Area to stay in Maui?

[oddible]

We're headed to Maui the end of April and will probably hook up a condo with VRBO but are wondering where to stay in Maui. Seems like both the Kihei / Wailea coast and Kaanapali / Lahina offer some interesting options. We're not too into the overly resorty areas and prefer it a bit more mellow / local (Kona we found quite mellow). We don't need a lot of nightlife though a decent restaurant or two would be cool. I know these areas are pretty small so we could probably stay anywhere and find it easy to navigate the whole stretch. With the above in mind which area would we be better off? At either would we be better off up near Kihei or down near Wailea or up nere Kaanapali or down hear Lahaina? Any more precise locales particularly good to be in walking distance of? Probably be doing a lot of shore diving but a few key boat dives (Molokai, Molokini, Lanai).

There are tons of recommendations on dive ops and sites so I'll peruse those threads for our diving needs

One question I have on dives though is how important will reservations be around the end of April?

 

[baystr]

I usually reserve in advance, especially if you want to hit Molokai for Hammerheads, also, its whale season so typically charters are booked a little heavier.........with that, cant go wrong either side, but I prefer Kaanapali/Lahaina, it the town has some old charm...........Kihei is getting kind of big! It's a 30-45 drive to either one so just pick. More dive op choices in Kihei........longer boat rides to Lanai though, decent shore dives all over.............shop for a deal and take it. Good luck and great diving to you

 

[spoolin01]

Hard question to answer, it's a toss-up from what I've seen. Not much to do shoreside in the resort areas, so Kihei or Lahaina are better for variety of businesses. Good shore diving all up and down, except right off Kihei (from what I've heard about that spot), though I'm less familiar with some spots along the northern stretch. As a generalization, I'd say the reef is more extensive north of the 'waist' (the harbor area) than from Kihei south, but as I said, there are some gaps in the exploring I've done up north. Since you can drive from one end to the other in a little over an hour or so, the condo location isn't so much an issue. I'd say Kailua-Kona is more like Kihei than Lahaina, but someone else might think just the opposite. Except for small Lahaina, the developed area is all resort-ish in the northern half.

ETA: either would be fabulous...

 

[k ellis]

Kihei is more town like but probably a little cheaper then wailea as Wailea is more of a resort location with some high end and famous places. (Beautiful just high end). Fairmont Kea Lani and the Grand Wailea are probably the 2 best in my opinion.

Anyway check out a friend of mine (on here) as she runs a shop over there. Ive met with her once and she seemed very level headed..... ScubaBoard - View Profile: TeriLeonard

 

[DiveMaven]

Kaanapali is a planned resort development. However, it is really nice to be able to stay in one place and walk to many restaurants and have a beautiful beach in front with lots of activities. Lahaina reminds me of Key West. Fun, kitchy, a bit touristy, but with a flavor of an old fishing town. Kihei is a locals town with a bit of visitor/tourist thrown in, nice beaches, and lots of activities, but most resorts/condos are not "ocean front", instead you have to cross S. Kihei Road to go to the beach. Wailea is about luxury, money, and nice beaches.

For Lanai charters you can go with Extended Horizons or Lahaina Divers out of Lahaina. For Molokai, Lahaina Divers is the only game in town that has two scheduled charters a week. You can also go to Molokini with Lahaina Divers. For Molokini and S. Maui sites, most often recommended here are Ed Robinson's, Mike Severns, and B&B out of Kihei. For S. Maui shore diving, most often recommended is Shaka Doug, though Maui Dreams gets the nod sometimes too (K Ellis recommends Teri of Maui Dreams above). I'm not aware of any shore diving guides in W. Maui at this time.

Driving from Kaanapali to Kihei early to catch a 6:30am charter will take about 45 minutes. From Kihei to Lahaina can be a bit longer in the morning as there is quite a bit of traffic with locals heading to work.

