Hearts in Hawai'i
Our Trip To Hawai'i (2002)--Maui
3/21/2002
On To Maui!
Despite my being fairly weary of the Waikiki mob scene, I found it somewhat difficult to leave. Not everything that we had wanted to do was accomplished, visiting Punchbowl and doing a circle island tour being the two primary ones. Still, our stay here was complete and now it was time to move on to our favorite island, one which had captured our devotion and appreciation when we were married there in 1996.
The weather had become somewhat unsettled the night before, with a cold front settling in over Kauai and moving eastward, evidenced by the rain I'd encounted while riding the Blue Line from Bishop Museum back to the Park Shore hotel. By the time we landed at Kahului Airport, rented our car and drove to Lahaina (getting significantly lost along the way, but a nice way to see parts of Wailuku and Kahului which we hadn't intended to see), the wind had come up sharply, to about 30 mph. Despite it being mostly sunny in Lahaina, the north wins had blown in light sprinkles from the clouds hovering over the West Maui Mountains. It made for the chilliest night we would encounter during our 16-day trip, and kept us off the lanai for the first evening. We check in at the Lahaina Shores and then walk over to Cheeseburger in Paradise and enjoy what we think are the best burgers we had ever eaten (with the likely exception of Gordy's Hi-Hat in Cloquet, Minnesota). It's well worth braving the cool evening.
By Monday morning, the sprinkles had quit and the winds had died down quite a bit. We had decided after our go-go-go itinerary on Oahu we would stick to a very basic plan; alternate days of activity with days of just laying outside in the sun, pool-side. As it turned out, this worked out extrememly well and kept us from getting burnt out as we had in 1996.
By Tuesday morning, we're ready to explore!
Lahaina Shores Beach Resort
This place seems to be a well-kept and underappreciated secret to many visitors. Most visitors, especially the young, opt for the hotels just north in Ka`anapali, or south in Kihei, Wailea and Makena. Lahaina Shores is the only hotel in Lahaina which lies right on the beach. Lahaina Roads also sits on the water but there is no beach there. The beach in front of the hotel isn't spectacular, not especially good for snorkling, and with a barrier reef a few hundred yards off-shore, offers no promise of boogie boarding, much less snorkling. Due to this, not many people visit this beach, but to us, it's a good thing.
Lahaina Shores features studio and one-bedroom condo units with fully-equipped kitchens. There are on-site coin operated washers and driers, which were very useful to us, given the length of our stay in Maui. There was a $3/day charge to park in their lot (didn't have this extra charge in '96), which seemed to us a hidden charge. A huge percentage of those who stay in Lahaina drive there (no public transit on Maui as there is on Oahu). A more honest method would be to simply add it to the base rate.
But let's not quibble over small things, principled as they are. The lanai, which overlooks the Pacific and the island of Lanai, was a place for us to be in the early morning, as the sun was comes behind us over the West Maui Mountains. Likewise, it was a nice a place to be in late afternoon, after tanning and watching the various activities on the beach and on the water. It was especially the place to be during the late evening, after the sun sets. The yard and pool area quiet down by 10 p.m., and except for the occasional strollers on the beach, you find there is no sound other than the ocean waves and the wind in the palm trees before us. The word "magical" comes to mind here. You may prefer "peaceful". Whatever you call it, the late evenings have a settling effect on us as we sit there reflecting on the day which had passed and make rudimentary plans for the next day. This was as close to perfection as you can come.
When I try to compare Lahaina Shores to the Park Shore, it's rather difficult. Lahaina Shores rating: 8
Studio condo at the Lahaina Shores
Patty enjoying the view
First day view of a very windy beach from our lanai
Resort pool
Lahaina Shores grounds
Sunset approaching
Another wonderful sunset
Cruise ship in the distance
Maui Ocean Center
This place was somewhat similar to the Waikiki Aquarium, except it's newer and has one amazing feature where you walk through a glass tube, viewing all types of fish swimming all around you. Quite the treat! Also, like the Aquarium, you get a hand-held listening device (here it cost $2 extra on top of the $18.99 admit charge. It was worth it, and this device had more options and more exhibits where it was useful.
