Christi and I love our trips to Maui. There's no other vacation spot we've visited that so fully relaxes you the second you arrive.
Since people periodically ask me about Maui, where we stay, places to eat, and etc. I figured I'd create this page, and add to it as time goes on.
Pictures:
If you're thinking about going to Maui, and want to check out some pictures. There's lots of shots on my main http://MarkSwatzell.com page
Getting there:
Two airlines that I know of have direct flights from Seattle to Maui, Alaska Airlines, and Hawaiian Airlines. Right now Alaska is just charging for your second bag, and Hawaiian is charging for any checked in baggage. Both of them have a feature when you're checking airfares that allow you to see the least expensive fare by day across a calendar for an entire month.
The airport you want to fly into is OGG which is in the city of Kahului. You can find it on this map right around the middle.
Where to stay:
Maps of Maui:
When I'm trying to find a place to stay in Maui I have a heck of a time figuring out where different places are in relation to the water and other places, so I've pulled together a few maps that help me figure out what's where:
The best map of Maui can be found using Bing Maps. Bing provides, regular street maps, aerial maps, and the best tool ever, an angled bird's eye view, allowing you to take a look at condos and hotels and determine whether it's in the location you prefer. Obviously Bing maps can be found at http://Bing, but here are some targeted links for some of the major areas of Wailea.
Ekahi Condos: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/fk7hl0wnjzocdw8t
Ulua Condos: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/ykbo09hkt6ln498g
Wailea Marriott: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/vro4qfzb7d054fh3
Grand Wailea: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/qsfnxhdfbzqd3cbt
Four Seasons: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/lmd0dv1frkjxt8fz
The Fairmont: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/zrgn8c276z49rb09
Wailea Ekolu: http://www.bing.com/maps/explore/?org=aj#/19875jtsrhyofoso
Here are a few old maps I cobbled together using aerial shots, and then marking key sites on them. Here's one that's just targeted at Wailea, and is about 8MB, Here's one that goes from Wailea down to Makena and is about 12MB, and here's both of them put together that's around 22MB
Areas of Maui: There are more areas than the four below, but these are the areas most folks I know stay at. Our favorite is Wailea.
Wailea - This is our favorite area of Maui, tends to have less rain than other areas, has beautiful beaches, great shopping, major resorts, and world class restaurants. It's also close to Makena which is one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen.
Kihei - is a great little town with lots of inexpensive places to stay, nice beaches, reasonable (and good) restaurants, and shopping. It's where we always go for groceries. The downside of a lot of the condos in Kihei is that the main road runs between the beaches and the condos. This makes the beaches less exclusive to your condo, but it does allow folks to drive to the beaches and gives more access.
Lahaina - has a main street along the water with lots of little shops and restaurants. It can be a bit touristy, but is a fun place to grab dinner and do some shopping.
Kaanapali & Kapalua - has some great beaches and giant cool resorts, but I feel like the weather is better in Wailea.
Finding a place to stay:
Hotels: To find a hotel on Maui you can go through any of the channels you usually go through, or check out the maps on my map page, pick a hotel in the area you want to stay in, and find them on the web.
Condos: We've switched from staying in hotels to staying in condos. They give you quite a bit of flexibility in price and location, give you more space, and usually have laundry and a kitchen, saving on the price of eating out, and allowing you to pack less clothes and wash them.
Ekahi: We've been staying at Ekahi for the last few times we've gone and have been really impressed! The development is right on the beach, and is a nice walk to Sarento's (an outstanding restaurant) down the beach to the right, or another nice walk down the beach to Ferraro's at the four seasons.
Where we've stayed: We've found someone to rent from that has four great condos. We've stayed in two of them, and will stay in a third next December. Check them out at http://AlohaWailea.com. You find a ton of condos at http://VRBO.com, which is where we first found the ones we stay in.
A bunch of Ekahi Condos: I just found a great site that lists a ton of Ekahi condos from studios to 2-bedrooms. The site is http://mauiownercondos.com and here's a great map of the Ekahi complex so you know where the units you're looking at are in relation to the beach http://mauiownercondos.com/EkahiV-siteplan.html. These units look outstanding http://waileaekahivillage.com/#20a.
Places to eat:
Breakfast: some of our favorite breakfast places are listed at http://www.markswatzell.com/maui2.htm
Great Coffee: can be found in the shops at Wailea at the Honolulu Coffee company http://www.shopsatwailea.com/TheShops/HonoluluCoffeeCo.htm
Lunch:
We eat most of our lunches on the beach, but here's some options:
Whaler's General Store: grab lunch from the little deli in Whaler's General Store in the Shops at Wailea and take it to the beach http://www.shopsatwailea.com/TheShops/WhalersGeneralStore.htm
Seawatch: Always one of our favorites since we got married there, but also great food and an outstanding view http://www.seawatchrestaurant.com
Kimo's: If you're over near Lahaina check out Kimo's. They have a great deck and beautiful view as well as yummy drinks and food http://www.kimosmaui.com
Dinner:
Sarento's is one of our favorite restaurants on Maui! It's a beautiful walk down the beach from the Ekahi condos right between Kihei and Wailea. Outstanding Italian Island food, a beautiful view, and great service http://www.tristarrestaurants.com/sarentos_maui
Ferraro's is a restaurant at the Four Seasons and they have magnificent views and outstanding Italian food. They're a nice walk from the Ekahi condos along the beach path http://www.fourseasons.com/maui/dining/ferraro_s_bar_e_ristorante.html
Mulligan's on the Blue, is an awesome Irish pub located just up from the shops at Wailea on the Blue golf course. In addition to great pub food, they have excellent live music, including their outstanding house band The Celtic Tigers. Check out Mulligans at http://www.mulligansontheblue.com and the Celtic Tigers at http://www.amazon.com/Roar/dp/B0019J477S/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1273586589&sr=8-5. You can also check out a video I shot of the Celtic Tigers from our first trip to Mulligan's at the top of the page at http://www.markswatzell.com/MauiFebruary2010
Hali'imaile General Store has a funny name, but outstanding food! It's over between the airport and Paia, and while it doesn't have a view, it has some outstanding food. http://bevgannonrestaurants.com/haliimaile
Duo is the steak and seafood restaurant at the Four Seasons. They're poolside and have outstanding food and service http://www.fourseasons.com/maui/dining/duo.html#video-maui-resort-MAU_005
Seawatch: Always one of our favorites since we got married there, but also great food and an outstanding view http://www.seawatchrestaurant.com
Capische has great food, very few tables, and an outstanding view. They are ultra expensive, and we find ourselves wondering if it's really worth it since Sarento's is just as good, but if you want to try it, check it out at http://www.capische.com
Things to do:
