Just got back from my best Spring Break trip ever. When I was in college, I didn’t really have the money to go any place too exotic. And I don’t even remember there being Spring Break in high school back in Bismarck. Plus I always seemed to have a girlfriend around Spring Break and, at the time, it wasn’t an especially prudent idea to road trip 20 hours to South Padre or Panama City with two or three other guys, nine cases of beer and a carton of Marlboros. So I usually ended up taking a trip with the girlfriend. Once we drove to Cincinnati to see my mom (super lame). Another time we flew to San Diego and stayed with an aunt of mine (less lame… we did go drinking in TJ).
ANYWAY… this year, I hauled my wife and kids (girls ages 6 and 4) to Maui. We rented a pretty nice condo in Kīhei. Not as touristy as Lahaina / Kāʻanapali, not as blue collar as Kahului, not as hippy as Pāʻia or Makawao, not as upscale as Wailea. In other words, it was perfect for us. When we travel, my wife and I enjoy living like most of the middle class locals do. Kīhei is on South Maui and located within 15 minutes of a dozen world-class beaches. The water is amazingly clear and most of the beaches have snorkeling at one end or the other or both. In order of least to most favorite, we hit Charley Young Beach, Polo Beach, Big Beach and Po’olenalena Beach. We also visited Makena Landing, ‘Ahihi Cove and La Pérouse Bay, but these three aren’t really beaches so much as volcanic lava beds where the ocean flows up over the rocks to create some outstanding snorkeling. On the last day, the winds were up so we visited Ho’okipa Beach on the North Shore and watched surfers try to impale themselves on the rocks in 15-20 foot waves. We also did the Royal Lahaina Luau (the kids were impressed) and the Pacific Whale Foundation snorkel trip to Molokini (the kids were impressed). Had a couple good meals, unbeatable weather, some great sunsets and a very relaxed time.
All in all, Maui no ka oi! A great trip and not what I expected. I figured it would be a lot like Florida, but somehow, it was very different. Plenty of old people, but I think it was the Hawai’ian cultural imprint of language and customs that made it unique. It didn’t hurt that the topography of the island is dramatic with 10,000 foot Haleakalā staring down at you while you soak up the sun and waves on the beach. Very different than some other mountains-meet-the-seas locations like Vancouver or Juneau. It was also a pretty good value (but I won’t say “cheap”). If you can snare a deal on airfare and shop around for a moderately priced condo, the rest didn’t seem any more outrageous than most other vacation destinations (including the ski towns just up the hill from us here in Colorado). The biggest downside was the travel time and time zones. This time of year, Hawai’i is 4 hours behind Mountain Time, 6 hours behind Eastern Time. If you live in the east, you’re probably better off aiming for the Carribean or perhaps the Canary Islands. The time changes wreak havoc on little kids and the flights are set-up to drive people towards red eyes on the way home. If you do want to go, I recommend the following resources:
- VRBO – Hawaii Vacation Rentals: Shop for your own condo
- Maui Revealed – The Ultimate Guidebook: Packed with great maps and useful information (some of which others might wish you didn’t have)
Aloha!
P.S. I failed to note that I am also a bit of a surf shop junkie. But not a surfer. I guess that makes me a poseur, but I really don’t care. I just like the vibe. So, I tend to scout out all the shops when I’m in a beach town. Here’s my Official “Best of Maui” Surf Shop Review:
- Best Apparel-centric Surf Shop: Maui Tropix (exclusive distributor of Maui Built) with at least three locations on the island. Honolua Surf Co and Local Motion also have a couple shops each on the island, but I liked Maui Tropix the best. There were several others like 808 Nalu and Shapers, but those were too poseur even for me.
- Best “Real” Surf Shop: Obviously, I’m no expert, but three shops within about 1/4 mile of one another in Kahului all seemed to have their strengths and were pretty authentic… Second Wind (surf boards and kitesurfing), Hi-Tech Surf Sports (rentals of all sort of boards) and Neil Pryde Maui (wind surf). If you find yourself on Maui in need of some sort of floating board or sail for a water sport, these three ought to have you pretty well covered. But what the hell do I know?
- Best Micro Surf Shop: The Hana Hwy Surf store in Pāʻia was ~400sf. Jammed with a little bit of everything and a friendly gal working the floor. It was also located in an actual surfing town which I suppose should confer it with some street cred despite it being in a newish strip mall. I noticed Hi-Tech Surf Sports also had a small outlet just around the corner, but it was like the Taj Mahal compared to Hana Hwy Surf.
