Travel review: Maui – sun, sand, surf!

Sun, sand, surf. Need I say more??! Well, I will. Read this travel review: Maui for our idea of a great time in Maui.

Maui was a place I went when I was younger for swimming camps and when my parents had me tag along on vacations as a teenager. So, okay memories, but, hadn’t really experienced it much as an adult. In fact, when we update our list of travel destinations each year, it was never something that came up.

That all changed in recent years. Within a couple years, we had friends there we had met on a cruise; family had a place there; and we wanted somewhere to visit in the cooler months other than Mexico and mainland USA.

The laid back attitude but familiarity are very comforting. So, although the tropical breezes make you think it is a far away world, its creature comforts of N.America make it very easy to relax in.

We have tended to focus ourselves in Kihei and Wailea, but, we have ventured on some short excursions as well to enjoy the sights and scenery.

Recommendations

Beaches:

Kamaole Beaches II and III, Polo Beach, Wailea Beach and Kaanapali Beach. All good for a little boogie boarding and lazing away an afternoon.

Sailing:

We love spending an afternoon or evening out on the water! Trilogy Excursions is great fun – we enjoyed a lovely day of snorkelling and some excellent food and company; Pacific Whale Foundation has some wonderful evening/cocktail cruises for whale watching – we highly recommend Marty’s cruises – check out the Island Rhythm Sunset Cruises for information and his own website for more information.

Eat:

So much good food! We’ve had some great meals on the island including: Morimoto Maui – Yum!! Great layout and ambiance for a wonderful dinner! Monkeypod Kitchen – an excellent option, particularly after a long day when you want some great choices of great food. Nick’s Fishmarket Maui – loved the seafood here, and the service was superb!

Shopping:

We keep a lot of our shopping in Maui to 1) what we need to enjoy ourselves (great ingredients for our home-cooked meals), and, 2) what we want to take home with us. Given the remoteness of the Hawaiian islands, some things go out of stock and can be so for a few days, so, you learn to adapt. We’ve had great success finding what we need for meat and seafood by exploring all the grocery stores in Kihei and Lahaina. Shout out to Maui Artisan Sourdough – OMG amazing! Love that we can get great bread on the island. For take home, we love Honolulu Cookie Company (take an extra suitcase just for this order!).

In addition to this travel review: Maui, check out our Planning posts for more details on how you can plan your own wonderful getaway!