The Top Things to Do on Your Trip to Maui
Of course, you could just lie on the beach or sit on your lanai (patio) and read a book. But you could do that in your backyard in Waterloo, Iowa. So get off your butt and get wet. This is Maui.
1. Take a snorkel cruise to Molokini. No matter what your age or physical condition, you can have fun, even if you just stay aboard and enjoy the cruise. The morning trips leave the Maui shores around 7a.m. and last about 4 or 5 hours. Molokini is crater just a short distance from Kihei. It is in deep water and is a marine preserve, so it is overrun by schools of fish, many large, and the crater floor is littered with coral. The water is clear and protected from currents in the morning. The afternoon trade winds make this a definite morning outing. Some boats will also offer scuba and snuba (scuba without tanks, just a mask and air hose) slides, showers, wetsuits, and more. There will be water and snacks.
2. Now that you’ve been under the water, get up in the air. Take a helicopter ride over Maui to get an overall view and avoid the growing traffic congestion in paradise. It also takes you places you can’t go-by car, horse, or on foot. You’ll see waterfalls, rainforests, isolated beaches, craters – -the lush beauty of Hana and moonscape of Haleakala. It may cost a bit more than you’re used to spending for fun on a trip to Aunt Gertie’s but it is a thrill you can’t get in the suburbs. Some of the outfits will film your cruise and you get a lasting memory of this ride.
3. Luau. Okay, I’ve never actually attended a Luau. But I have stopped by to watch the entertainment. It’s fun. The music and dancing is worth the price of admission. The shows explore the history and culture of Maui and its peoples. And you get food and drinks that just don’t stop. While many of the hotels offer good luaus, the consensus of everyone seems to be that The Old Lahaina Luau is authentic and the best. It costs the most but offers table service with personal servers and an excellent show right on the oceanfront in Lahaina.
4. Biking down the Haleakala volcano is something I haven’t done but is very popular. There are now several outfits that will pick you up and supply the bikes and helmets and pick up your lifeless form when you go off the side of the road at 40mph. I’ve heard from a nurse at a Maui hospital that people with serious injuries from the ride are often brought into the emergency room. But people keep doing it. People keep enjoying it-lots of people. The views are breathtaking. And since you start at the top of the volcano, you coast. No effort except to hold on – -perhaps for dear life. You go past the upcountry part of Maui and see cows, farms, gardens, lava flows, pineapple fields, and you scoot through the 2-block cowboy town of Makawao. If you take the morning ride (the best), be prepared to get up and leave around 2:30 a.m. You’ll see a great sunrise. At the summit, it will be cold. Dress warmly and bring sunglasses. Breakfast or lunch is included in the price of the trip.
5. Parasailing in Maui is a thrill ride you can take part in for as little as $20. The trips leave from Lahaina and Kaanapali every 30 minutes or so starting around 7 a.m. each and every day unless the winds are very strong. It is safe and fun. You can go up by yourself or with a buddy. I recently heard of someone who went up with his girlfriend to propose and dropped the ring. You have to weigh a certain amount. So if you’re a child or just slim, you’ll need someone to join you on the rail. If you want, they’ll bring you down and dip your feet in the water so the sharks can nibble on your toes and then pull you back up. Bring a camera for amazing photos. The boat crew will also take pictures for an extra cost. They reel you in and out of the boat. It is surprisingly smooth and gentle and peaceful when you get up high.
6. It is a long and winding road to Hana but you have to do it at least once. The best thing I can tell you is pick up a CD describing the road so that you can get a private tour as you go. And taking a convertible is the best way to enjoy the scenery of lush foliage and cliffs and water. If you are susceptible to motion sickness, take your medication or don’t go. The road is a constant zig-zag of quick curves to side to side. It is a 52 mile two0lane road with over 200 hairpin turns crossing more than 50 bridges. This is definitely about the journey and not the destination since there isn’t much in Hana, except some celebrities like Willy Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. One of the problems is that the driver can’t enjoy the scenery. You’ll have to switch drivers for the return trip or hire an expert and take a luxury van.
7. The Maui Ocean Center is expensive but worth it. It’s only a few years old and planned well for visitor education and enjoyment. And this is a way you can take Aunt Gertie to see the fish and critters living in the waters of Maui without having her and her walker get wet. The Ocean Center is convenient to all spots of the island since it is located in Maalaea Harbor Village. The $20 million complex has both indoor and outdoor exhibits. The Living Reef building is home to thousands of live corals, moray eels, reef fish, shrimps, sharks, and an octopus in an underwater garden. There is a turtle lagoon, a touch pool and Sting Ray Cove where enchanting rays glide in mesmerizing ease. The Whale Discovery Center is as close as it gets to a face-to-face humpback encounter.
8. The Hawaiian Islands are a national marine sanctuary for humpback whales since it is the only state where about 5000 of the North Pacific stock of 7000 humpback whales come each winter (December through April, more or less) to breed, calve, and nurse their young. In Hawaii, it is illegal to approach a humpback within 100 yards by sea and 1,000 feet by air unless authorized by valid state and federal research permits. But you don’t need to rent a boat or pay for a guided cruise to enjoy the whales. The can be viewed from shore, often very close to shore. I was once snorkeling at the point of Black Rock in Kaanapali and a humpback whale breached close enough to me that I was covered in spray. I didn’t even know the whale was there till I heard and felt the boom behind me.
Long ago, the humpback whales were hunted and almost put into extinction. On Maui you will find the Pacific Whale Foundation which conducts whale watching cruises and is a leading research and education facility. The Foundation estimates that the Hawaiian humpback whale population grows at 7 percent a year. In the last 26 years, more than 2 million people have gone with the Foundation on whale watching tours.
You can also visit the Sanctuary Education Center at 726 S. Kihei Road for more information on whales. During the whale season, they track the humpbacks in the waters around Maui and plot them on maps.
9. At the end of the day, no Hawaii stage performance can match Maui Theatre’s long-standing production of Ulalena. The show is a mix of bewitching chants and songs and dances that recount the tales of Maui’s mythical gods and goddesses. With the exception of one song in Portuguese, all the lyrics are chanted in Hawaiian. Ulalena is defined as a misty rain. The $9.5 million Maui Theatre was built to house Ulalena. It seats 700 people and features 8-channel surround sound. I always thought it would be a cheesy tourist thing but when I was dragged there, I became convinced that it is one of THE things you need to do in Maui. And the beauty and music and pure artistry of all involved will appeal to people of every age.
10. The island of Molokai shimmers in the distance off the western shores of Maui. It is a world apart from Maui. Everything slows down in Molokai-way down. It is rural and rugged and people who love to talk because there is little else to do there. The best way to get there is by taking the Molokai Princess, rebuilt and refitted for Hawaiian inter-island cruising. The cruise from Lahaina to Molokai will take just over an hour. If you’re lucky, you’ll see some spinner dolphins on your way. The afternoon trip back can get a little rough because of the currents and wind coming through the channel between Maui and Molokai. While on Molokai, you can rent a car or get a guided tour or just wander about on foot through the main town and see how Hawaiian life was before the jets and package tours from the mainland.
