Planning Perfect Days on Maui

Introduction

It’s really easy to have fun on Maui, Lana’i and Moloka’i: enjoy great beaches, whale-watching and other marine activities, tour historic and pre-historic sites, bicycle on mountain slopes and ranchlands, visit the summit and Upcountry of Haleakala volcano, hike through canyons and rainforests, splash in pools fed by waterfalls, eat a marvelous variety of delicious food, soak in scenic beauty around the clock and more.

How can it get any better?

First, the pleasures of Maui’s coastlines and interior can be experienced in many ways and with very different results. Perfect Days travel philosophy suggests that experiencing Maui (or any travel destination) will differ depending on:

• where you wake up in the morning and return to relax and sleep in the evening;
• how (walk, drive, bicycle, kayak, sail, fly) and whenduring the day or time of year you travel to Maui’s attractions;
• routes that you take going to and returning from these attractions and activities and where you stop along the way, if at all;
• the ways in which you combine attractions and activities in any day and even each part of that day;
• where you eat to start the day and then eat and relax during the day and in the evening.

Perfect Days Travel Philosophy

• Choice of lodging is crucial, not just a place to lay your head. Depending on your choice of hotel, B&B or other lodgings, each vacation day feels quite different, from waking up in the morning to going to sleep at night – and even during the day and evening as you anticipate what it will feel like when you return to your lodgings and when you wake up the next morning.
• Choice of the route and transportation to get to a place or activity can be as important as the destination itself. Drive a different route to and from your destination or perhaps use a different form of transportation one-way or both ways (boat, kayak or bike vs. car), and the combination of using different transportation and taking alternate routes will make the entire excursion feel quite different.

For example:

• Go snorkeling from shore or alternatively in a kayak or on a boat excursion -- and the snorkeling experience will feel very different. Snorkel from a particularly scenic site and bring a picnic lunch along vs. going to a restaurant for lunch after a morning of snorkeling and, here again, the snorkeling experience and your memories of it will feel quite different.
• Walk out your door onto a long, sandy, scenic beach vs. driving round-trip to the same beach on a day-trip.
• Stroll (rather than drive) to the departure point for your marine excursion, have lunch onboard (instead of on shore) and afterwards take a leisurely stroll (instead of a drive) back to your lodgings for refreshments and relaxation before dinner.
• It’s not how many places and sights that you see, it’s the uniqueness and quality of experiences at each destination. Spend the morning in a kayak exploring hard-to-reach snorkeling spots along the beautiful south coast shoreline, or the cave, botanical gardens, and ancient temple along ‘Ula’ino Rd. near Hana. Spend more time extracting the most that you can out of a few areas.
• Each meal, from plate lunches to superstar chefs preparing delicious regional cuisine in elegant surroundings, should provide a memorable eating experience.  Why eat even one meal that lacks special distinction when, for the same price or less, you can enjoy high quality food that ranges from tasty to superb, service that is warm and personal, and exceptional atmosphere and maybe even views.
• Perfect Days tries to minimize the number of times you have to get in and out of a car, the distance you drive each day and the amount of time you have to spend driving from place to place. Most people these days spend too much time driving when they’re not on vacation. They certainly should not have to drive much while on vacation except perhaps on special trips or tours.
• Some trips on Maui, however, completely justify driving more than 30 miles (one-way) in a day but these journeys should not be rushed:
  • around West Maui to Kapalua, along the beautiful bays and rugged Northwest shore past the hamlet of Kahakuloa to Wailuku
  • Road to Hana, Ohe’o Gulch and Kipahulu
  • through Upcountry to Haleakala Crater or Polipoli Springs
  • “back way” through Kula and ‘Ulupalakua to Kaupo or from Hana to Kaupo and ‘Ulupalakua
  • Kihei or Wailea to Lahaina and Kapalua or the other way around
  • From the South Shore and West Maui to Wailuku, Pa’ia and Makawao

All of these suggestions should sound obvious and logical. However, in our experience most travelers usually don’t think this way when they plan trips or are traveling. Admittedly Perfect Days travel philosophy is the opposite of by-the-seat-the-pants traveling. We’re traveled many places in the world by-the-seat-the-pants and loved it. Perfect Days, however, is for people who prefer to squeeze the most out of a visit to Maui by making intentional travel decisions for each day or at least some days during their trip.

For those of you who have never been to Maui, the island offers some of the best travel experiences anywhere in the world for single persons, couples of all ages and families.

For those of you who already have visited Maui, perhaps even more than once, the island deserves several more chances to show you its “hidden” (you didn’t know that they existed or how to find them) charms and extraordinary attractions. For example, both newcomers and repeat visitors should take advantage of Maui’s exceptional values in vacation rentals that, in many instances, offer the most enjoyable places to go to sleep at night and wake up in the morning.

