Who's been to Maui? What would you recommend?

[prolesunited]

We have a great opportunity to stay with a friend there in October in Paia, which is on the north coast. Anyone have any ideas?

[Beausoir]

1. For food, sightseeing? What are you looking for?

I've been many times.

Paia is wild and stunning. You will love it over there.

[prolesunited]

3. Both

We don't like tourist trap stuff and are both active.

[qnr]

2. A raincoat? :) n/t

[prolesunited]

4. But it never lasts long

and there are rainbows!

[qnr]

5. This is true. Enjoy yourselves! n/t

[Rabrrrrrr]

6. I love the trail from Paia over to Lanai

:rofl:

[NMDemDist2]

27. I like the little road that swings over

it was awesome!

[NewWaveChick1981]

7. The Road to Hana.

It's kinda treacherous, but getting to Hana is worth it! It's an adventure, that's for sure. :D

[Midlodemocrat]

8. I second this. The Road to Hana is amazing.

[AlCzervik]

10. love that highway but they might want a barf bag if they're in the back

seat.

[NewWaveChick1981]

26. Very good suggestion!

:hi: I don't have a problem with motion sickness, but one of the guys in our group when we took the trip to Hana did. He was kinda green when we got there. :( The road to Hana was amazing!

[Ramsey]

13. Ditto

Rent a car a drive to Hana, which is a winding road thought the rain forest. Be sure to stop at the various parks and trails along the way. in hana, there are beautiful black sand beaches. The Hotel Hana sits on a cliff overlooking the ocean and is a nice place to get lunch.

There are also rids or hikes to the volcano, which is spectacular.

If you go during the whale migration season, which I believe is around January to March, I highly recommend taking an official whale-watching cruise. You can go with a marine biologist as a guide and get an interesting lecture about the whales while you observe them. Unlike some of the tourist boats, the Pacific Whale Watch Foundation boats respect the animals and don't get too close or disrupt their pods.

[prolesunited]

28. That's one thing that's already interested me

But I know I'm not going to be the one behind the wheel. I white-knuckled Trail Ridge Road in the Rockies and don't want to go through something like that again. Although the scenery was spectacular, my anxiety level was so high that I really couldn't enjoy it. I thought for sure I was going to drive off the side of a mountain.

[Rabrrrrrr]

9. Sunrise on Haleakala

[NewWaveChick1981]

11. I second that!

Although this was 23 years ago, it still stays in my memory as one of the greatest experiences! Me at sunrise at Haleakala, looking down on the clouds:

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

23. I THIRD this!

[greatauntoftriplets]

12. You can bike down the road from Haleakala....

It's quite strenuous so I hear, but you are in good shape for that.

Also third the road to Hana.

[yvr girl]

14. You'll want to rent a car (it's cheaper if you don't do it at the airport)

It's beautiful on the North Coast but it does rain more. The ocean is also more challenging - don't tempt it if you're not a strong swimmer.

Definitely do the road to Hana, but remember, it's more about the journey than the destination. Explore side roads, stop along the way. It takes ALL DAY to do it properly.

There's some great snorkeling in (I think) Ahihi Bay - it's past Wailea. A boat trip to Molikini is also great. I went with the Whale Conservation Society. It was the best deal, and it supports a good cause.

[kay1864]

15. You must buy this book

Maui Revealed. I'd been to Maui 4 times, thought I knew it all. Got this book for my 5th trip (honeymoon with Mrs. Kay!). This book showed me secret waterfalls, a beautiful blue pool, and pointed out aspects of sights I wasn't aware of.