Whale season officially ends on May 15, so the end of April is the very end and you'll be lucky to see or hear whales at that time. With many spring breaks being late this year because Easter is late, if you're going around that time, you may find boats booked, so it might be wise to make some inquiries now as to availability. Lahaina Divers runs the biggest dive boats on the island, carrying up to 24 divers, so they almost always have room, but we've been told "no space" a time or two in past years, so it never hurts to book early if you know what your plans are.

 

[spoolin01]

I'll second the recommendation for Maui Dreams. I rent tanks from them when I go to Maui and really like their shop. Their reg tech helped me out with an IP problem on the spot one time. When I was there a year ago they were offering scooter dives from shore.

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

Kihei is more town like but probably a little cheaper then wailea as Wailea is more of a resort location with some high end and famous places. (Beautiful just high end). Fairmont Kea Lani and the Grand Wailea are probably the 2 best in my opinion.

The State of Hawaii has always ranked Wailea as the most expensive resort "area" in the State; the average room rates in Wailea are significantly higher than any other resort area in Hawaii. Maui as a whole has the highest average room rates of any Island in the State. Kihei is significantly less expensive than Wailea but it is possible that any use of cheap, cheaper and cheapest to describe a stay on Maui is a questionable use of those words.

Just a little clarification with regards to Wailea Resorts; The Kea Lani (managed by Fairmont) has no rooms, only suites, so their lowest rate and average rate are probably the highest, the Grand Wailea (managed by Hilton) is the biggest resort in Wailea (perhaps Maui's largest resort), and has the most spoiled brats terrorizing the place compared to anywhere else in Wailea, the Four Seasons Maui, located next to the Grand Wailea, is nearly always rated as the Best Resort on Maui, in nearly every rating of the island's resorts.

AAA gives the Five-Diamond award to the Four Seasons Maui, for the last 17 years. Up in Kapalua, the Ritz Carlton is also a Five-Diamond resort, although it's 12 years with that rating may not be consecutive.

The Fairmont Kea Lani and Grand Wailea are both AAA Four-Diamond resorts, and I do not believe they have ever been Five-Diamond.

Mobile's Five-Star designation is only given to one resort in the State of Hawaii; the Four Seasons Maui.

Condé Nast Traveler's Gold List 2011 gives the Four Seasons Maui a 95 rating, the highest in the State of Hawaii. The Fairmont Kea Lani gets an 89.3 and the Grand Wailes gets 89.1.

 

[CLEAR BLUE]

We stayed in Kihei when we were on Maui and had a wonderful time there. If I were to go back...I think I would like to stay in Lahaina. It had more of a laid back feel to it and there was plenty to do there also. We dove with B&B Scuba and had a great time, by the way...

 

[k ellis]

the Grand Wailea (managed by Hilton) is the biggest resort in Wailea (perhaps Maui's largest resort), and has the most spoiled brats terrorizing the place compared to anywhere else in Wailea

This is so very true and its in part to I believe to its water park. Its as I said one of my favorite but man do they ever nickle and dime you to death there.

In addition to the cost of the room they charge a 15.00 per day resort fee. Like 15 dollars per day parking fee also. I dont really care much for these places and the airlines doing that because hidden cost are not fair at all.

By hidden cost on airlines (Just to clarify) I mean charge you an over priced fair for a ticket then charge per bag as well as many other fees for comforts that should automaticly be included in the upfront cost.

As for Lahaina I will say I loved it but its just too much going on in too small of a space for my comfort.

All in all I am most impressed with Maui as opposed to the other islands but its just a personal opinion.

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

All in all I am most impressed with Maui as opposed to the other islands but its just a personal opinion.

There is a reason Maui is always rated as one of the top 3 tropical destinations and one of the top 3 most expensive tropical destinations, in the World; because most people think it's worth it.

Actually usually 2nd to the Maldives in both categories. That is not to say Maui is highly rated as a Dive Destination. Maui is a very, very popular vacation destination, with diving. :blinking: