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Pa’ia’s history is totally enmeshed in the sugar plantation era on Maui. Plantation businesses are gone but fortunately storefronts from that period live on in a new guise. Once a bustling sugar town, Pa’ia is bustling again, this time with a thriving tourism economy that also has a very strong base of local support for its shops, restaurants and services. Spend any amount of time in Pa’ia and, like in the old sugar days, Pa’ia feels very much like a self-contained community, but not at all isolated from the mainstream. And Pa’ia certainly is no longer anything like the former company town. Creative individualism is alive, well and rampant.
Sure you can visit Pa’ia, the North Shore, Makawao and Upcountry on a daytrip, and that’s the way most visitors to the North Shore pass through the area. For a completely different experience, book a vacation rental and wake upon the North Shore near Pa’ia or elsewhere on the North Shore or in Upcountry. You’ll find dozens of North Shore and Upcountry choices in every price range, from rooms with shared baths to private oceanfront estates.
Start your day at Café des Amis (on Baldwin Ave.) or Charley's Restaurant on Hana Hwy. Indulge in one of Heidi Cramer’s tasty cinnamon rolls or mango coffee cakes at Cakewalk Bakery (Baldwin Ave. across from Milagros) starting at 7 am with coffee or expresso. Try Moana Bakery & Cafe further up on Baldwin Ave., especially if you adore flaky French pastries with your morning coffee. After crepes or fluffy pancakes, a savory omelet, breakfast burritos or eggs benedict, you’re ready to surf or simply check out surfwear in nearby shops.
A few doors away from Anthony’s, that serves some of the best coffee on the North Shore, Baisa is one of Pa’ia’s more unusual shops for gift items, vintage clothing for adults and kids, accessories, retro fabrics, dinnerware, Maddie Powers and other handbags, candles and other fun stuff.
Hemp House is the only shop in Maui that sells a complete collection of clothing, accessories and other items made of hemp fiber, including "denim" hemp jeans, trousers, dresses, shirts and other garments that are easy to care for and eco-friendly.
Debbie Wilson opened the doors of Maui Girl way back in 1978. Today Maui Girl carries its own line of clothing and accessories, tanning products, fragrances (packaged in Hula Girl ceramic figurines), swimwear and other beachwear for girls.
Tasteful women’s and men’s alohawear fill colorful racks in Moonbow Tropics (36 Baldwin Ave., 579-8592) including a full line of Tommy Bahamas, Reyn Spooner, Tory Richard, Kamehameha, Kahala, and other top Hawaiian labels, aloha shirts, sarongs, dresses, shorts, neckwear, vintage Hawaiian clothing, knapsacks, beach bags and other stylish casual wear. Cotton, linen, silk and other fabrics used in these garments are ideal for tropical temperatures. Moonbow also sells men’s and women’s jewelry.
Be sure to visit the artist-owned and operated Maui Crafts Guild, a cooperative gallery operating for over 20 years. Come in and meet a member artist looking after the store and get a personal tour of a large variety of the highest quality handcraft on Maui including native wood bowls, hand-painted fabrics, beadwork, copper sculpture, baskets, jewelry, stained glass, many styles of pottery and much more. There is no better place on Maui to look for artistic gifts and souvenirs.
Upstairs, the Williams Arthur Dennis Gallery (579-9331) shows the artist’s work in koa, milo, kou, sandalwood, mango, monkeypod, and other wood found in Hawaii. Dennis does a brilliant job of creating sculptures that bringing out the grain, color and other natural qualities of the wood. 9am-6pm daily
Across the street from the Maui Crafts Guild, Maui Hands sells works by more than 200 currently active local artists (out of a list of more than 400) in all media including jewelry, glass, sculpture, paintings, prints, and wood, and their prices are very fair. Artists set their own prices at Maui Hands! That means it will be much easier for you to buy just the right piece of art at an affordable price. In a very competitive art gallery market, credit for the success of Maui Hands goes to the business acumen, zeal and integrity of the owner, Panna Speas. Relationships with artists and customers are paramount in this business and it seems to be working well for Panna. Maui Hands also has galleries in Makawao, the Ka’ahumanu Center in Kahului and, most recently, the Hyatt Regency in Ka’anapali, but the Pa’ia gallery has the largest and deepest collection of these four shops. 10am-7pm, Mon.-Sat, 10am-6pm, Sun. Also, watch for Maui Hands’ art show on the first Saturday of each month.