Maui Vacation

[Loren]

Hey, all. Completely non-Yaris related, but I thought some of you locals could offer some great input.

My wife and I are in the early stages of planning a 1-week trip to Maui for about September of 2010. Maui because we've heard that it's fantastically beautiful and less touristy than the big island. The only thing we want to do on the big island is check out an active volcano. (which is one of the primary reasons for this trip... wife wants to see hot lava)

So, we're primarily looking at hiking/driving trips to see the sights, and possibly a helicopter tour over the volcano. Neither of us surf or anything like that... besides, we could do that stuff here in FL. We want to see what's unique to the islands.

One of the primary things I'd like to get from you guys is some insight on where to eat. We LOVE to eat, but don't want to spend a fortune on food (at least not EVERY day of the trip). I know there have to be some dives where the locals go for good cheap food. Hook us up!

Thoughts on reasonably inexpensive places to stay would be welcome, too. Along with anything else you'd care to share.

Thanks in advance!

[fujiwaru]

Although i don't live on Maui I've visited it twice so i know a few places of interest that would be good.

one place that's good to eat at especially at night is down by Lahaina at a place called Kimo's Restaurant. They have delicious food at a good price with a fabulous ocean view (especially during sunset time). Also down by Lahina is a good out door shopping mall with lots of shops to go to. Its also located close to Kimo's Resturant.

one nice place of attraction is Iao Needlepoint near central Maui. Its a nice small place to do a little hiking with some nice views of the island.

Another good attraction is the Maui Sugar Cane Train. Its close to Lahina and you ride a train and learn a little bit about the sugar cane industry that was on Maui while passing some nice views.

You can also visit the Maui Ocean Center. Its a nice aquarium place to go to. Very fun and exciting to go to. Depending on when you are going, you just might be able to see some whales off the coast of the harbor near by.

Haleakala national park is a must see place to go to see the sun rise but in order to see it, you gotta wake up early. Here is some advice based on my experience:

1. Get lots of good night sleep because you need to wake up extremely early to get to the top.

2. Depending on where you might stay, its good to leave at lest 2 hours in advance because the drive up is pretty long.

2. Take a map with you to get directions on how to get there. Me and my family easily got lost our first time so its good to have a map along with you.

3. Wear or bring thick jackets and good shoes because its very cold and very windy up on top.

4. when driving to the top, be careful because there are no guard rails on the side to prevent you from falling. So be very cautious when driving in the early morning.

5. About half way up the mountain, you are gonna come to a small white guard house where you gotta pay. I'm not too sure on how much it costs now but just be sure to have enough. :P Also you can ask them information on hiking, sunrise and sunset times, or other activities they have.

6. Last but not least have a good breakfast because the trip up there is gonna be worth it.

From on top the mountain, you might be able to see the other islands near by. Its pretty neat. A nice activity that they have is you can ride a bike from the top all the way to the bottom of the mountain. I've always wanted to try it but never had the time to do it.

For now that's all I've got but you can do more research on different places that are available to you when you visit.

BTW, are you gonna rent a yaris by any chance? :P haha just joking. but seriously are you?? just jokes. XD

just keep checking back, might have some advice from the other guys.

aloha! \m/ (shaka!)

[PETERPOOP]

nice response fujiwaru. I can't help with Maui, Loren, I've only been there twice to play music, and I didn't really get to be a tourist there. I've been to the big island abunch, but that was for work. I worked construction at "Volcano National Park." That would be a place you'd want to visit for sure. ;)

[Loren]

Thanks, guys, good stuff! I've heard about the Halakela sunrise gig, sounds like a must-do. It will just be me and my wife, so we should be able to pull it off without too much trouble.

I'll keep checking back (to reference Fujiwaru's post!), so if anyone has anything to add, please do.

Oh... and I'll rent a Yaris if one is available. Would definitely prefer a small "mountain road tossable" little car, but not gonna spring for a sports car.

[PETERPOOP]

There might be snow on the big island this time of the year. However, you probably don't care about that.

[Loren]

This time of year, or in September when we're planning to go?

Yeah, not too worried about it. Can cope with snow, been there, done that. Would actually be kinda neat to catch some snow on a tropical island vacation!