Ooh, new edition since my last trip. Cool.

http://www.bestwebbuys.com/Maui_Revealed-ISBN_0971727937.html?isrc=b-search

[swimboy]

16. Pa'ia is a great place to be.

It is much more genuine than the resort coasts and is central enough you can make radial trips from there to Haleakala, the Winery, Hana, etc. There is a hippie kind of vibe to it and lots of very friendly nice young stoners about. The Hana Road is great, but the coastal road around the other side of the island (past Lahaina) is astounding as well--probably what the Hana road was like when it got its reputation, it is dangerously narrow with cliff-side blind curves, but it leads to incredible pools and blowholes you can hike to before you come round to the resort strip.

There are beautiful beaches at Makena State Park (Little Makena Beach is a great naturist beach) and a tricky to find Red Sand Beach inside a cinder cone at Hana where a reef makes for great sheltered snorkeling.

I think Maui is tops.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

17. Go snorkeling at Black Rock

and get one of those cheap underwater cameras. I'd recommend going in the morning when the water is a bit calmer than in the afternoon

[CabalPowered]

18. SCUBA the Molokini Crater

Still my favorite dive to date.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

22. I second this, although I snorkeled it.

AMAZING!

[WCGreen]

19. I would recommend that you go to Maui....

[Jara sang]

20. Maui has been Californicated. It sucks.

Come to the Big Island. You can still find "old Hawaii" here.

[KamaAina]

24. Then again, my Big Island friend calls O'ahu the "Island of Hell"!

she does miss Kaua'i, though. I guess either end of the chain is best.

At least prolesunited is going "upcountry" rather than to Touristland in west and south Maui. Most of the authentic "Maui types" are trying to make a stand against "Californication" up there.

And remember, everything's relative. To a mainlander (or Japanese, Canadian, etc.), any Hawai'i is better than none at all!

[Jara sang]

25. I know, I'm jaded.

One thing I can recommend on Maui is backpacking into Haleakala Crater. My GF and I did it and spent three days down there. The camp at Paliku was awesome. Sliverswords were magnificent.

[KamaAina]

21. In Pa'ia, there is a health food store called Mana Foods

mana meaning "power, life force". Whether or not you're in the market for health food, the bulletin board outside has postings for just about everything under the sun. It's on Baldwin Ave., the main drag, a couple of blocks up from Hana Hwy.

All the way up Baldwin Ave. is the next town, Makawao. Definitely go there. It is the place where "Maui type" hippies interact with paniolos (Hawaiian cowboys). There is still a hitching post in the street! Caution: It gets rainier the farther you go "upcountry", though Oct. isn't usually too bad.

Fresh delicious local produce is everywhere. Once I ran into a woman selling it out of the trunk of her car at the lookout off Hana Hwy. between Pa'ia and Kahului! Also on that stretch of highway is Baldwin Beach, where there's a drumming session, I believe, the first weekend of each month.

See if Uncle Willie K is playing, usually at Hapa's in Kihei (on the other side of the island) Monday nights, or elsewhere. This ain't your grandfather's Hawaiian music; he rocks out with the best of them (and so many rock stars live on Maui at least part-time that the classic rock station has "Rock Star Wednesday", where they call one up and chat!)

The hell of it is, I've only been over there once, and it was three or four years ago. D'oh!

[Blue-Jay]

29. Should we get some Shave Ice while we're there?

It looked yummy on the Food Channel.

[prolesunited]

30. How about fudge?

They sell fudge wherever there are tourists. :silly:

[Rabrrrrrr]

31. Yes!!!

[Kajsa]

32. Honokeana Bay in NW Maui.

It's not too far from Paia, and it has some of the
best snorkeling around!
It is like snorkeling in an outdoor aquarium
without walls!

http://www.napili.com/water.htm

[Arugula Latte]

33. When you said "Maui," I was going to recommend Pa'ia.

That's a cool little town!

