Botanical Gardens. We thought this was a pretty good value - loads of interesting plants and flowers, all labelled, and many beautiful little spots. We spent more than an hour here, taking pictures of flowers and each other.
They provide you with a little map and suggest a route for you to take through the garden. The kids liked the fish food they could sprinkle at the Koi Pond. Once finished there we headed back down into Kahului. By the way, throughout the trip we made use of a GPS in the car - our friend brought an extra for us. This was invaluable. In fact, at this point, it suggested a more direct drive down through Kula that seemed a bit precipitous, but fun.
For lunch we took another suggestion from the Maui Revealed app and ate at Las Pinatas. This was a counter-style Mexican restaurant and was very good and very reasonably priced. After lunch we continued with the sight-seeing and headed up the other volcano into the Iao Valley. Here we did a 20 minute walk up a trail and got to experience some lush, humid, tropical atmosphere.
For lunch we took another suggestion from the Maui Revealed app and ate at Las Pinatas. This was a counter-style Mexican restaurant and was very good and very reasonably priced. After lunch we continued with the sight-seeing and headed up the other volcano into the Iao Valley. Here we did a 20 minute walk up a trail and got to experience some lush, humid, tropical atmosphere.
The main draw here, other than the generally spectacular steep mountain-side scenery, is the needle: a volcanic remnant. The valley is also the site of a battle in which the king of Hawaii defeated the resistance on Maui in 1790.
By the time we made it back to our condo in Kihei, my wife was feeling quite ill and decided to opt out of the afternoon with the correct assumption that if she rested she would be feeling better for the next day. So, Peter, the kids, and I headed down to Maluaka Beach. Finding it was a little tricky! First we stopped in a small rocky cove, then when we finally found it, we somehow missed the public parking and parked a five minute walk down on the side of the road. After we'd moved the car we finally got onto the beach.
It was a little bit rocky on the north end but 100 feet down it was all sand. We'd stopped at Maui Dive Shop on the way and picked up some boogie boards, and here at the beach we basically used them as flotation devices. None of us had a clue how to use them properly yet, and really it was too calm. I attempted a little more snorkeling, but we mostly swam for an hour or so.
On the way back we stopped for our first shave ice at Surfing Monkey, beside the Foodland. We were hooked. The staff was incredibly friendly, the price was cheap compared to other places, and the shave ice was delightful! They sweeten the ice with local cane syrup that the owner makes himself and it was refreshing and delicious. They successfully got us to come back multiple times with a buy 5, get one free card. We went through three cards while there.
By this time the sun had set, and with my wife sick back at the condo, we decided to catch a quick bite at Jack in the Box. We'd never eaten at this particular fast foodery before. I won't be making any effort to again. Yak in the Box.
By the time we made it back to our condo in Kihei, my wife was feeling quite ill and decided to opt out of the afternoon with the correct assumption that if she rested she would be feeling better for the next day. So, Peter, the kids, and I headed down to Maluaka Beach. Finding it was a little tricky! First we stopped in a small rocky cove, then when we finally found it, we somehow missed the public parking and parked a five minute walk down on the side of the road. After we'd moved the car we finally got onto the beach.
It was a little bit rocky on the north end but 100 feet down it was all sand. We'd stopped at Maui Dive Shop on the way and picked up some boogie boards, and here at the beach we basically used them as flotation devices. None of us had a clue how to use them properly yet, and really it was too calm. I attempted a little more snorkeling, but we mostly swam for an hour or so.
On the way back we stopped for our first shave ice at Surfing Monkey, beside the Foodland. We were hooked. The staff was incredibly friendly, the price was cheap compared to other places, and the shave ice was delightful! They sweeten the ice with local cane syrup that the owner makes himself and it was refreshing and delicious. They successfully got us to come back multiple times with a buy 5, get one free card. We went through three cards while there.
By this time the sun had set, and with my wife sick back at the condo, we decided to catch a quick bite at Jack in the Box. We'd never eaten at this particular fast foodery before. I won't be making any effort to again. Yak in the Box.
Day Three - wednesday
When we booked our trip through Expedia, we selected a couple of activities we though we might like to do. Today was the first of them: a whale watching cruise through Pacific Whale Foundation. Again, we had breakfast in the condo and headed up to West Maui and Lahaina. When we arrived and managed to find parking, we wandered the stores and art galleries on Front Street for an hour, admired the enormous banyan tree, and then ate lunch at Aloha Mixed Plate, which was excellent. After lunch we wandered again for a little bit, and my wife decided to get a henna tattoo.
Many of the stores in Lahaina have callers out front who can be quite insistent. Not 5 minutes after getting her tattoo, a saleslady grabbed her by the arm to give her some free samples and wrecked it. She quickly went back and had it redone on her ankle. She's still thrilled with it.
We had a 1:15 check-in time for the whale cruise, after which we had to sit around by the banyan tree for 30-45 minutes while we waited. This waiting resulted in my favorite two photos from the trip (apologies to this child and his parents).
