We posted this review a few years back and lots of folks found it to be very helpful…here is:
MAUI via an Irishman!
Have you got at least 2 weeks to spare and fancy a trip somewhere warm, far away from home and to immerse yourself in a surf culture? With BIG-SURF, clean winds, turtles, English the spoken language, cheap ‘gas’ and a strong Euro currency exchange? Well most position Maui, Hawaii on the wish list for all travelling windsurfers, kite surfers, surfers, wingers and paddle boarders!
Maui is where most of the worlds watersports equipment is tested and developed. Go to Maui at the right time of the year and rub shoulders with the worlds best board riders during the photo shoot of next seasons watersports products, then relax in the sunshine while watching your heroes tame the infamous waves at Hookipa beach park. Then go freeriding, surfing or SUPping in Kanaha, or hike Haleakala before you watch the sun set from above the clouds!
I convinced my bride at the time to make it a stop on our honeymoon…ok, ok, so it really was the main stop on our honeymoon, but none the less, what an amazing place! Be warned though, if you enjoy your visit so much, you’ll wonder why you haven’t moved out there yet!
There are lots of guides available on Maui. Rather than researching every bit of information we could before embarking on the trip, we took the “wing it” approach! We knew nobody out there (although we were proved wrong…read on) and we took each day as it came. So if you’re planning your trip, you’ll at least know our pitfalls and highlights from reading this. The only reservations made prior to leaving were for a car, some windsurf kit and accommodation for 14 nights! Here is how it went...
BOOKING
We booked our trip through Trailfinders in January 2008. Booking 10 months in advance, and with that booking 9 flights to take us to Maui via San Francisco and Kauai (the Garden Island as its so called – a beautiful location, not much for windsurfing, although we did get some great body boarding in), and then back via New York right before Christmas cost us about €1200 each. We heard that a return trip direct to Maui (generally via London) costs about €900 return, so we did ok on the flights.
Flying from Cork to London takes 1 hour, London to San Francisco about 14 hours, San Fran to Kauai a 4 hour flight, and then Kauai to Maui about 1 hour. Flight times are what it actually took us – weather and flight schedules obviously play a factor. Fastest way to Maui is flying straight to Kahului via San Francisco.
WHERE TO STAY
If you want shops, burger joints, boat trips and the other touristy stuff, then stay at Lahaina on the north west coast of Maui. Kihei and Waimea are similar on the south coast, but lean towards big resort hotels aimed at the golfing sorts. There you pay for everything, with loads of shops and restaurants. Apparently it works when the Kona winds are blowing (Kona winds also bring some rain), but even when we got Kona winds on our trip, we weren’t that bothered, instead favouring some SUPping on the north shore.
We wanted peace and quiet, immersion in the surf culture and somewhere handy to position ourselves. The North shore of Maui is definitely the spot to get all that. We booked a lovely house through Maui Vacation Advisors (MVA) at Haiku (a townland), which had privacy, was clean and had a hot tub (nice after a good beating at Hookipa beach park!). MVA will sort you with something anywhere on the island, and to your budget, while the staff are very friendly, have a good reputation, and can guide you with everything from a tin opener to a doctor if you need them. Haiku is where most of the pro’s live - for 2 weeks at least we could say we had Phil McGain, Robby Naish, Matt & Kevin Pritchard, Laird Hamilton and a host of other well known faces as our neighbours.
WHERE TO EAT AND SHOP
Visualise Kahului being at one end of the Hana highway and Haiku being half way along it, with the well known beaches of Kanaha, Hookipa and a few others located in between. People’s daily routine here revolves around their sport – it's an early start at 06:00 for a surf before work, and then another surf on the way back home in the evening. Leaving Haiku in the morning, our daily routine typically involved checking out Hookipa on the way to Paia, buying our lunch at the Mana foodstore in Paia, sailing in Kanaha for a few hours and then over to Hookipa to either watch the action or go windsurfing ourselves.
As you drive into Paia from Haiku, turn left at the lights, and the Mana Foodstore is 100m up on the left hand side. Here you can bump into the likes of Phil McGain and Jason Polakow doing their grocery shopping. As this is a health food store, and a good one at that, it has loads of good quality food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You will pay a little bit more than Safeway and K-mart, but there is no comparison. Paia also has a great pizza house, a seafood restaurant (order and site down anywhere), a nice sandwhich / lunch take out type shop, a few other restaurants and a must visit ice cream shop - open till late if you want a good ice cream desert! There are some surf shops, a few ordinary shops like pharmacy, etc., while the post office is another 100m past the Mana foodstore on the right hand side. Also, Paia has the last gas (petrol) station on the Hana highway, so fill up here if you decide to drive out – you have been warned!