[anonymous user]

Loren,
I travel for work to most of the islands almost weekly. Maui and Hawaii (the big island) the the best unspoiled paradise of the larger islands that you're gonna find here.
If you're on maui, you may want to spring for a miata rental: http://www.alohatoystore.com/ or something fancier??
Anyway, i'd suggest you call them first before, as the site seems kinda outdated. Maui has some good food. Local spots to try are Takamiya market, and Sam Sato's. Dry noodles are awesome.
Guri-guri ice cream. get some of that as well.

[Loren]

A Miata in Maui... tempting. Depends on how awful the rates from the big rental companies are. If I can get a craptastic econobox for $30-40/day, I won't be spending $75/day on a Miata.

On another note... what a thoroughly crappy website!

[anonymous user]

Well, my corporate account rents with Avis, and our rates get us a car for around $50/day. You could get a cheaper company like budget or dollar.
I just like avis, since their cars are clean, and newer, low mileage.

About that website, i know , right? They make enough money, go spring on a web designer to do a page after 1990's design.

[Loren]

Did some checking on the cost of this gig last week. It was interesting. Seasonal, of course... but not quite in the way I expected.

Rates for late December through the summer are pretty high. The low rates are in the fall, as expected. What was really weird was that the lowest rate we found at that time was for the first week of December, which was less than two weeks away! I sort of pinned it down to hotel rates and guessed that business must be slow and they're discounting accordingly. It was just really weird, because I know you usually get the best air fare when you buy tickets a month out.

Anyway, we're looking at spending 7 days there probably in September/October. Hotel and car rental rates aren't TOO bad, but air fare from FL is a killer! The total package not including food and activities (just to get there, have a place to stay and a car to drive) is going to cost us just under $3k, and we fully expect to spend twice that before we're done.

But, we gotta do it. We've reached that point in our lives where we have to start scratching things off of the "bucket list" while we're still young enough to enjoy it!

[PETERPOOP]

You only live once!

[bkrownd]

Originally Posted by Loren

Thanks, guys, good stuff! I've heard about the Halakela sunrise gig, sounds like a must-do.

Well that might depend on the weather. I was up there once near sunrise in a very nasty gale. Yuck. Fortunately we were only up there to burn some time before exploring the subalpine scrub habitat and Waikamoi preserve a bit lower down.

Listening to the petrels fly by while returning to their nests along the crater rim in the dark of night is more interesting, IMO. Sitting, looking at the stars....."woooooosh!"...then more quiet stars and..."wwooooooosh!"...etc

Watch out for cattle in the road. Sometimes they get trapped in the hairpins and inside the guard rails and can be unpredictable. That poor mountain was horribly trashed by grazing, and the huge pasture along the road is still active.

[Loren]

Stargazing. Hadn't given that much thought. Good idea! Know of any non-light-polluted areas that are fairly easy to access at night?

[bkrownd]

Get up above 5000 feet elevation for stars, but no need to go a lot higher. Your eyes don't work as efficiently once you get above 7000-8000 or so. Dry air helps. Up near Polipoli state park on Maui might be such a place, though it appears to be an even longer drive than Haleakala NP. Best place for stars on the big island is near the Pohakula Training Area on the highest part of the Saddle, where you might also be treated to mysterious army stuff like helicopters firing rockets and machine guns into the impact area. If they had a hangar or two we'd probably suspect them of hiding UFOs, but they don't have much other than a collection of dirty quonset huts. Don't pick up any chunks of depleted uranium shrapnel. (haha) The leeward side of Kilauea probably has fine skies, or maybe up on Mauna Loa Strip Road above Volcano Village.

BTW, I'm not sure how you got the idea that Maui is less "touristy" than Hawai'i. It's the other way around. People I know on Maui describe it as "The Tommy Bahama Island". They're big on art galleries, expensive restaurants and sightings of the rich-and-famous. Most parts of Maui I've been to are very un-Hawaiian. In some areas it's hard to even find a native plant, it's been so thoroughly transformed.