We had a 1:15 check-in time for the whale cruise, after which we had to sit around by the banyan tree for 30-45 minutes while we waited. This waiting resulted in my favorite two photos from the trip (apologies to this child and his parents).
The whale watching was worthwhile. We saw several humpbacks, listened to the whale-song, and enjoyed being out on the water. I took a motion-sickness pill beforehand as the last time I was on a boat (the ferry from Masset) I was gut-wrenchingly ill. The best part of it for me was just getting to see the island from a different perspective. The cruise finished at 4 PM.
On our return, we stopped for dinner at Isana Restaurant. This restaurant along with Da Kitchen, gets my highest rating for the trip. My wife and lived in Korea for two years right after we were married. Since returning we've eaten at a number of different Korean restaurants, but none of them really measured up to the food we'd had in Korea. This was the first. The Bulgogi was fantastic - we got to grill it right at the table, it included side-dishes or banchan, and they included the lettuce leaves we asked for without charge. We gorged ourselves and it was nirvana.
We finished the day by dropping Peter off at his hotel and watching the sunset from Keawakapu Beach.
On our return, we stopped for dinner at Isana Restaurant. This restaurant along with Da Kitchen, gets my highest rating for the trip. My wife and lived in Korea for two years right after we were married. Since returning we've eaten at a number of different Korean restaurants, but none of them really measured up to the food we'd had in Korea. This was the first. The Bulgogi was fantastic - we got to grill it right at the table, it included side-dishes or banchan, and they included the lettuce leaves we asked for without charge. We gorged ourselves and it was nirvana.
We finished the day by dropping Peter off at his hotel and watching the sunset from Keawakapu Beach.
Day Four - Thursday
Breakfast at the condo. This was our friend's last day on Maui and we wanted to fit the aquarium in. Maui Ocean Center wasn't the biggest aquarium, but it was a great experience. The big tank can captivate you for quite some time. We spent a couple of hours here - you could definitely spend more time if you wanted. The audio devices they rent to you add a significant amount of additional information. After the aquarium, we headed back to the condo for lunch. We had a couple of hours left before Peter had to head up toward the airport and decided to take a drive down to La Perouse Bay in South Maui. My wife hadn't yet seen the luxurious grounds down by Wailea and Makena and none of us had gone as far as La Perouse yet. There are some recommendations for snorkeling down this road, such as the Aquarium and the Dumps. Even if you don't go there for the snorkeling (we didn't), the road is worth a drive just to see the lava flow.
The road narrows and winds over this flow for a stretch and it's scenery quite unlike anything else on Maui. Definitely slow driving though. We stopped again for Shave Ice on the way back and said goodbye to Peter. We finished the day with a sunset swim at Kama'ole I Beach and sandwiches back at the condo.
Day five - friday
This was a bit of a shopping day. We started with breakfast at the condo, as usual, and then headed up to Kahului for supplies. We waited for Costco to open and I went in to buy a membership. As I stated earlier, I don't feel this was worthwhile for me at all. We quickly realized that with five days to go, buying groceries in bulk made zero sense. We stopped at Old Navy on our way back for Tammy and the kids to do a little clothing shopping, and then hit the Safeway in Kihei again. After dropping off the groceries, we headed to Taco Bell (blech!) for lunch and because it was right beside a road-side craft fair that Tammy wanted to see. There was really nothing there but touristy crap.
Late afternoon saw us at Wailea Beach. This is a gorgeous, calm beach right up against the fancy resorts in South Maui. A really nice thing about Hawaii, is that the beaches are all public. If you can find access to the beaches, you can park yourself on them. This one had an easy public access with parking lot. We barbecued burgers back at the condo for dinner.
Late afternoon saw us at Wailea Beach. This is a gorgeous, calm beach right up against the fancy resorts in South Maui. A really nice thing about Hawaii, is that the beaches are all public. If you can find access to the beaches, you can park yourself on them. This one had an easy public access with parking lot. We barbecued burgers back at the condo for dinner.
Day six - Saturday
We finally got our morning swim into the schedule at Maluaka Beach. Tammy didn't make it out here last time and the kids had really liked the wave action here. Just past this log it stops being rocky. We planned on trying to do some snorkeling here, but it was a little too rough and the water was pretty cloudy with sand - we'd walked all the way to the south end by the rocks, but it wasn't working. We finally figured out how to use our boogie boards though. There were some decent breaking waves here and the kids were loving it.
We had lunch back at the condo.
We had lunch back at the condo.
One of the activities we'd heard mixed reviews about was the drive to Hana, with a clear division between "an absolute must-do activity" and a "you'll get sick and it's not worth it." We decided to approach it cautiously and drive down far enough to get a taste for it so we could decide if we wanted to continue another day. We stopped at Twin Falls, walked up to see the first waterfall, but it was raining and they'd closed down the trail to the others due to flash flood danger. We continued up the road as it got twistier and more tropical. We turned around at Garden of Eden, having decided that as long as we took it slow, it would be well worth it to come back. On the way back we watched the windsurfers at Ho'okipa Beach and walked the streets of Pa'ia to check out the stores there. The guidebook told us that Pa'ia was a little wackier than other parts of Maui and we definitely saw some interesting characters on the streets.