Kahului is where the airport is, and for want of a better word, is Maui’s capital. It has 2 large shopping malls - driving to Kahului from Haiku, keep going straight through all the junctions until the road swings around to the left and about a mile along on the left hand side, you will find the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center. This is the best shopping in Maui as it is a large complex with shops ranging from cheap and cheerful to expensive. Restaurants are upstairs, loads of parking (even for your big SUV), this place has most stuff you’ll need for your stay on Maui.
The Windsurfing
As my primary focus was windsurfing, the next paragraph will be a little windsurf heavy, but more or less all the beaches are surfable, kitesurfable and SUPpable too! First get yourself some kit. Unless you’re training seriously for a month or more, I’d suggest hiring as opposed to flying out all your kit. It’s easier through the airports, you’re not worried about your kit getting damaged and there is lots of quality kit available to hire from the many surf shops.
We went in December, and 95% of the time I used an 84liter board with a 5.3m sail. During the summer you’ll want smaller sails, as its windier - the swells aren’t as good but still challenging. There are loads of places to hire watersports kit on Maui, such as Hi-Tech, Naish, Hot Sails Maui, Neilpryde Maui, etc., etc.. I hired from Matt Pritchard. Matt and Kevin are brothers, ex and current world champion windsurfers, who run a first class hire service, with the best rental rates I could find on the web (excellent kit for the same rental rate as others). Both guys are really friendly and helpful to deal with. They’ll also fill you in on what to look for when you get there, where to go into the water and how to rig your hire kit. The guys also offer tuition, accommodation and car rental, so they can now fix up your holiday for you!
During our trip we checked out all of the beaches along the coast, but to be honest, Kanaha and Hookipa will have enough for the majority of us. After just arriving, you’ll probably be jet lagged and tired – so to get yourself started I’d recommend Kanaha. It can get very busy, but go early in the day (after 11:00) and you’ll soon suss it out. Park, check out the beach, rig your 5.5m, sail the flat water section (in the first 200m off the beach) all day long or sail over the reef to wave breaks known as “lowers” or “uppers”. As you look to sea standing on the beach, lowers is to your left, with a lovely soft crumbling wave, varying in height from 1 foot on very small days, to 8 foot plus sets on the bigger days. It can get very busy - I’ll never forget sharing a wave with at least 20 others all within 50m of me! Uppers is a punchy wave, which will stack up a slightly bigger swell. You need a little more experience under your belt for this break, so as a result it’s more often quieter, but worth a shot at least once while you’re there.
If you’re happy with Kanaha and want more of a challenge, then Hookipa is the crème de la crème. Hookipa comes with a health warning – there are currents, razor sharp coral reef, large waves, rocks, very fluky wind during the beach launch, a steep sloped beach, and everyone wiping out in the same spot right in front of the rocks - sounds like Garretstown then! If you’re not confident at launching in waves, DO NOT sail Hookipa. Sit on the beach, or the headland nick named “the bluff”, and watch how everybody launches at one spot (except for surfers who launch upwind), then float out in the fluky cross to cross off wind while drifting in the current straight past the rocks. Watch all the very good windsurfers finish their wave rides right in front of the rocks. If you wipe out and end up on the rocks, disconnect you sail and board, push the board up onto the rock and lift the sail clear of the waves. Also, DO NOT kick down to waterstart, as you’ll probably be in 1 foot of water and the sea bed is razor sharp coral reef. But if you do get out and catch a few wave rides, Hookipa is awesome! Super glassy BIGSURF, there has been much talent down through the years who have sailed this very spot. It will make you feel like a champion as you ride in towards the beach! Don’t worry about the 100 or so people watching you from the beach, or the 10 photographers bobbing in the water in front of you, worry about where you are going to finish your wave ride and watch for the waves behind your chosen wave to make sure you can get back out! If there is a big set behind you, sail towards the launch point, wait for it to pass through and start over.
Other things to do
There is loads of other stuff to do on Maui if you or more importantly, your other half, is sick of watching you windsurf. Apart from surfing, kiteboarding and SUPping, there are numerous locations to go scuba diving, snorkelling, and fishing. All this equipment is available for hire at the many surf shops.
