Posts Tagged ‘Maui’

Frequent readers of The Vacation Gals know that I can talk for hours about the benefits of a family vacation in Hawaii. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately as the case may be, I was recently given the opportunity to expound at length about Maui. The resultant podcast is here, courtesy of Addison Schonland (yeah, that’s my 10 year old in the hammock, there). He asked some smart questions about family travel in this popular Hawaiian island, and I happily prattled on. It was great to be given the chance to share suggestions for family-friendly Maui activities, from exploring the ruggedness of Kapalua to snorkeling off the touristy soft white sand beaches along Wailea. Maui has so many many things to do, and so many accommodations worthy of note, that I could have talked for twice as long. Maybe next time!

Thanks go to the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua and the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa. As is clear from the podcast, I recommend each for wonderful, albeit very different, family vacations in Maui.

What happens when everybody’s favorite vacation spot turns out to be, well, everybody’s favorite vacation spot? Some of the best snorkeling in Maui is actually a boat ride away, off the coast of an uninhabitable crater called Molokini. This is no secret: it’s in every guide book, travel article, and blog regarding Maui activities. So, what happens when “the best snorkel spot” is widely known? Easy – everyone remotely interested in snorkeling reserves a seat on half day snorkel trip catamaran there.  Hawaii itself is a popular vacation destination, Maui even more so, and Molokini the go-to snorkel spot. It’s not always a pretty site.

The first time I did a half-day snorkel trip to Molokini was in 2006. It really was great. Though hardly a secret, this was just at the advent of online travel blogging, so tourists still relied more on their hotel concierges for activity tips and suggestions. There were two other catamarans besides ours that cruised from Maui to Molokini, and this was few enough so that we could all snorkel in relative peace. Flash forward to the Christmas holiday season of this past year, and…well, not so much. Everyone seems to know about Molokini, and there were seven other day trip boats out there along with ours. That equals a lot of people! Snorkeling with my family was fun, but there wasn’t a minute that went by without other Hawaii vacationers right next to us — some shouting, others elbowing, or worse accidentally kicking one of my kids.

My Family Snorkel at Molokini Crater, Hawaii

Last year, we snorkeled at the Captain Cook Monument site of Hawaii’s Big Island and, while popular, it wasn’t overcrowded. This is likely because the Big Island simply isn’t as popular a travel destination as is Maui. The snorkel trip was better, in my mind. Part of the joy of snorkeling is the feeling one gets of being in the hot sun one moment, and in a completely different underwater world the next. Colorful tropical fish and the occasional green sea turtle, with no one else in sight…it’s quite a memorable experience. Being kicked in the face by an overzealous snorkeler’s fin is also a memorable experience, but in a completely different way.

Now, all these people swimming around, splashing and noisily calling to their families, has a deleterious affect on the marine life. Fish prefer to be left alone, of course! While we did indeed, see lots of butterfly fish, yellow tangs and the like, the shyer species were nowhere to be found. The humuhumunukunukuapua’a for example, is a trigger fish, and trigger fish are notoriously skittish. No shy trumpet fish, either. So, while I think I saw around the same amount of fish at Molokini Crater as I did in 2006, the diversity of species was reduced. It’s a shame. Biodiversity keeps habitats healthy.

Nearby child-friendly alternative: The southern coast of Maui, in particular the Wailea beach resort area, is famous for its smooth, calm waters. We stayed at the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa, and were able to snorkel right off shore, a few steps east of the Marriott resort property. It was less crowded than Molokini, and my kids had a great time exploring the underwater world without worrying about getting a foot in the face.  While Molokini is still on everyone’s lists of best Maui snorkel spots, Wailea is pretty awesome too (go offshore a little for best results; we kayaked out a bit the second day). Now, what may be lost by not taking a chartered boat to Molokini is a secondary stop at “Turtle Town.” However, it’s an easy drive from Wailea to Makena, and there are so many green sea turtles lazing around there and La Perouse, it would be hard to miss them.

The best snorkel spot in Maui used to be the Molokini Crater, of this I have no doubt. However, if the site continues to grow in popularity, more fish will leave for quieter lives elsewhere. That can’t be a good thing, not for the marine habitat, not for the local economy, and not for tourists eager to see a fantastical underwater world while on vacation in Hawaii. Let’s hope things change, before it’s too late.

Catamarans at Molokini Crater for Snorkel Trips

Thank you to the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa for hosting my family for this travel experience.