We ate dinner at Da Kitchen again in Kahului and once again it was fantastic.
We ate dinner at Da Kitchen again in Kahului and once again it was fantastic.
Day seven - sunday
This was the first day we really experienced proper snorkeling. I'd tried it out and seen a few fish, mostly at Keawakapu Beach, but it had been nothing compared to this. We got an early start after breakfast at the condo and hit Ka'anapali Beach in West Maui by 8:45 AM. The parking access was a little bit tricky to figure out. We eventually found a beach access parking lot just past the Whaler's Village Mall that left us having to walk a fair ways down to Black Rock. Before Maui, only my wife had snorkeled. The water, though quite deep in places, felt calm and safe here and we each held a kid's hand and went for it. My wife even had a turtle come up behind her and brush her on the leg and arm as it went past. We were totally delighted with this spot. Hundreds of fish. It wasn't quite as good the next day when I brought the camera, but still amazing.
We headed back to the condo to shower and eat after a couple of hours in the water and then headed to the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center in Kahului for some shopping. This was another open-concept building, which on a hot day meant the hallways were a little warm. I did find a couple of pair of cheap shoes ($60 each there - $95 each in Vancouver).
We grabbed another Shave Ice at Surfing Monkey on our way to Keawakapu Beach for some snorkeling, which once again turned into boogie boarding.
We headed back to the condo to shower and eat after a couple of hours in the water and then headed to the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center in Kahului for some shopping. This was another open-concept building, which on a hot day meant the hallways were a little warm. I did find a couple of pair of cheap shoes ($60 each there - $95 each in Vancouver).
We grabbed another Shave Ice at Surfing Monkey on our way to Keawakapu Beach for some snorkeling, which once again turned into boogie boarding.
Day Eight - Monday
We'd been so thrilled with the snorkeling the previous day that we headed back here early in the morning. This time I brought the GoPro I'd picked up months before specifically for use on this trip. This was the first day I'd really used it on Maui and I knew that I'd better justify the purchase! Though there weren't as many fish as the previous day, it was still fantastic, with turtles, a ray, and whale-song in the background.
We went back to the condo to shower and change, return our snorkeling gear and boogie-boards, and eat some lunch, and then headed back up to West Maui for our Luau at the Royal Lahaina. We spent some time wandering Front Street in Lahaina again, getting lots of chatter from the art galleries, who were all certain we were about to drop $5000 on some wall decorations.
I had pretty low expectations for the Luau, but was pleasantly surprised. The host was a straight-up lounge lizard out of Vegas which entertained me. The show and dancing were worth the price. The food was adequate.
The kids, in particular, really enjoyed the Luau.
I had pretty low expectations for the Luau, but was pleasantly surprised. The host was a straight-up lounge lizard out of Vegas which entertained me. The show and dancing were worth the price. The food was adequate.
The kids, in particular, really enjoyed the Luau.
Day nine - tuesday
Today was our drive to Hana. Again, we took it pretty slow and enjoyed the scenery. Once we got to Hana, we ate lunch at the Hana Ranch Restaurant. I cannot recommend bringing your own lunch enough. If you're looking for a place to drop $18 on a cheeseburger, this one will do I suppose. We should have dared one of the roadside eateries.
Koki Beach in Hana was worth stopping at to soak in the scenery. We headed back after lunch to get some laundry done so we'd be able to pack up. We told the kids that Monday was likely the last day they'd get to swim, but we managed to get the laundry done earlier than planned and headed out to Big Beach. This was one of our favorite beaches. The shore break could be quite large, and all of us left with bruises (my daughter is still picking sand out of her scalp), but it was massively fun.
We finished off the day returning to Isana restaurant for another dose of bulgogi.
Koki Beach in Hana was worth stopping at to soak in the scenery. We headed back after lunch to get some laundry done so we'd be able to pack up. We told the kids that Monday was likely the last day they'd get to swim, but we managed to get the laundry done earlier than planned and headed out to Big Beach. This was one of our favorite beaches. The shore break could be quite large, and all of us left with bruises (my daughter is still picking sand out of her scalp), but it was massively fun.
We finished off the day returning to Isana restaurant for another dose of bulgogi.
Day ten - Wednesday
We were packed and ready to go by 9 AM. We didn't need to be at the airport until 6 PM. We checked out early and headed back to Queen Ka'ahumanu Center for some shopping. While there we ate lunch in the food court, and caught a movie in the theatre. By 3 PM we were done with all that and headed back up to Kula for another last look at upcountry. On our way back we had dinner for a last time at Da Kitchen and then headed to the airport. All-in-all this was an irreplaceable experience - the best vacation of our lives. I'm thrilled we brought the kids with us to experience this. The vacation would not have been as fun without them. We also had four days to enjoy with a close friend. In the end, we could have spent another week enjoying different beaches, and my wife is making noises about retirement to Maui. I'm sure we'll be back!