Ideas for things to do in Maui?

[Liz]

My friend is going to Maui towards the end of May. They have been to Hawaii several times but this is their first trip to this island. Airfare is booked, resort is booked but they are trying to decide what activites are worth doing and what isn't. When she does a search on the internet so many choices come up.

Can anyone offer any advice? Thanks very much!

 

[ibelieveinmagic]

Hi ,we have 2 daughters currently living on maui we've been there 3 times! i would reccomend a snorkel cruise ,we used 4 winds and it was great!! Saw whales along the way very close jumping out of the water. the day before we went on a whale cruise from pacific whale foundation and saw whales from a very far distance so we decided we would skip that the next time ,You get a barbque lunch and the snorkeling is great! If you don't want to pay for that ,just rent snorkel gear from a shop out there Boss frogs? they will provide you with a list of the good snorkeling spots you can go to yourself for free. Also the road to hana is a must[ it will take the whole day] the drive is beautiful and you stop and see the waterfalls along the way. some you might have to hike to ,there is a cd guide you can purchase to tell you where some of the hidden waterfalls are. Just exploring all the different beaches is fun ,there are so many to choose from! I would like to try a hike in the bamboo rainforest next time and zip line down haleakala. we haven't done wacthing the sunrise from the volcano but we want to try that too! Definetly spend a few hours in paia shopping and lahaina both are great!When i think of more i'll let you know! Have a great day!!

 

[Laura]

We went in mid-May 2003. The humpback whales were pretty much gone by then, so we didn't see any. (Saw some the following year on an Alaska cruise!)

We did the Road to Hana (had lunch at the Hotel Hana-Maui), Iao Valley, Maui Ocean Center, Old Lahaina Luau, snorkeled in Napili and Honolua Bays (tell them to go to Snorkel Bob for advice on where to go snorkeling), had dinner at Mama's Fish House, and relaxed on the beach--well, relaxed on several beaches. All of the above are recommended. On the Big Island we took a helicopter tour with Blue Hawaiian, and they do tours on Maui as well.

 

[travelbug24]

My top two would be to see Haleakala National Park and in Lahaina see a broadway type show called Ulena a history of the Hawaiian Islands. It is fabulous!

Wanted to add...a great place to eat is Stella Blue

 

[jjj444]

We have been here a few times and have a lot of favorites. We loved doing the bicycle ride down the volcano, ocean kayaking, road to hana, snorkeling at Molokini, lahaina at night, Mama's fishouse, snorkeling at black rock, we drove around the north west side of the island-very cool! I love Maui- I really think anything you do there will be wonderful!

p.s. the susets there are amazing, try to get a sunset view at your resturants.

 

[Liz]

Thanks for all the great ideas! I'm passing them along!

 

[korbbec]

The Haleakala Zip line tour is alot of fun and not very scary. I found the Crater itself to be pretty boring.

The beach at Ka'anapali in front of the Westin has great snorkeling or you could walk down to Black Rock in front of the Sheraton. We did Four Winds also- it was ok for the boat ride, but the snorkeling was much better right off the beach.

The Pacific Whale Foundation Whale Watch was reported to be great by my family- I did not do that. They said the whales came right up to the boat- contrary to what the PP said, so it probably depends on the day.

The drive around the top of Maui is great. You get to see a big blowhole- we played in this for hours. It is a "dangerous" ride and will violate your rental car agreement- we did it anyway- no problems... except for the time we had to pass a construction vehicle and my SO's side of the car was hanging off the side of the cliff, but hey- it's an adventure.

The Road to Hana was my favorite thing. Beautiful ride- make sure you take the time to get out of your car and explore. The CD from Boss Frogs is helpful.

Wai'anapanapa (sp) State Park- Whoa.... behold the beauty. So much to explore here- lava tube, black sand beaches, freshwater caves filled with princess legends, a really old cemetary, trails, strange trees, lava formations, sea arch...

Iao Valley... another beautiful spot- combine this with the drive over the top of Maui.

Also- many of those tourist guide books have a coupon for Boss Frogs. Rent a snorkel set for the week for $9 and get a free afternoon snorkel trip on Four Winds. Rent a set for everyone and you all get a free trip- that way you have gear for the week to snorkel from the beach and you get to try a boat ride, although the AM boat rides are reportedly better. There is also a $7 ticketing fee for your "free" boat trip. This is still cheaper than paying for the trip and you have gear for the beach.