We’re planning to visit Maui in March. Have never taken the kids recently for a “real” vacation. Any suggestions on how we can spend the days would be great. Snorkeling is top on things to do. Not sure if I want to spend money on luau. Any information on what to do and what to watch out for would be greatly appreciated.
Stargazing. I did it at the Hyatt Regency, and it was great. But I see that there is something that might be even better at Mt Haleakala.
I also went to Mt Haleakala for sunrise because that’s supposed to be amazing, but it ended up being a cloudy morning. If you go, it is cold up top and you’ll need a winter coat or something similar.
Do you have a place booked to stay yet? Recommendations may differ depending on what area you are in.
We are going later in the year, but only 4 days in Maui. We are doing. Luau, the Old Lahaina Luau. It’s expensive, but I think we all want to experience it at least once. We are staying at Ka’alapani Beach, so will be visiting Whaler Village and Lahaina. We will be doing a snorkeling trip to Molokoni Crater on the Four Winds Boat. We decided against the heliocopter tour, but that’s one idea for you. Also, the Road to Hana is an all day affair, but seems to be a thing to do.
We loved the trip to Mt Haleakala. Took a bus up before sunrise and rode a bike all the way down. Wonderful trip and I would do it again. It was suggested that we plan that excursion for the first overnight after we arrived because the time difference from continental US would work in our favor. It worked perfectly.
We did the road to Hana. Very nice, but it did take a very long time and if time is limited I’m not sure it is a must do.
Snorkeling at Molokini is also terrific and highly recommended. We also did a luau in Lahaina that was just ok.
We also did a coastal drive (not recommended by the rental car company) north of Kahana. It was a real adventure and scary with the cliff hugging narrow road. This was almost 20 years ago so not sure what the road is like now.
Maui is great. The perfect combination of natural beauty and stuff to do. We also visited Kauai which was gorgeous but more quiet. Maui has a lot going on.
We love Maui. Definitely drive the Road to Hana and do the complete circle around the island in your rental car. We oved our trip to Molokini crater- amazing snorkeling. Lahaini is a great town with good food and shops. We splurged and did an amazing Sunset dinner cruise on Trilogy Excursions.
@Asil65 Glad you chimed in about the complete circle drive being recommended now. Back when we went the rental car companies told us not to go on the road north of Kahana, in fact our company said we would not be covered for any damage to car. I’m surprised that we actually did do it, as we are generally big rule followers.
It was gorgeous, and exciting. Had almost no traffic (at that time), unlike the road to Hana.
The one thing I would do differently is to let the helicopter leave us in Hana, and be driven back. Driving the road at night was scary, even with my young son doing the driving.
We also did several hikes and toured a coffee plantation.
How old are the kids?
@appalachymom - p.s.- The rental cars still do not want you to do it. But we took the chance 2 times when we were in Maui.
If snorkeling is on your itinerary, I’ll share one of our favorite experiences on Maui…a snorkel cruise aboard the Hula Girl catamaran. You pick it up in Lahaina and cruise up the coast to Honolua Bay marine sanctuary for a sheltered snorkel (or scuba if so inclined) excursion. There may be whales along your route depending on the time of year. The yacht is amazing, with outdoor spaces to relax and take in the scenery during the cruise, but it also has a full bar and a chef and galley on board. You order a meal as part of the trip. We all agreed that the meal we had aboard was the best we had during our visit to Maui and Kauai. It’s a pretty cool way to spend a day. https://www.sailingmaui.com/
Just a note regarding those recommending driving over the top of the island: If you are at all afraid of heights, it can be a harrowing experience that you may not enjoy. There are stretches where the “road” is one car width wide with a sheer cliff drop off and no guard rail. All that stands between you and falling off the side of the hill/mountain is, well, really nothing. And if another car is coming the opposite direction, your option is to back up until you find a spot wide enough to pass one another. So just be advised…as a very confident driver who does not enjoy heights, it was challenging to say the least.
Enjoy your trip…it’s a magical place!!
We loved the Old Lahaina Luau. It was a beautiful setting and a really fun night. I think it was worth it. I want to go back for the restaurants. We loved the Monkey Pod and Lahaina Grill. We stayed at the Westin at Ka’alapani Beach and there were lots of excursions for whale watches, snorkeling etc. So great. We were actually there for my daughter’s wedding. So special.
