Tentatively going early Dec.

Looking to stay near Lahaina.

Is a rental car necessary, or just way more convenient? I see there is local bus service on the Island and obviously Uber as well (we used Uber in HNL last for to/from airport and to Pearl Harbor, but walked everywhere else - only 3-nights in HNL, but then had a rental car in Kauai for the 5-nights we were there).

Plan on hiking, whale watching and snorkeling and sitting on the beach.

Any other suggestions on "do not miss' would be appreciated.

Thanks

We went in May of 2021 and we didn't have a rental car. At that time they were extremely expensive. We rented one day. I think if you can, that you need to rent a car. We used Uber and finding them was kind of a pain. If you are going to just stay around Lahaina then maybe you don't need one but if you want to do a few hikes, go to Haleakula, or Wailea then a car is a must because Lahaina is on the opposite side of the island from those spots. We also did a helicopter tour and the Uber was fairly pricy to get back to the airport area.

thanks all, sounds like maybe a few days rental might be in order.

Some of the snorkeling spots, and the harbor to go whale watching are both 40m car or 50m ($2) bus rides. And the beach is right next to the VRBO condo we're looking to rent.

Here are my cryptic notes on snorkeling in Maui from when we went for three weeks in 2019. I can't remember why there is an asterisk on one of these. There were more spots, I just didn't write them all down. Also, Molokini crater is good snorkeling.

Maui snorkeling
South Maui
Po'olenalena Beach
Palauea beach
Kama'ole beach (north end of I, ends of others)
*Maluaka beach/makena
Oneuli beach/black sand beach

West Maui
Honolua
Black Rock

Ku'au Bay Beach Park
Turtles on beach. Lots of turtles. So many turtles

It may not be the go-to any more, but "Maui Revealed" has been my favorite for all encompassing info on the island.

Molokini snorkeling
Road to Hana ( start as early as humanly possible)
Mama's Fish house
Sea House (great sunset bay views up in Kapalua)
Haleakala/bike ride down with tour group
Warren and Annabelle's magic show
Lahaina luau (take it or leave it)

A convertible with the top down is the way to do it.

Eat:

*merrimans - have been going here for 10 years. Still very good as of may but a notch down and was pre-fix only. Go for sunset views/early dinner.

Lahina grill

Guy from work said he did the road to Hana about 7-years ago and drove himself. He suggested taking a tour so you can see the sights and not have to worry about focusing on the road. Said at times the road was VERY narrow and around blind corners he was wondering if a bus was about to show up and run him off the road. Said some of the switchbacks had no guardrails and it was a bit unnerving at times. Also said there wasn't much in Hana and the one restaurant was not very good.

I will say, I can be a bit of a control freak driver on mountain roads. When I was in Yosemite, I was nervous as hell while someone else was driving all the switch backs. Normally I'm OK with other drivers on normal roads, but for some reason the thought of letting someone else drive me off a cliff caused a lot of unwarranted anxiety on my part. I'm not sure I'd be good on a bus.

I've also read online that it's best to plan your trip to Hana and where you want to stop along the way. Bring a lunch and plenty of water, swim suit and towels b/c there are swimming stops along the way and some hiking trails.

We don't have a lot of fixed plans, just whale watching one day, road to Hana one day, hiking (any suggestions - 5-6 miles round trip is fine for us - but nothing crazy strenuous/dangerous), lay on the beach, drive to a snorkel spot (have a few listed).

EDIT to add, we are staying in Lahaina.

EDIT 2 - forgot to ask, what is parking like around some of the beaches mentioned above? Seems like there is little to none. Kapalua area looks like lots of private condo's but I don't see any public parking.

Thanks

We've done road to Hana several times and I don't think it's nerve wracking at all. Traffic speeds are generally slow and the switchbacks are all 2 lanes so you'll be fine however blind they might be. Driving in Houston rush hour is much more stressful.

My only advice is that instead of turning back around in Hana, keep going. Doing so allows you to avoid driving on the cliff side of the road with the sun on your eyes in the afternoon. The back roads are well paved and the vistas are jaw dropping. And no, doing so does not voilate your rental car agreement.

Waihee ridge trail is a great hike. Just don't complete the loop back to Lahaina if you're already concerned about the road to Hana. While fun for us, definitely doesn't sound up your alley as it was much more stressful than the road to Hana. Make sure you have reservations for any of the beaches you may want to stop at off the road to Hana, many require them.

I dropped my family off then had to walk a bit to the Kapalua beach by Merriman's restaurant. Worth it though for good snorkeling saw a lot of colorful fish there. Just a cool, small, crescent shaped beach.

follow this advice

I could handle Maui about right now……,

Bluecat_Aggie94 said:

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GET A CAR.

I am always sad when I hear people's Hawaii stories and find out how little hey saw. What makes the Hawaiian Island so awe inspiring is the vast variations from different parts of the island.

My absolute favorite thing to have done on three of the four main islands is to drive the road around the perimeters of the island to see it all. In Maui, my recommendation is to do it in two days, one day for West Maui, and one for South. Do it with a great guidebook (Maui Revealed would be my recommendation, which is now available via an App). It has a milepost by mile post guide where you will find blowholes, secret beaches that you'll have to yourself, hidden waterfalls, as well as tips on where to buy the best banana bread and all sorts of stuff.

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My wife and I enjoyed driving the west side of Maui more than the road to Hana. Though the back side of Haleakala was one of the more surreal spots I've ever seen. I only learned after the fact that rental car companies dont love you driving that portion and if you get into any sort of trouble with your vehicle you will be on your own for repair/pickup whatever.

Went first week of December. Had a great time. Stayed in a VRBO in LaHaina. Food was good, beaches were close and we did see lots of turtles. Saw a blue whale breach the water while on a whale watching tour, which was cool.

Did Road to Hana. Was for sure a "glad I did it" but would not do it again if we go back. Friend at worked kind of freaked me out a little about the narrow road and steep drops offs which were not nearly as bad as he described. We soft of did it backwards as we left early, went to the black sand beach and Hana and then hit all the spots on the way back. Had to back up rental once to let a Ram 2500 through, otherwise it was not nearly as bad as I thought it might be. Locals would just sort of tail gate until I found a spot to move over, they'd beep twice and zoom past and you'd never see them ahead of you again!

Rented the cheapest Avis car available and they gave me a Camero convertible. Which was nice but also reminded me of why I hate convertibles!

Lahaina was the perfect spot as far as I could see. Some of the resort areas on the south beaches looked pretyt nice, but did not have the old school downtown feel that Lahaina did IMO. Yeah, lots of touristy shops but it was fun to just walk down town every night and try different restaurants and wander in/out of the shops.

I'll try to post pics later.

Rent a car.

Buy the book "Maui Revealed".

TIA