When we hear the words ‘been there, done that’ referring to Maui (or any Hawaiian Island), we’re ready to respond with a challenge: we guarantee that Perfect Days will show you how to experience Maui in ways that you have not done so before, no matter how many times that you’ve visited the island.

Some of these special experiences involve nothing more strenuous or adventuresome than a daytime or evening stroll along beachfront paths at Ka’anapali Beach or Wailea Resort. At more remote places, like the beautiful lava pools between Kapalua and the tiny hamlet of Kahakuloa, you may see only a few other visitors. At the other extreme, snorkeling at Molokini expect to be one of more than 1,000 people viewing colorful tropical fish in the crater every day.

For each one of these totally different destinations – resorts, olivine pools, Molokini and hundreds of others – we offer specific recommendations about what else to see and do, before, during and afterwards, including lots of suggestions for meal choices that we know are important for most travelers. We offer choices; you assemble your own Perfect Days.

What kinds of decisions and choices will you have to make for Perfect Days on Maui? Let’s imagine that you have a personal concierge who each day asks “what would you like to do today” and provides choices and suggestions that more or less fit your own special interests and needs. For example:

• Snorkeling? Beginner or advanced? Lessons? Shoreline or boat trip? South Shore or West Maui? Resort or more remote? Lana’i? Preference for departure point? Morning or afternoon? Scuba or Snuba? Picnic or sit-down lunch? Indoors or outside? On a beach? Another scenic spot? Great sunset? Dinner, casual or extra special? Near lodgings or it doesn’t matter? Type of food? Entertainment?
• Hike? Easy or strenuous? Coastline or mountains? Nature preserve? West Maui Mountains or Haleakala? Lana’i? Moloka’i? Off-the-beaten-track? Guide? Morning, afternoon or all-day? Breakfast? Before driving or near trailhead? Lunch on the trail? Picnic spots? Take-out eatery? Casual lunch spot near trailhead? Special cravings for lunch?
• Walk? Short or extended? Inland or along a beach? Someplace more adventuresome? Town? Shopping? Local art and crafts? Parking? Lunch break? Dinner? With entertainment? Lu’au? Other entertainment?
• Flower lover? Botanical gardens? Rainforest safari? Birdwatcher? Marine life enthusiast? Submarine? Semi-submersible? Scuba? Certified? Aquarium? Historic and archeological interests? Nature preserve? Golf? Experience? Handicap? Daytrip? Overnight?

How to Use Perfect Days

Everyone has their own preferred method for planning vacations. Some are more or less organized than others. The method suggested here reflects the authors’ intentions in designing and writing Perfect Days as a resource for planning vacations on Maui, Lana’i and Moloka’i.

• Browse Perfect Days on Maui to find experiences and Perfect Days that appeal to you, any companions or the entire family.

• Look at Barefoot Hawaii (http://www.tombarefoot.com) for descriptions of ocean, land and air activities that interest you. (Call toll-free at 1-888-222-3601 or email at barefoot@maui.net if you have any questions.)

• Book Barefoot Hawaii activities for which we recommend advance reservations.

• Familiarize yourself with maps of each area of Maui in our affiliate’s web site www.driveguidemagazines.com.

• Print out copies of maps for any area of the island that you plan to visit. (When you arrive at the airport on any island in Hawaii and rent a car at any car rental company you will be able to pick up a copy of the Drive Guide magazine for that island which contains a set of the same online maps covering every area of the island.)

• While you are visiting the Drive Guide magazine web site, join the Share Aloha Photo Contest.

• Select Perfect Days and activities that you want to include in your vacation trip to Maui and print copies to take with you.

• Read reviews of island restaurants & eateries that are located in the Perfect Days that you’ve selected, print out copies, and mark places to eat that fit your tastes and budget.

• Put it all together – Assemble (1) the maps printed from www.driveguidemagazines.com, (2) copies of the Perfect Days itineraries selected for your vacation, (3) restaurants selected from Taste of the Islands - Maui, and (4) email confirmations of lodgings, car rentals, airplane reservations, and Barefoot Hawaii bookings.

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PARTS I & II provide information on most of the attractions and activities on Maui, Lana’i and Moloka’i that should be part of Perfect Days on one of your visits to these islands.

PART III provides detailed descriptions of 50 suggested Perfect Days on Maui, Lana’i and Moloka’i that include sightseeing, every worthwhile activity, shopping and dining choices, things to see and do as a family with children.

Change and personalize each Perfect Day, compress or stretch out days, and make your own personal substitutions day-by-day. E-mail the results to friends or other family members along with photo albums covering your trip. Please send us a copy with permission to post it on our web site so that others can take advantage of your experiences.