If you fancy some land activities, you can drive up Haleakala or out the Hana highway, but beware of hire cars on these roads (see note below). Haleakala’s summit takes you to over 10,000 feet above sea level, and above the clouds. There is a visitor centre at the top, and a number of trail walks to test your fitness. The air is a little thinner, although it's not a major factor, and it is also cold – you’ll be glad you swapped your sandals for the hiking boots. Bring a hat, some warm clothes and some food. Apart from twisty roads, the odd small waterfall along the route, and some nice views, the village of Hana isn’t great, in fact it was a disappointment on our visit, but there is a large waterfall on past it thats worth the trip.
The south shore is a beautiful spot to visit, especially if you decide to go kayaking. You might even come across some turtles and tropical fish!
Whale sightings are quite common around the Hawaiian islands, and a whale watching trip is well worth the money. We took off on an evening trip abord a catamaran, and got food and drink included in the ticket price. We did see some whales, although the tour operator is prohibited from going too close to them, so don’t expect any "rubbing off the side of the boat" action.
If its tourist type shopping you want, then Lahina is probably a good choice. Loads of surf shops, local shops and restaurants are available at this seaside location for your to enjoy. We made the most of our visit and decided to go on a very rainy, stormy day, which worked out well!
Finally, some things to Know about Maui
Break skin in any way, e.g. cut, graze, burn, etc., and if going into the water are part of your plans, then be sure and visit the local pharmacy (you’ll find them in supermarkets in the US and Hawaii). Get antiseptic wash, or antiseptic wipes, Polysporin (Slightly better than Neosporin as its a powder and helps dry up the wound) and be sure and keep it clean and dry. Staff is very prominent in Hawaii, and any cut must be treated every day. Wounds can get infected very easily, often due to you going barefoot when you never have do so before, and you end up cutting the top of your foot due to sand jammed between the strap and your soft skinned foot. Savlon will also work if you have brought it, but the Polysporin will dry it right up.
The water is salty. If like me you wear contact lenses when in the water, be prepared for some stinging eyes. Good tip is to have a water bottle on the beach to rinse out.
Be prepared for the half way to Hawaii competition on the plane flight out to the islands.
Watch out for turtles. They float to the surface unexpectedly albeit slowly. Hit one and its like hitting a log...I'm told. They are cool to watch though.
Read your car hire documents. We hired our car and we broke down on the way back from a Hana highway drive, having just driven up the Haleakala mountain a few days before...it transpired later that we weren’t insured to be driving either up the mountain or out the Hana highway! The mountain is cool, the Hana highway drive bendy and a bit of a letdown after the mountain to be honest.
There is only one bank in Paia. The Queen Ka'ahumanu Center is a recommended location if you want a good ATM.
There are Geckos in Hawaii. Geckos are small lizards (2”-4” long), generally brown/greenish in colour, are very fast, can climb walls and ceilings and go through pencil sized holes. They are harmless and are seen as good luck. Enjoy them!
Land in Kahului airport, and immediately get a car. Wasting your time in Maui if you do not have a car.
DO NOT go windsurfing anywhere in Maui before 11am. Before 11am, its surfers time, so be prepared for a telling off from the locals if you do. This system actually works great – keeps the waves cleaner for everyone. If you’re out all day, you’ll notice the surfers coming out again about 16:30. Pack it in then and don’t get caught out by the dropping trade wind – let it to the surfers, there will be more waves tomorrow.
Internet access is available in the Kahului shopping centre – about 20 cent a minute (might be cheaper now...Ed).
Do not leave keys on the rear wheels of your hire car – there are criminals watching for that at the beach.
Hookipa is a beach park, which means you’ll have Robby Naish rubbing shoulders with you, but the fat Texan will also be there on his holidays.
Hookipa is a playground for all the pros. Be prepared to bump into famous faces.
Drive at a relaxed pace, use the automatic gearboxes gently and do not “tailgate” or in other words drive so close you can see them talking in the car in front.
We hired a Ford Focus Estate which was fine for 2 people, 2 boards and 3 sails, a mast and a boom. Boards only on the roof. It was an older 2002-2003 car, it was filthy, but the cheapest. It did also break down.
Pineapples are simply gorgeous in Maui – you’ll love them!
Buy a phone card in a petrol station to ring home – much cheaper.
Gas or petrol is cheap here! $25 to fill a Ford focus – a-ride!
Bigsurf rating
If you have the cash to go, and the weather comes through while you’re there, it has to be a 10/10. If like us, you get some dodgy weather, then its still an 9/10 for the atmosphere there alone! Add it to your bucket list...we loved and recommend it!