Agree with what @pishicaca said about parts of the drive around the island that aren’t recommended by the car rental agencies. (Don’t worry, the map provided by the rental agency will clearly mark what roads we are talking about). When we went 2 years ago my spouse asked me to turn around as soon as we got to a spot where we could because he was scared by the sheer drop off with no railing. FYI, this is not the Road to Hanna. While the Road to Hanna is twisty and turny it’s OK, but I think even that can be a challenge if someone is prone to getting car sick.
Trip Advisor has a fantastic forum to answer any and all questions related to the Hawaiian Islands. We go to the Big Island, but I use TA each time we go. The TA travel experts are very good at giving suggestions, and are very patient with all the various questions that they’re asked. I highly recommend them. Also, you’ll be able to read lots of posts from other travelers about what’s fun to do, what to avoid, etc.
if you need a car make sure you book one NOW…March is high season and that makes getting a car last minute a real challenge.
If you have any interest in history then reading the novel Hawaii by James Michener may be of interest. It is directly based fiction meaning that his characters are fictional but when he refers to any historical event or place he’s describing what really happened. A good amount of the novel is in Lahaina
We just spent five days in Maui a few weeks ago. Hopefully the water will be warmer in March, because it was too cold for me to enjoy very much. I wanted to snorkel, but just stayed in for a little bit. I would probably avoid the downhill bike trip from Haleakala. I’ve heard it can be pretty dangerous, and the companies push the slower riders to keep up. You’re pretty much just going downhill and concentrating on not crashing, so I don’t know what the fun is in that anyways. I was in a coffee shop listening to a local saying how she’d just crash into those bikers if she had to pick between them and another car, and how much she hated them. 
We went on a 12 mile hike to Haleakala, which was really awesome. There is altitude involved, so you’d have to be into hiking pretty seriously to do it. It would be enjoyable to visit the top and even take a shorter hike, because how often do you get to descend into a volcanic crater, with such unusual scenery. The Grand Wailea has an amazing pool, and if they allowed entry with a fee, I’d consider purchasing it. Slides, river pools, pool bars, it’s wonderful. If the kids are into body surfing or boogie boarding, there are some fantastic beaches (but bring serious sunscreen).
As far as the ride to Hana, maybe. It’s a long, long day, with twisting turning roads that could make kids in the back feel nauseated. When we took the kids to Maui, they took a surfing lesson one day and we drove to Hana without them. For that, they were grateful!
Take a walk in the Iao Valley, it’s really, really pretty. Bike Haleakala if you have the time. You can snorkel right off the beach along the Wailea coastline, and it’s as good as any snorkeling you’d pay an arm and a leg for (you can rent the equipment at Grand Wailea). There is a sweet town called Pa’ia that is so charming and wonderful, and a nice break from the uber-tourism of Lahaina and Kapalua. Get a real Hawaiian plate lunch there. If you do a helicopter ride, try one will also take you guys to see Molokai’s coast. Molokai was formerly the island that the lepers got quarantined on. It’s still exceptionally undeveloped. I don’t like luaus, but understand their part in the local economy. Old Lahaina’s is the classic. Road to Hana is a day’s commitment, very pretty of course, but you have to give yourself the whole day.
We did the Molikini snorkeling which was great, but highly recommend doing an early morning trip as the winds tend to get stronger in the afternoon. Our kids enjoyed a surfing lesson, but not sure it was really worth it.
We stayed in Kaanapali. We also did snorkeling at the Black Rock beach at the Sheraton (and of course my kids jumped off the rocks which scared me). We rented a condo just up the road and so were able to walk (as the public parking is limited). I enjoyed the beach walk every morning since I am an early riser and love to walk.
We also did the Waihee Ridge trail hike, which was wonderful if you like to hike and are reasonably fit.
We started the Road to Hana, but turned around quickly as one kid gets carsick and there was a fair amount of traffic. We stopped at a beach at the start of the road near the airport to watch surfers and windsurfers to have lunch.
Haleakala for sunrise is AMAZING if the weather cooperates. You do need a ticket, so make sure you get one ahead of time. They are very cheap - $1.50 maybe, but they wouldn’t let cars pass without when we went. Captain Andy’s Trips from lahaina were very good, especially the one that takes you over to by Lanai. Whale watching 1 hour tour was too short. Trilogy was fun when we had younger kids - they had trampolines you can lay on (that may have changed due to safety concerns). Depending on where u are staying people can make good food recommendations, and I know there are a couple of threads on Maui already.
Thanks for all the responses. We’re staying at the Residence Inn and my kids are high schoolers.