[architect359]

34. While in Hana...

Try to make it to Red Sand Beach. It's not accessible dircetly by car. I think that you drive to the end of Uakea Rd. There should be a school or large green colored building with a large lawn on the left. Walk across the lawn- heading towards the beach, the lawn is private property so be mindful of that. In any case, you'll find a trail. Facing the ocean, head towards your left. Be careful, some patches on this trail have loose gravel and could be more slippery than it looks. Oh, and watch out for that %#&%# half chopped off, half buried metal post along one of the side trails - stubbed my toe but I wasn't exactly watching the ground. In any case, it's about a 5 to 10 minute hike and you'll see it. Some people come here to skinny dip or nude sun bath. Go early if you want to avoid this, or to avoid people in general.

By the way, Hana will be best if it's more than a day trip. You don't have to stay at the Hotel Hana. There are a number of bed and breakfast inns and rentals. The Hotel could be a pricey but that depends on your budget.

Anyway, another nice place is to head down to the Blue Pool. This is a bit hard to find and get to. Drive towards the lava tube hiking attraction (its off the highway). Just before the turn towards the Lava Tube area, you should see a fairly large white sign with oodles of warnings for those trying to get to the Blue Pool. Really consider what the sign says. Really. If you're still game, follow the road. It will become a gravel road and than a dirt road. Just keep following it. Bear in mind though that this is off the beaten track - there are also a couple of deep "dips" i.e. creek crossings, on the way there. Don't try this trip if its raining - at best you could get stranded along a segment of road waiting for the water to subside, at worse you could be caught in a flash flood in the creek. Anyway, keep on following the road, after a while , you'll see a sign suggesting that you park your car in what amounts to someone's front yard for a fee (5 bucks or so). Ignore it. Why? Because you'll find another similar opportunity a bit down the road a few minutes on. This time, the fee is $1. I'd recommend parking here and putting the money in the drop box by the entry. You could continue driving but it'll get you onto someone's property and that'll be a hassle. Anyway, it's not a far walk, maybe about 10 minutes or so and you'll get to a small river emptying into the Pacific. The water looks inviting but you're not there yet. Cross the river mouth by the beach; facing the ocean, turn left and walk across the rocks / giant pebbles...ok, they're rocks. You'll come to the waterfall in a few minutes. This the Blue Pool. The water from the falls is retained by a wall of fallen rocks, and sitting on this rock wall is really awesome. You have the waves of the Pacific crashing on one side and the cool placid sheltered pool on the other. Go early in the morning. Although its not as advertised as some of the other places, enough people still hear about it and try to make it out there. Oh, one more thing about this pool. I've been told that it is a culturally special / sensitive place - so be a bit more respectful of the locale.

You heard of the seven sacred pools aka Oheo Gulch? It's worth the visit too. However, I found that the better visit was the Bamboo Forest to the north of the sacred pools because at the end are the Waimoku Falls, 600 feet tall. You can almost walk right up to them. Almost. But close enough. On the way there though, you will need to cross a couple of creeks / streams - one of them will have you wading through water that'll come up to mid thigh (depending on the season). So keep that in mind. This hike was, I don't know, about 2 hours, maybe more. Bring water. Oh, and watch out for the wild pigs / boars. We didn't see any though but the signs are posted nonetheless.

As some others have posted, Haleakala should be another place to visit. I didn't make it early enough to enjoy the sunrise experience. One of the great things about the hike is well, how often does one get to walk in a volcanic crater? Once your there though, your sense of scale is sort of obliterated by the vastness of the place. The hike does help bring that scale back especially if you decide to make it to the first of the "smaller" craters on the caldera floor. It's bigger than your first perception. I didn't appreciate its scale until I was literally walking along the rim. Well, bring a hat. I didn't realize that the top of my head would get burnt - I just didn't think about it. It hurt. I laugh about it now but not than. :D

OK, this post has gotten why too long. In any case, I hope that you get a chance to make it to some of these places. I enjoyed visiting / experiencing them. Hope that you have great time in Maui.

[Magrittes Pipe]

35. I just emailed my Maui-residing friend Chris.

I'll let you know what he says. ;)

[prolesunited]

36. Well, thank you very much

We appreciate that