We visited Maui during the Thanksgiving break and spent 6 days to explore the island. This was our first visit to the Hawai'ian islands. Before planning for the trip we were contemplating on going to Maui or Big Island and then decided to visit Maui this year. It was a magical place, very kid friendly.
It was a well-deserved break and we enjoyed each minute.
Day 1 - Drive to Hana:
We flew into the the Kahului Airport and our flight landed at 11:30 AM. It was a very small airport and the rental car center was very near. Once we checked out our car we were ready to hit the road and begin our vacation.
We were staying at Hana Kai Maui. We decided to enjoy the road to Hana on the way there stopping at very few places since the drive alone takes 2 hours 30 minutes and we wanted to reach there before sunset. We had downloaded the 'Gypsy Guide -Road to Hana' app and it was very useful.
The Road to Hana is one of the worlds most beautiful and scenic drives and is a must do when visiting Maui. The drive itself is not easy since it has 620 curves and 59 bridges. Hence we wanted to reach there before sunset and the plan was to explore more the next day while driving back.
Many people do a 1 day tour from West Maui, and we suggest not doing that since the drive alone would be hectic and you would not have any time to enjoy and explore Hana. Atleast plan a nights stay at Hana.
On the way to Hana we stopped at Ho'okipa Beach Park to have our picnic lunch. There were few food trucks there along with a street vendor selling fresh coconut. It was delicious and refreshing.
The next stop was our hotel. We checked in and relaxed before we headed out to explore the place. There was a beautiful beach behind the hotel which was very beautiful.
There were few grocery shops near the hotel and we picked up few basic necessary stuff for breakfast from the Hana Ranch Store.
Day 2 - Explore Hana:
After a simple breakfast in the room we spent sometime in the beach behind before checking out.
It was a well-deserved break and we enjoyed each minute.
Day 1 - Drive to Hana:
We flew into the the Kahului Airport and our flight landed at 11:30 AM. It was a very small airport and the rental car center was very near. Once we checked out our car we were ready to hit the road and begin our vacation.
We were staying at Hana Kai Maui. We decided to enjoy the road to Hana on the way there stopping at very few places since the drive alone takes 2 hours 30 minutes and we wanted to reach there before sunset. We had downloaded the 'Gypsy Guide -Road to Hana' app and it was very useful.
The Road to Hana is one of the worlds most beautiful and scenic drives and is a must do when visiting Maui. The drive itself is not easy since it has 620 curves and 59 bridges. Hence we wanted to reach there before sunset and the plan was to explore more the next day while driving back.
Many people do a 1 day tour from West Maui, and we suggest not doing that since the drive alone would be hectic and you would not have any time to enjoy and explore Hana. Atleast plan a nights stay at Hana.
On the way to Hana we stopped at Ho'okipa Beach Park to have our picnic lunch. There were few food trucks there along with a street vendor selling fresh coconut. It was delicious and refreshing.
The next stop was our hotel. We checked in and relaxed before we headed out to explore the place. There was a beautiful beach behind the hotel which was very beautiful.
Day 2 - Explore Hana:
After a simple breakfast in the room we spent sometime in the beach behind before checking out.
We checked out and planned to start of with exploring the southern side before turning back. We drove till the Seven Sacred Pools. The view is beautiful and we spent some time admiring the beauty. We turned back at this place as the road was not good and we had a long drive back to Lahaina. On the way back we stopped at Wailua Falls and headed to Hamoa Beach. The Hamoa beach and Koki beach park is a small loop and the drive is very nice. We met some locals and had a chat with them about the local culture. We drove to Hanawi Falls and the next stop was Halfway To Hana which is a small cafe. We had some ice cream and the local famous banana bread.
The next stop was Twin Falls Maui Waterfall where we had our picnic lunch as well.
After this we drove straight to Royal Lahaina where we would be spending the remaining of our vacation.
The view from our room was breath-taking.
Day 3:
After breakfast at room, the plan was to explore the northern side of Lahaina.
We drove to the Nakalele Blowhole which is a short walk from the parking lot. The walk is on rocks, if you want to get close to the blowhole. But it is totally worth it to see the water spurting out from the rocks. Our son totally enjoyed being there.
The next stop was the Olivine pools, which is a natural pool formation and can get in to get a dip. Though we did not get wet, we did spend some time here.
We did not go further from here and turned back. On the way we stopped at DT Flemming park. The beach park is well maintained and very kid friendly. We had our picnic lunch here and spent more than an hour relaxing on the beach while our son played.
There is also a burger shack nearby to grab a burger or shake.
The park had plenty of parking but does get busy during the weekends. After relaxing, we headed back to our room and refreshed.
In the evening we explored the town using the free trolley and went to Kanapalli Beach Hotel to see the Hula Show and music. This is free and kid-friendly option and totally worth it.
Day 4 - Haleakala National Park and Wailea
People usually go to the Haleakala National Park to view the sunrise, meaning we should be there by 6:15 and leave from the hotel by 4:15. That was way to early considering we had a toddler and skipped the sunrise plan. We started from the hotel after breakfast and reached there by 10 AM. The weather was not with us as it was a very windy and foggy day. With an elevation the temperatures tend to drop down a lot so do plan to dress up warmly. The day we went was freezing cold and we did not get a clear sky for good views. But the drive up and down was good with some intermediate clearings.
Next the plan was to explore the southern part of the island and we drove straight to the Wailea Beach close to the Waldorf Astoria Resort. There is a public parking next to the resort (location below), parking is limited but we got lucky that day. We spent an hour on this beautiful beach relaxing in the sun.
Next we stopped at the Maui Outlets to do some shopping! We drove back to the hotel using the South Kihei Road which was a scenic drive. We reached back to our hotel by evening, refreshed and headed out to explore the shops close by using the trolley.
Day 5: Snorkeling
We had planned this day for snorkeling. We had hired the snorkeling kit from 'The Snorkel Store' in Lahaina. The person there was very friendly and guided us on how to use the kit as it was our first time. We has also rented a transparent boogie board for our son. The man there advised us to go to the Baby Beach to practice for few hours as the depth is very less there. It was a 10 min ride from the place and we went there first. As he mentioned the beach we very friendly for beginners. We spent couple of hours here and did spot many coral reefs and sea life.
Then we headed back to our hotel for lunch and in the afternoon headed to other snorkeling spots - Napili Bay and Kahekili Beach Park. We came back to our hotel in the evening and spent some time in our resort pool for the rest of the evening.
Day 6: Downtown
We spent couple of hours in the morning snorkeling at the Black Rock beach. It was walking distance from our hotel. This beach was very kid friendly and easy to snorkel. We were able to spot many sea life just by the shore even without going 10 feet into the ocean. The beach was very crowded.
We then went back to our room and cleaned up and checked out. We had kept our luggage in the lobby since our flight was in the night and we did not want to wander around the town with our bags. They even offered us a complimentary guest room to use for 30 mins before heading to the airport.
We headed to the Front Street and parked closed to the Banyan Tree. There are limited street parking. We walked around the Front Street and enjoyed the local culture. Spent around couple of hours here.
Then we drove back to the hotel to pick up our luggage and refreshed before heading to the airport.
Since our flight was at 9 PM, we still had plenty of time and we thought of stopping at the Maui Tropical Plantation which was en route to the airport. It was a perfect stopover to spend an hour before heading to the airport. It was a nice walk inside the plantation to see the local produce and plants. We also got some fresh coconut which was refreshing.
Before heading to the airport we made a quick stop at Down to Earth Organic store to pick up something for dinner.
End to another wonderful vacation!
nicely written Harini.
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