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Maui Activity Recs
Posted on 4/7/26 at 1:17 pm
Posted on 4/7/26 at 1:17 pm
Looking for recommendations. Staying at Grand Wailea in a little over a month. Not going to be a very long trip but wanted to do a few activities outside the resort. I am only one who wanted to do a helicopter tour so I was outvoted on that.
Road to Hana tour - group of 6. Looking to get more of a private type tour. Have a couple people in our group with a bit of anxiety problems so wanted to have the option of turning around if needed and avoid buses and void renting car & driving ourselves. Or would you suggest renting a car for the day? Is Road to Hana worth it?
Snorkeling - seems to be a lot of options. Was hoping to get some guidance. Seems like majority of tours go to Molokini. Is there somewhere else better?
Have Mama's Fish House booked and Monkeypod. Any advice/thoughts/recommendations greatly appreciated! First time to Hawaii.
Road to Hana tour - group of 6. Looking to get more of a private type tour. Have a couple people in our group with a bit of anxiety problems so wanted to have the option of turning around if needed and avoid buses and void renting car & driving ourselves. Or would you suggest renting a car for the day? Is Road to Hana worth it?
Snorkeling - seems to be a lot of options. Was hoping to get some guidance. Seems like majority of tours go to Molokini. Is there somewhere else better?
Have Mama's Fish House booked and Monkeypod. Any advice/thoughts/recommendations greatly appreciated! First time to Hawaii.
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Posted on 4/7/26 at 1:37 pm to geauxtigahs214
Snorkeling
This was who we used to snorkel. We did part of the road to Hana, but didn't get that far. We rented a jeep while we there. We also went to The Surfing Goat and Ocean Vodka Organic Farm and Distillery. Alos, the Maui Cookie Lady had a bunch of great options.
Humuhumunukunukuapua?a was also great. Enjoy your trip.
This was who we used to snorkel. We did part of the road to Hana, but didn't get that far. We rented a jeep while we there. We also went to The Surfing Goat and Ocean Vodka Organic Farm and Distillery. Alos, the Maui Cookie Lady had a bunch of great options.
Humuhumunukunukuapua?a was also great. Enjoy your trip.
Posted on 4/7/26 at 6:56 pm to geauxtigahs214
Im here now, I visit often as life allows. Going on a 6 hour fishing trip tomorrow with strike zone that was only about $200. First time out with them so I may report back. Take the four winds molokini snorkel trip. They usually do both molokini and turtle town. Molokini is to date the best snorkeling I have ever enjoyed. The crew on four winds is super cool, they grill up burgers and serve free beer/pog after diving. Mama's and monkeypod are both winners. Star noodle is on my list to try this week.For casual I like da kitchen, tin roof,Kihei cafe and zippys. Tamura's has the best grab and go poke. Foodland has good hot deli foods for feeding groups and good poke. Hana is beautiful but is is a days work especially with a big group. Twin falls is way more accessible and my suit your anxious guests a little better. Kamole state park in Kihei is a great place to bbq and spend a day. It's also my favorite spot to catch sunset with a great view of Molokini in the distance. Treat the locals well and they are plenty friendly.That being said, I'm back off to the beach. Enjoy your trip!
Posted on 4/7/26 at 8:43 pm to geauxtigahs214
I was in Maui this past fall and did road to Hana. Was at Grand Wailea as well. We did the private guided tour as it would have taken 2 cars and no one wanted to deal with driving.
Is it worth it? I don't regret doing it but in no hurry to do it again. I did really like the black sand beach though. However it will basically kill an entire day. You mentioned you're not there long and have other excursions planned. I'd say skip it and wait for a longer trip. An alternative would be doing sunrilse/sunset at Haleakala which won't take an entire day.
We also did snorkeling trip to Molokni this past fall with Trilogy. Haven't been anywhere else, so can't compare. I'm not a big fan of snorkeling to be honest. I only went as our whole group was going. The rest of our group seem to enjoy it.. The next time, I'd rather do a whale watching trip assuming it's the right time of year.
I've been to Mama's before. Pricey and food is average imo. You're paying for that amazing view which you might not even get to see during dinner.
I liked Monkypod alot and will go there again on my next Maui trip. Food was good and place was lively.
Is it worth it? I don't regret doing it but in no hurry to do it again. I did really like the black sand beach though. However it will basically kill an entire day. You mentioned you're not there long and have other excursions planned. I'd say skip it and wait for a longer trip. An alternative would be doing sunrilse/sunset at Haleakala which won't take an entire day.
We also did snorkeling trip to Molokni this past fall with Trilogy. Haven't been anywhere else, so can't compare. I'm not a big fan of snorkeling to be honest. I only went as our whole group was going. The rest of our group seem to enjoy it.. The next time, I'd rather do a whale watching trip assuming it's the right time of year.
I've been to Mama's before. Pricey and food is average imo. You're paying for that amazing view which you might not even get to see during dinner.
I liked Monkypod alot and will go there again on my next Maui trip. Food was good and place was lively.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 9:48 am to geauxtigahs214
Maui was by far my least favorite part of our Hawaii trip (Kauai blows it out the water), but biking down Haleakala and scuba diving at the destroyed pier were some of the best moments of the whole trip
Posted on 4/8/26 at 11:54 am to geauxtigahs214
I'm gonna be honest...i found the Road to Hana kind of disappointing. We are avid travelers and have been all over the world though, so may be more spoiled than the average tourist.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 1:34 pm to HollierThanThou
We rented a jeep and went to the blow hole instead of doing the road to Hannah. We had some spectacular views and stopped at a few of the beaches and snorkeled for a while then just got back in the jeep when we wanted to and continued on.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 5:51 pm to geauxtigahs214
We've done the Road to Hana twice. The 1st time we went to Hana and turned around like the car rental places tell you to do. The 2nd time we went all the way around before the road got washed out. Scary trip. Great thing about the 1st time you could buy a cassette tape of all the historical places along the road. Start the tape, go 7 5 miles and look for the site.