Many of the features are much the same as at the Waikiki Aquarium, but the Maui Ocean Center has more to see. Is it worth the charge compared to the $7 charge for the Waikiki Aquarium? It's really a toss-up. Given the Maui Ocean Center had many more visitors making you wait to get close enough to enjoy many exhibits, I believe it is....barely. Rating: 6
Having a busy day, we preceeded the trip to the Maui Ocean Center with an earlier visit to Ka`anapali Beach and the shops at Whaler's Village. While Whaler's has a lot to offer some people, we noticed little of any real interest to us. Trendy and pricey would be the two best words to describe it. Ka`anapali Beach has a 1.5 mile paved walk which front the beach and is a great place for loved ones to enjoy a sunset. The place really jumps during the day, and is no doubt Maui's most popular beach. This is a tranquil early morning walk (other than someone buttonholing us with a "timeshare" attempt. "Is this a timeshare?" I queried. No, it was "like it but not exactly the same". Yeah, right. See ya!)
Outside the Maui Ocean Center, looking toward the Ma`alaea Harbor
Sheraton Ka`anapali with Black Rock
Patty with Black Rock in the background
Front Street
This has to be the most unique area in all of Hawai`i. It's the main drag through Lahaina but if you're staying north in Ka`anapali, Kapalua, Nipili or Kahana, you might not even know about it as you zip past on the Honoapi`ilani Highway which connects Central and South Maui with West Maui. If you miss it, you miss a lot.
First off, Front Street has a certain feel to it which is difficult to describe. It's a narrow two-way street which fills with auto traffic and pedestrians on every night. Many shops line the street, not to mention probably more top-notch restaurants than you will ever see in a town this size. We only had the opportunity to check out a few of these restaurants; of all the places we ate dinner while here, Kimo's gets a huge thumbs-up. We'd been there in '96 for our wedding night dinner, and were more than pleased. This time around it was better when my wife treated me on my birthday. The wait to get a table can be long, but you don't feel impatient at all with this as you listen to the live soloist playing tunes while you sit at either the bar or in the lounge which looks over the Pacific. It's a beautiful venue, but the service and food are even better. For the price (not expensive by Hawai`i standards), this is the best meal deal we found.
Compadres is another place where we liked the atmosphere quite a bit. The food? Not so much. They messed up and put chicken in my meal instead of the ground beef which I had ordered, but it was still tasty. Patty wasn't impressed with her Seafood Enchilada, complaining the fish tasted, well, like fish. Old, in other words, not very fresh or well kept.
When it comes to the Hard Rock Cafe, let's face it; you're there for the atmosphere and probably to purchase some clothing, which I did, leaving there a t-shirt and hat heavier and $41 lighter. The food here is average, and the service can certainly be more friendly! They play music videos on several screens found throughout the restaurant. Good if you want to see what's playing, distracting otherwise.
If you're looking for art to ship back home, you'll likely find it on Front Street...for a price. For that matter, everything here comes at a hefty price except for the Whaler's General Store, A-Z Discount Stores and a few ABC Stores to be found. If you want to buy groceries (which we did, having a fully equipped kitchen), Safeway is near the end of Front Street in the Lahaina Cannery Mall. Prices will stun you if not prepared; a couple places in Kahului are a cheaper alternative for groceries. How bad is it? A few examples; $3.69 for a half-pound of bacon, $4.70 for a gallon of milk, $5.79 for a 12-pack of Diet Coke. Get the picture? We could only justify it by the savings we would realize by not eating out every meal. Gasoline is also expensive here; the cheapest we found was $1.82/gallon at Shell (compared to $1.27 in Duluth at the time).
Getting back on-topic, you need to explore Front Street at least one night if you're staying anywhere in West Maui. It's worth the experience.
View across the harbor from near the Pioneer Inn
Carthaginian, a replica whaling ship from the 19th century
Beach near the Lahaina Harbor
Patty at the Feast at Lele site
Pioneer Inn
Kamehameha Iki Beach near the Lahaina Shores
View from the seawall on Front Street
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