Guy Berger Posted March 6, 2006 Report Posted March 6, 2006 (edited) I'm going to Hawaii on Thursday (for the first time). I'll be spending 2 and a half days in Maui and 2 days in Kauai. My plan on Maui is as following: Friday: Molokini snorkeling Saturday: Haleakala volcano Sunday (have to finish early because I have a 6 PM flight to Kauai -- so I will start at 7 AM): Hana My questions are, what is a good price for the snorkeling? I have also heard that Lanai is better than Molokini. Is this true? Also, as far as Hana, what is there to see? I've googled and it seems like there is a ton of stuff. Is there something in particular that I should see? Any other tips are welcome. I was thinking of rotating the Hana trip and the snorkeling, assuming that I can finish snorkeling in time for my flight. Is this realistic? Guy Edited March 6, 2006 by Guy Quote
jazzbo Posted March 6, 2006 Report Posted March 6, 2006 I only have ever been to Oahu, and had a luxury experience there (I'm unaccustomed to luxury which made it very nice indeed). My advice: leave some time for just relaxing and breathing in the air and feeling the trade winds and just doing nothing. Schedule in some time to just do whatever appeals to you. There is so much to do that you need to make this a priority. Quote
Jim Alfredson Posted March 6, 2006 Report Posted March 6, 2006 Agreed. Some of the best memories of my honeymoon on Oahu involved just laying on the beach and taking in the beautiful air and water, swimming in the ocean, and just chillin'. Quote
sidewinder Posted March 6, 2006 Report Posted March 6, 2006 Agreed. Some of the best memories of my honeymoon on Oahu involved just laying on the beach and taking in the beautiful air and water, swimming in the ocean, and just chillin'. Sounds like my vision of paradise - just need the MP3 player with Hank/Morgan/Andrew Hill/McLean/Dexter etc. on it. One can dream.... Quote
Jim R Posted March 6, 2006 Report Posted March 6, 2006 I'm going to Hawaii on Thursday (for the first time). I'll be spending 2 and a half days in Maui and 2 days in Kauai. My plan on Maui is as following: Friday: Molokini snorkeling Saturday: Haleakala volcano Sunday (have to finish early because I have a 6 PM flight to Kauai -- so I will start at 7 AM): Hana My questions are, what is a good price for the snorkeling? I have also heard that Lanai is better than Molokini. Is this true? Also, as far as Hana, what is there to see? I've googled and it seems like there is a ton of stuff. Is there something in particular that I should see? Any other tips are welcome. I was thinking of rotating the Hana trip and the snorkeling, assuming that I can finish snorkeling in time for my flight. Is this realistic? Guy First of all, Lon makes a great point. There's so much to do on Maui, but don't get so busy running around the island that you miss out on the tranquility aspect. I've been to Oahu, Maui, and the big island, and done a variety of things. The first time I went (1981), we were in Oahu, and we went to the botanical gardens. Being an active person (and only 25 at the time), I was expecting to be bored, but that experience has "stayed with me". My absolute #1 favorite activity on Maui (I've done it twice) is the bike trip down Haleakala. We normally take the morning tour ("Mountain Riders" was the outfit we chose)- not the sunrise one where you have to get up in the middle of the night, but the regular morning tour. They pick you up around breakfast time in their van, drive you to the summit (if the wind isn't blowing too hard), and you ride (coast, actually- you're basically just braking and rarely have to pedal) down through lovely scenery and with incredible views. With the stop for lunch, it's all very leisurely, and you're done by early afternoon. The Hana trip (which I've never taken but heard several first-hand accounts of) is a long car ride, windy road around the coastline. I guess there are some fairly interesting sights (Lindbergh's grave is the one I recall), but the idea never appealed to me as much... too much time in the car. The snorkel trip out to Molokini is pretty neat. You'll see more fish (and perhaps turtles) than you would if you just went out yourself to one of the island's bays (Kapalua, Napili, etc), but it's also a bit time consuming (boat ride back and forth, and the fact that you're with a group). Pros and cons, as always. I've never been over to Lanai (nor Kauai). Other recommended Maui stops (if you happen to have time): Lahaina; the Iao Valley; the aquarium near Kihei. Quote
Guy Berger Posted March 16, 2006 Author Report Posted March 16, 2006 A very fun trip! I won't bore you with all the details, but just want to recommend the trip to Hana. True, a lot of time in the car (my round trip, which went several miles beyond Hana to the pools of the Oheo Gulch took 9 hrs!), but also very cool sights. Vistas of beautiful bays, black sand beaches, great waterfalls. The Molokini snorkeling was incredible. Besides the reef itself, I saw some giant sea turtles. Also, off the boat we caught a family of humpback whales only a 100 ft or so away. Kauai was interesting (never seen so many wild chickens in my life!) but the weather was shit. I went up to the Waimea Canyon and all I saw was a wall of fog. Guy Quote
Jim R Posted March 16, 2006 Report Posted March 16, 2006 Also, off the boat we caught a family of humpback whales... Whoah. I hope you threw 'em back in. Sorry, couldn't resist. Quote
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