Much of the South and East sides of Hawai'i (big island) still appear superficially "island-style", though the plantation days are long gone, and there are still large tracts of wilderness. The plantation towns are cute, in a modest kind of way. The west side is sadly overranched and overdeveloped - people who stay over there are only interested in snorkeling and golf anyhow. Keep in mind that the BIG island is larger than all the others combined.

Don't let your plans slip into November. That's one of the monsoon months. September is fairly safe. October can be wet some years.

[Loren]

Thanks for the tips, bk! I've heard from several people who have been to Hawaii that Maui is the place to go, but in the research I've done, it does appear that you are correct... at least in some parts of Maui. We're definitely staying away from the far NW corner of the island except maybe to grab a fancy meal or two. Seeking a decent hotel in the new (formerly desert) Midle-west side of the island. (sorry, can't remember any of the names of these places and don't feel like popping up a map right now) We plan to spend most of our time exploring the island, hitting the nature parks and such.

We are leaning heavily toward spending on night and the bulk of two days on the big island to be sure we get the "live volcano" sights that my wife wants to see. Maybe we'll do some more research and end up flipping the trip... stay primarily on Hawaii and just visit Maui for a day or two?

[bkrownd]

Originally Posted by Loren

Thanks for the tips, bk! I've heard from several people who have been to Hawaii that Maui is the place to go

Everybody likes something different. Most people looking for generic vacation entertainment, resorts, amenities, scenery and tropical beaches would prefer Maui. It is much more like the mainland preconception of "Hawaii" is, and what the postcards and travel brochures show. But keep in mind that 250 years ago, before cattle, alien weeds, etc, it would have been an entirely different and vastly more magnificent place. The big island is poorer, more gritty, more upland wilderness, less beach-oriented. Unfortunately the population is growing fast and it's getting less quiet.

Start to plan the lava a bit in advance. It isn't anywhere near the volcano park these days, and viewing situation changes daily. It is near what was once Kalapana, and the county is presently in charge of access hours. Usually best to go at night when it's cooler and you can see the glow, if it isn't raining. First time I went in the day it was nasty hot and we couldn't see anything because the lava was underground all the way to the water. Bring extra flashlights - you don't want to be out there in the pitch black with no light. The summit will probably still have the new gas plume, which a couple months ago had some glow at night, but that situation changes daily as well. The park web site has a daily status page for that.

[Loren]

I hear ya. Florida is the same way. Things have changed a lot just in the last 20 years. A LOT.

We're not so much looking for the beaches, we have beaches here. (might check out the unique things like black sand, etc) Definitely looking for stuff we won't see elsewhere.

Definitely was thinking of trying to see the lava at night, that's why I was suggesting an overnight on the big island to my wife. (she was thinking day trip, initially... but by the time we fly there and back from Maui, a "day" is only about 6 hours from maybe 10-4)

I've heard that if we wanted the true "unadultered" island experience, that one of the smaller islands (I forget which one) is essentially undeveloped. But, as much as my wife likes to see the beauty of nature, she's really NOT the hardcore outdoor type and won't even consider camping... so that kind of experience is out for us.

Flashlight! Good call. Might have to invest in one of those cool high-output LED flashlights to keep in my pocket. It's sounding like we may be doing quite a bit of night-time exploring on this trip... and not the kind of "night life" that most people are looking for on the beaches!

[bkrownd]

Originally Posted by Loren

I've heard that if we wanted the true "unadultered" island experience, that one of the smaller islands (I forget which one) is essentially undeveloped.

They're less populated. Never been to any of them, myself. They were "developed" in other ways, though. Kaho'olawe was eaten by goats and then bombed for decades, and isn't accessible to tourists. Ni'ihau is a desolate private ranch. (only a tiny bit is accessible for something like a couple hours via a very expensive helicopter trip) Lana'i is pretty stark after being stripped bare by goats, sheep, antelope, deer, etc. Moloka'i (with the cliffs and reefs) is the largest of these and likely the one you mean, and was also ranched extensively. The last two can be reached by ferry from Maui, which might be fun if you don't mind boat rides.

I think you can take a helicopter from Maui to see the cliffy North side of Moloka'i. Bring LOTS of helicopter money.