Marriott International is such a terrific brand of hotels and resorts. I saw dozens of families happily reaping the rewards of cashing in their Marriott Points at the Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa in Maui over Christmas; what a way to spend the holidays, on the most luxurious stretch of beach on that Hawaiian island. The company as a whole was the first corporate sponsor of the Children’s Miracle Network, way back in 1983, and Marriott Resorts Hawaii has been a generous partner to The Vacation Gals for some travel articles. Back in August, we wrote about how anyone could try to win a free Hawaii vacation with Marriott Resorts Hawaii, and to date, a bunch of (lucky, lucky) people have. The contests were broken down into two parts; one, a simple “twitter and enter” type of raffle, ended in October. The second part is pretty stupendous – in this one, a single winner gets to bring eleven friends and/or family members along for a full week in Hawaii.  Amazing!

The “Win a Hawaiian Trip for 12″ video contest is at the public voting stage now. Go to MarriottHawaiiTweets.com to watch the videos of the 10 finalists, and vote for your favorite. They’re pretty creative – and voting is fun – so it’s enjoyable to watch these video contest entries…well, not as much fun as winning a full week’s vacation in Hawaii, but fun nonetheless. The top 10 videos will be available for viewing and voting from January 11 to January 15.  I can’t wait to see who wins.

A favorite part of the sprawling Ritz-Carlton Kapalua property in Maui is Dragon’s Teeth. It’s a short and easy hike from the main grounds – although we made it more adventurous for our intrepid little family by scaling the beachside end of the cliff, there’s a flat path from the golf course side as well. It’s on Makalua-puna Point, which is maintained by the Ritz-Carlton Hotel here in the Kapalua Resort area: This means little, as maintaining it basically means that the hotel staff warns guests when the surf is too rough to walk to the end of the point. It was actually deemed to be on the rough side when my family and I went here during our Christmas vacation in Hawaii, and the warning sufficiently scared my children into hanging back by the flat ground and old labyrinth. It’s been windy and wild in this part of Maui lately; the video picks up quite a lot of wind. Can you spot the rainbow?

We loved the sounds of the wind and the crashing waves and the feeling of being at the end of the Earth — so much so that we ventured out to see the Dragon’s Teeth at Makulua-puna Point twice in as many days. The Kapalua Resort area is relatively remote and private for this popular Hawaiian island; Dragon’s Teeth is a highlight.

Now, while we were packing for our family vacation in Hawaii, we’d decided to have rainbow-spotting contest (sounds weird, maybe, but we like to invent our own travel contests). Hanging out at Dragon’s Teeth in Maui renders this travel contest moot, though. After each huge crashing wave comes roaring up Makalua-puna Point, a new rainbow hovers in the air for around ten seconds. Transient, ephemeral and beautiful, each rainbow serves to remind us to appreciate the details of every moment.

Thank you to the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua for hosting my family for this travel experience.

Frequent readers of this travel blog know that The Vacation Gals absolutely love Hawaii. From great hikes on Kauai and somewhat treacherous ones on Maui, to fun in Oahu and multigenerational musing on the Big Island, well, we rave about it all. When it comes to luxury family travel, Hawaii just can’t be beat. Maui, in particular, wins award after award for its child-friendly beaches and resorts. One luxury resort there also just won recognition for its family-friendly beach. This is the Fairmont Kea Lani.

Ah…Just saying “kea lani” is transportive. The Fairmont Kea Lani is one of my favorite child-friendly luxury resorts in the world. It’s right on the beach in upscale Wailea, noted as one of the best stretches of beach in Hawaii. Every room is a suite in the Fairmont Kea Lani, and the curve of the coastline here makes for easy waves – not exactly for surfers, but perfect for little kids. The sand is soft and powdery, a far cry from the a’a lava rock that bedevils the beaches on the Big Island.

I have a soft spot for the Fairmont brand, and the Kea Lani in Maui, particularly, because that’s where we stayed the first time I took my kids to Hawaii. They learned to snorkel right off the beach, and spotted many species of tropical fish lazing around. My children loved the Keiki Kids camp, the food (pricey!) and the playtime with other kids their ages. Parents love having a safe place to essentially dump their kids, making a hike around Haleakala National Park feasible. Or just a visit to the spa, whatever.