Wherever you rent snorkel gear the will have a map of all the good snorkel sites all around the island. Be warned thugs like to hang around the beaches / sites where people snorkel. They watch and wait for everyone to get in the water then look for your car keys. They know most people lock the valuables in the car. Leave all the valuables that absolutely needed back at the room. Try and find a water proof key holder you can take in the water with you.
Wherever you rent snorkel gear the will have a map of all the good snorkel sites all around the island. Be warned thugs like to hang around the beaches / sites where people snorkel. They watch and wait for everyone to get in the water then look for your car keys. They know most people lock the valuables in the car. Leave all the valuables that absolutely needed back at the room. Try and find a water proof key holder you can take in the water with you.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 9:03 pm to geauxtigahs214
For snorkeling, the fewer people on the boat, the better. We've used Bluewater Rafting several times which operates a 12 person zodiac style boat that leaves out of the boat launch in Kehei. They have a 5 hour tour which my family thought was a bit much since the extra time is running towards Hana to learn about lava flow history. Years ago they would back into one of the caves but evidently that's not allowed anymore. The 3 hour tour stopped at Turtle Town and Molokini like many other tours, but also to the backside shelf of Molokini which is definitely the highlight (google some pictures). The main part of Molokini seems to be degrading unfortunately, but that might just be my perspective.
Hana used to have public access to all kinds of waterfalls and swimming spots but many of those are closed off on private land. You will need a permit to get in the park with the black sand beach. Those permits sell out so prepare accordingly but also dictates which day you are going for a super long car ride so make sure everyone in your party is on board with the timing.
For food, a good place that's not mentioned much is Cafe O'Lei at the Plantation; good food, decent prices, and very relaxing setting looking at the mountainside. The food trucks in Kehei are nice if you get tired of formal meals. Oao Sushi is in a strip mallas the highway turns into Wailea, very good. Kraken Coffee is in the same strip, great coffee, and next to the hemp gummy store if that's your thing.
My top tip is to stop at Whole Foods to grab beer and snacks. Hawaii is not easy on the wallet and the bleeding never stops. Having a few things on hand helps alleviate that concern. Another thing to buy is 7D mango which is some Philippine dried mango that isnt avilable or tough to find on the mainland. Stuff is so good.
Hana used to have public access to all kinds of waterfalls and swimming spots but many of those are closed off on private land. You will need a permit to get in the park with the black sand beach. Those permits sell out so prepare accordingly but also dictates which day you are going for a super long car ride so make sure everyone in your party is on board with the timing.
For food, a good place that's not mentioned much is Cafe O'Lei at the Plantation; good food, decent prices, and very relaxing setting looking at the mountainside. The food trucks in Kehei are nice if you get tired of formal meals. Oao Sushi is in a strip mallas the highway turns into Wailea, very good. Kraken Coffee is in the same strip, great coffee, and next to the hemp gummy store if that's your thing.
My top tip is to stop at Whole Foods to grab beer and snacks. Hawaii is not easy on the wallet and the bleeding never stops. Having a few things on hand helps alleviate that concern. Another thing to buy is 7D mango which is some Philippine dried mango that isnt avilable or tough to find on the mainland. Stuff is so good.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 9:21 pm to geauxtigahs214
Forgot 1 thing if you have a Costco membership there is one right when you leave the airport.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 10:44 pm to pjab
lots of good advice here. Sorry to see about the permits/private land on the highway to hana. We did that drive on our Honeymoon almost 20 yrs ago and it was incredible. Grabbed some beer and snacks and took off. Hit most of the waterfalls, black sand beach, etc. was awesome.
Posted on 4/8/26 at 11:44 pm to dblwall
quote:
Wherever you rent snorkel gear....
Pro Tip:
Instead of renting snorkeling gear that tons have people have used when you land go to the Costco there near the airport and buy the snorkel and fins for about $40. Cheaper than renting and more sanitary. When you leave leave it behind with the hotel, AirBNB or rental car company.
This post was edited on 4/9/26 at 9:43 am
Posted on 4/9/26 at 9:13 am to AZBadgerFan
We did road to Hana
It takes up most of your day
I wouldn’t do it again and I definitely wouldn’t drive it
They have a winery you can stop at and one of those hole in the wall places for lunch
We snorkeled molokini and also with the sea turtles and saw whales as well as a bonus
It takes up most of your day
I wouldn’t do it again and I definitely wouldn’t drive it
They have a winery you can stop at and one of those hole in the wall places for lunch
We snorkeled molokini and also with the sea turtles and saw whales as well as a bonus
Posted on 4/9/26 at 11:21 am to geauxtigahs214
Greatly appreciate the input from everyone!
Posted on 4/9/26 at 12:35 pm to geauxtigahs214
Mai tai at Tikihau. Koast is a great restaurant in the same building.
I only do Happy Hour at Monkeypod for the pizzas. I go to Mama’s for my last meal before flying home and yes it’s insanely expensive but I personally feel it’s worth it.
Can’t help with activities because when I am there, I park myself on a beach and eat Foodland poke every day.
I only do Happy Hour at Monkeypod for the pizzas. I go to Mama’s for my last meal before flying home and yes it’s insanely expensive but I personally feel it’s worth it.
Can’t help with activities because when I am there, I park myself on a beach and eat Foodland poke every day.
Posted on 4/9/26 at 7:56 pm to geauxtigahs214
Get some Lappart's Kauai Pie ice cream at the mall next to the Grand Wailea.
Posted on 4/9/26 at 8:24 pm to geauxtigahs214
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