Jan 18th, 2008
Top 5 Things You Must See and Do on Your Maui Vacation
A nice reader recently asked what would be my top five things to do in Maui on a week long vacation. It’s difficult to narrow down so many wonderful things to do and see to just five, but here’s my list.
1. Go to the top of Haleakala, an inactive volcano, preferably to star gaze and watch sunrise. 
The top of Haleakala is the highest point on Maui and the views are wonderful. You can find more information on planning your visit to Haleakala National Park on their website.
It works best to plan a sunrise visit to Haleakala the first or second morning of your vacation, particularly if you are coming from the mainland. You’ll be jet lagged and have no problems waking up early enough to catch some star gazing before sunrise.
2. Spend a day “driving the road to Hana”. This winding coastal road has jaw dropping scene after scene. You’ll see beautiful beaches, lava cliffs and waterfalls. The road to Hana starts on Highway 36 and later continues on Highway 360 and it runs along the East coast of Maui.
Everyone calls it the road to Hana, but don’t stop in Hana. You should actually drive 10 miles beyond Hana on Highway 31 to the Kipahulu area, which is also part of Haleakala National Park. Once you arrive at Kipahulu, you can park and do some short hikes along the coast and to the Oheo Gulch, which is also known as the “seven sacred pools”, but that’s not the correct name. and there is nothing sacred about them.
Start your drive early in the morning, say around 7am, so you can take your time driving there and back in day light. A good guide like the Maui Revealed Guide will give you detailed advice of what to stop and see. (See this caution about guidebooks.)
As you return back to your resort from your drive to Hana, if you have time, take a few minutes to watch the windsurfers at Hookipa Beach Park just east of Paia on Hana Highway (36). See this link to find Hookipa on a Google map. See all my tips for driving the Road to Hana.
3. Take a snorkeling or diving cruise/sail to Molokini. This crescent shaped top of an extinct volcano is a bird and marine sanctuary. It is one of the top snorkeling spots in Hawaii. (Photo credit to Ron Dahlquist.)
4
. See the Iao Valley State Park that’s rich with Hawaiian history. The park is beautiful and impressive with the star of the park being the velvet green Iao Needle that stands 2,250 high. A visit to this park probably takes less than an hour and a half, but it’s on the east side of Maui and may take an hour or longer to drive from most resorts on the west side of the island.
5. Watch for humpback whales from around November through April. You can either watch from the shore or take a whalewatching tour. Beware, whalewatching can become mesmerizing.
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So those are my top 5 must do’s. If you do those activities, you’ll will have seen some of the best of Maui, plus you’ll still have time to relax at the beach or pool. If you do nothing else than these five things, you’ll have had a fantastic Maui vacation.
In case you need more ideas, hear are some more suggests for you to consider:
- See a Maui luau. I think Maui has some really, really good luaus.
- Plan a beach sunset picnic lunch. (My favorite area is Kapalua in northwest Maui where you’ll have great views of Molokai and Lanai. A good place to get picnic supplies is at Honolua Store in Maui.
- Walk around and shop in historic Lahaina town. Make sure you see the impressive banyan tree there.
- Shop in quaint Paia.
If you find you’re on Maui when it’s raining, then check out these good Maui rainy day ideas.
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15 Responses to “Top 5 Things You Must See and Do on Your Maui Vacation”
The perfect list.
Hi David - I’m glad this list gets approval from another Maui enthusiast.
It is certainly hard to pick only five, that’s for sure. My wife and I have done 2 of those 5 already in our past travels, and hope to cross off two more during our trip in April. We’re not big snorkel fans, so we probably won’t be off to Molokini any time soon. In its place, we usually add star-gazing from the beach (Ka’anapali is our favorite). If you happen to be in Maui during a new moon, it’s a real treat.
Star gazing is fantastic almost anywhere in Hawaii. Star gazing on the top of Haleakala is beyond amazing.
We stayed at the Kaanapali Hyatt last time and they have a special star gazing program from the top of their roof. We didn’t have the time to include it in our trip, but it sounded really nice.
We’re planning to look into the Hyatt star tour for this trip, too. I’ll let you know if we make it and how it goes.
That would be great, Kris.
If you do get the chance, get up to the top of Haleakala at about 5 am or a little earlier. Then stick around to watch sunrise. If you go there on your first or second day, you’ll still be jet lagged and not have as hard of a time getting up early enough to get there for star gazing and sunrise. There is no “light pollution” there at all. You will see many more stars. We have seen lots of shooting stars there. It’s super cold, so be prepared for that. It’s very much worth the effort.
Bring a small flashlight, it’s REALLY dark up there! The crowds are also a lot smaller now that the bike tours are suspended, though, I think as Sheila mentioned, they may be operating again in April.
Sheila,
Speaking of top 5 things, I have seen some negative reviews about Molikini. Some people feel it’s too crowded and that the reef isn’t as pristine as it used to be. What is your opinion on this and would snorkeling in Lanai be a good alternative to this?
Ericka - Very good question. I’ve snorkeled Molokini twice and I didn’t find it to be over crowded, but it’s been about two years since I last snorkeled Molokini.
I just snorkeled Hulopoe Bay on Lanai back in September. The water was a bit choppy when I was snorkeling and there was a strong shore break, so I found it a bit tricky to get into the water. I was staying on Lanai, so I wasn’t on a snorkel tour. It’s a beautiful bay. One of the plus sides of taking the Lanai trip is that you get to see Sweetheart Rock. http://www.govisithawaii.com/2007/09/07/lanais-puu-pehe-sweetheart-rock/ Another plus is that spinner dolphins frequently come to the bay.
As far as a Molokini excursion, here are some thoughts:
- Some excursions are “cattle cars” and some are not. Look for a tour company that takes the least amount of people. Generally, the larger the boat, the more crowds you’ll have to contend with at the snorkeling site. (A catamaran sail/cruise is really very nice. The cats don’t usually take as many people and it’s really peaceful when you get to sail.)
- To avoid crowds, go on the earliest possible excursion in the morning.
- One of my friends who has scuba dived around the world, said that he had one of the most awesome diving experiences at Molokini.
I’ve e-mailed an expert I know to ask his opinion about Molokini. I’ll let you know what I find out.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve always had very good luck with Trilogy. They are definitely not a “cattle car” company. Here’s the link to tripadvisor reviews of Trilogy: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60634-d526289-Reviews-Trilogy-Lahaina_Maui_Hawaii.html
Thanks Sheila. Eager to hear back from your Molikini contact
Ericka - I’ve still not heard from my contact.
As an alternative, I’ve got a suggestion for you. Trilogy sails to Molokini and to Hulopoe Bay on Lanai. If I’m not mistaken, I think they are the only snorkel tour operator that’s allowed to dock at Manele Bay and use the Hulopoe Bay Marine Preserve. So, give them a call on their toll free number and get their opinion of Molokini versus Lanai. Here’s their number: 1-888-225-MAUI. I don’t think they’d steer you wrong.
Great advice! You know, I used to LIVE on Maui and I never drove up past Hana! Time to go back for a visit! I’m SO curious to see what I’ve missed!
Hi Natalie - I’m glad this article could help inspire a good excuse to get back over to Maui.
We took the Trilogy Catamaran snorkling tour to Molokini - we did the 6:30am trip and the crouds weren’t too bad. I highly recommend Trilogy, I think we had about 30 people on the boat with a 4 person crew running the trip. I only wish I had tried out snorkling as the people on the boat who did said it was fantastic.
For whale watching we went out on Kayaks, yes 2 person Kayaks. We went with South Pacific Kayaks (www.southpacifickayaks.com), we were in a a small group of 10 people (one of the 10 was our guide) and we ended up right in the path of 8 humpback whales. The whales actually swam right under and around us. We also kayaked up to an area where a sea turtle swam within touching distance of our kayak (but don’t touch them - it is bad for the turtles) and that is one of the places we snorkled. I highly recommend this group! You can also Kayak to Molokini (if you are in shape enough to do so) and they have other trips as well.
I am now trying to figure out how to see the dolphins….. It sounds like a trip to Lanai is our best bet?
Hi Donna,
Thanks for sharing your experiences. It’s good to hear that you also had good luck with Trilogy. Those Trilogy cats are smaller, so they can get into smaller and more pristine spaces at Molokini that the big boats can’t access.
Your kayaking/whale watching tour sounds amazing!
As far as seeing dolphins in the wild, that can be unpredictable. I saw them at Hulopoe Bay in Lanai every day during our stay there. Trilogy also does a trip there, maybe you could check with them and see if they’ll give you a discount since you’ve already booked one tour with them. If I remember correctly, the dolphins are more likely to visit the bay in the mornings.