Maui

View from our room at Hyatt Residences

Pool view from our room at Hyatt Residence

View from our room at Marriot Ocean Club

Paia, cows on one side, ocean on the other. 

This was our second time to visit Maui, it's my second favorite island in Hawaii, my first is Kauai but let me tell you about our adventures in Maui the 2 times we have visited.  The first time we visited we renewed our wedding vows for our 25th wedding anniversary so we stayed at the Hyatt Residences, which we got a 2 bedroom suite which was gorgeous!!!  Ocean view, full kitchen, living room, and 2 bedrooms and a balcony to sit and watch the sunset on the ocean.  I received a promotion in the mail to stay here and of course, attend a 90-minute timeshare presentation.  We did ours in the morning so it wasn't that bad, but I would definitely recommend staying here, it's close to everything and walking distance to the mall and restaurants they have nearby.  Also keep in mind when you land at the airport it takes approximately 45 minutes to an hour to get to the hotel and their's only one way streets, so make sure to leave early to the airport because we encountered traffic and took us a 1hr and 45 minutes to get to the airport.  The second time we stayed in Maui we stayed at the Marriot Ocean Club which is part of our timeshare, the grounds are gorgeous but the rooms are dated, we didn't get a suite this time since it was just the 2 of us but our room's a/c didn't work most of the time there.  It wasn't very warm outside so it wasn't a big issue but they tried to fix it 3 times without offering us another room.  If we go back we would probably upgrade to a suite or stay at another hotel.  We couldn't complain too much since we used our points for pay for the room but still. 

Kitty from the Lanai Cat Sanctuary

Here's a list of restaraunts we ate at while in Maui; 
Hula Grill very good price is $$$$ 
Slappy Cakes for breakfast, great eggs benedict price is $$ 
Lapperts  Hawaii Ice Cream, home of Dole Whip $ 
Monkey Pod in Whalers Village Price $$$ 
Star Noodle $$ 
Fleetwoods on Front St $$$$ 
Aloha Mixed Plate $, all were good and I would recommend.  

Ali'i Kula lavender 

Hawaii is very expensive so the best thing to do is go to Walmart or Costco, stock up on food for your time there so you don't have to pay for all your meals daily at local restaurants.  We normally purchased items for breakfast, water, and snacks. 

Ali'i Kula Lavender flower

 Excursions, the first time we were there we did the following items:

Ho'okipa Beach 

The road to Hana!  this is a must when in Maui, it's a day-long trip and I advise hiring a tour company to take you up the mountain because of theirs lots of turns and it's best to sit back and enjoy the view then paying attention to the scary cliffs and turns.  Thetour companies are pros so they know how to maneuver thru the Road to Hana and they stop and all the best photo ops.  Also if you have the slightest of motion sickness take some Non-Drowsy Dramamine before you go because all of the turns will make you nauseous.  I get motion sickness all the time so I took some before we left and I was absolutely fine.
 We stopped at Paia town for some freshly baked banana bread, then we headed off to Twin Falls to see the waterfalls, at the Wai’anapanapa State Park we saw the epic Black sand beaches, the sand is more like a lot of black sand pebbles so it's not smooth on your feet and the surf is quite rough so be careful if you get in the water.  We were not able to go to the Bamboo forest because there was a fire on the way up so we had to turn around and got back but I've seen pictures and it's spectacular. 

Wai’anapanapa State Park, Black Sand Beach

Pic of my friends on our Sunset Cruise

One the way back to the hotel our tour guide told us he had a surprise for us, he took us to Ho'okipa Beach and saw turtles, so many large turtles, it was so amazing to see them, they actually blended in with the rocks in the sand, see the pics below.  We also booked a sunset cruise with Trilogy and that was nice, got some of the best sunset photos crew was very fun.  We did alot of wedding stuff the rest of them time, we renewed our vows on Ironwood Beach and got some amazing photos of such a special time in our lives with friends and family, after that we had our reception dinner at Hula Grill, wonderful service and food. 

 Our vow renewal ceremony was a day to remember, of course we went thru a lot of planning and flying everyone in for the occassion, the ceremony was casual but did not plan for rain the time of the ceremony.  Every day we were there was beautiful, even the morning of but as we started driving over there it starts pouring down, bad. I had a wedding coordinator who was taking care of my guests while we were driving over there.  I know you can't control mother nature but I had to admit I was sad thinking we were goign to renew our vows in the pouring rain, BUT as soon as we parked our car something magical happened.  The skies opened up and a double rainbow appeared.  I don't know if you believe in God or not but I do and I believed it was a sign, as felt truly blessed to witness such a rarity.  The ceremony was a traditional Hawaiian vow renewal and was quick but I will never forget that day, it was definately a day to remember and hopefully a story I can tell my grandchildren one day. 

  

  
    

Our second time there we took our time and didn't have an tinerary but we did got to downtown Maui where they have lots of restaurants and shops, also the historic Banyan Tree was cool to see, its been there since 1982, of course when in Hawaii you have to have the famous Dole whip, they sell it there in the downtown area. The second day we went to Lanai, it's a small island adjacent to Maui, you can get a boat to get there. The only thing i was interested in seeing the Lanai Cat Sanctuary, where they have feral and homeless cats there, they house over 600 cats there.  We arranged transportation to get there and once your there you can give the cats snacks and sit and visit with them.  They are all very tamed and the place is very clean when you think of that many cats all I can imagine is the smell.  No, not at all, they live outdoors and they have a lot of open shelters for them and vets that visit weekly to tend to the cats that need medical attention.  Was so thankful I was able to visit such a nice rescue facility for our 4 legged furry friends.  
The next day we went to the Ali'i Kula Lavender, which is a lavender farm.  Lavender is not native to Maui but has the perfect climate on the Haleakala slope where the climate is cool and dry.  We took a walking tour of the place and saw so many beautiful plants and flowers all with a story.  While we were there we had lavender coffee with lavender scones, delicious! We went back to Paia to eat lunch and to check out the waves at the Ho'okipa Beach, then after that, we ventured to Iao Valley State Park and went into a totally different climate to see the majestic mountains and water, gorgeous pics here. We tried to eat at Mama's Fish House but you have to make reservations way in advance, it's a must do while in Maui. We enjoyed dinner at Monkey Pod in KA'ANAPALI.  The last day in Maui we enjoyed a day by the pool and took in all the beauty of Maui.  Such a beautiful place and a great place to visit. Other great things to do in Maui is a helicopter tour, a Luau, whale watching in the winter and snorkeling in Molokini.  We had done these activities during other trips so we opt out of those.  One thing my husband wants to do when we visit again is deep sea fishing but until next time. Mahalo!