The Professional Travel Guide website has named the Fairmont Kea Lani, in Maui, as one of the the Top 10 Beach Resorts for Families, and I have to agree. My kids have stayed at around five resorts on the Hawaiian islands now, and the Kea Lani gave them their best camp experience. Yes, we still have the coconut turtle-shell craft projects they made there…somewhere…and I still have great memories of watching them splash around in the pool (with waterslide) while I enjoyed the swim-up bar. The beach is so pristine, despite the steady influx of tourists, that it’s easy to spot the sea turtles that hang out at the edge of the resort property.

These Top 10 lists abound in the travel industry, and let’s face it, some are pretty questionable. But the Professional Travel Guide site certainly got this one right. The Fairmont Kea Lani is one of the world’s best luxury family-friendly beachside resorts. Oh, and some proof? The view of the ocean from a Kea Lani pathway is my Twitter wallpaper. See for yourself!

As SoCalGal mentioned in her last post, we’re in Hawaii, enjoying a fabulous stay at the Westin Maui Resort & Spa. From our hotel in Ka’anapli, on West Maui, we’ve made excursions to a few different attractions on the island.

Since both of us like to hike, Mudslide Mama and I asked our friend Michael from the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau to recommend a great trail for us. He got us driving directions–via outfitter Hike Maui, I believe–to the Waihee Ridge Trail. Great! We thought. An hours’ drive along the northwest coast to a 5-mile round-trip, moderate trek.

Indeed, the actual hike itself was amazing. We felt like we’d been dropped in Jurassic Park, with all the lush foliage, bright-green ferns, deep gorges and striking cliffs we spotted along the trail.

But what our buddy Michael didn’t tell us was that the drive to the trailhead–Honoapiilani Hwy and Kahekili Hwy–was treacherous. So much so, the rental car company’s contract is void if you drive on the crazy, winding, curvy, cliff-hugging so-called “highway” (ha!) above the Pacific Ocean! (Naturally, we discovered this while reading the “don’t drive here” map the rental-car company gave us, while already hugging the cliffs in said rental car. )

Thankfully, Jen was at the wheel, handling the crazy winding roads like a pro. She dutifully tooted the car horn when we’d pass a “Blow Horn” sign, to warn drivers who couldn’t see us around the rocky corner. Of course, I got to enjoy all the amazing scenery, while she kept her eyes on the road.

And you know what? Even though the ride was mildly anxiety provoking (okay, white-knuckle inducing), we were actually pleased we didn’t know we weren’t supposed to drive on the Kahekili Highway in a rental car. If we’d been given the option of taking the “easier” route to the trailhead, we probably would have taken it.

Instead we found ourselves passing through tiny towns way off the typical tourist route. We marveled at the little houses in remote Old Kahakuloa Village, and wondered how many people attended services at the small, green clapboard church. We giggled at the signs that proclaimed “Free Samples of Julia’s Best Banana Bread on the Planet – 3/4 mile ahead.” And wondered why we’d see a sign, “Narrow Road Ahead,” when we’d already been on “narrow winding roads” for the past 45 minutes! What? How much narrower and more winding could a road get!

And we stopped and chatted with Bruce Turnbull at the Turnbull Studios & Sculpture Garden. He moved to the area after “dropping out”in the 1960s and never left–creating a little slice of paradise in an area where few visitors tread.

So, we’re thrilled that we ended up on the road less traveled for our excursion the other day, but we do wonder if Michael was trying to tell us something by sending us on the most treacherous road either of us had ever encountered! Was it something we said?

Let’s face it, there are a lot of hotels in the Westin family (owned by Starwood). We’ve been to some that are just fine; nothing wrong but nothing to write home about. And now, we’ve experienced the Westin Maui Resort & Spa, in Hawaii. This is, truly, an outstanding hotel, and great for family travel. The Vacation Gals recommend it!

Located in the resort area of Kaanapali on West Maui, The Westin Maui Resort & Spa is impeccably designed. The recent renovation resulted in calm, open spaces with simple lines and a lack of clutter in the hallways. The previous owner (over 20 years ago) left behind may genuine Asian antiques, which we found throughout the resort property. At first, the idea of real relics simply exhibited made me feel a little nervous – after all, this is a completely family-friendly hotel with lots of young kids running around - but the antiques appear to be in no danger of Destruction by Wayward Child.

Those kids running around are kept plenty busy, you see; the water slides, 4 family pools (and a 5th for adults only), an activity filled day camp…even daily feeding of koi, those big red carp, every morning at 9:30AM. While we were invited to stay at this hotel without our our children, but it was great seeing families enjoying themselves so much.

The Westin Maui has a Director of Fun, which just might win the award for Best Job Title Ever. If you’re planning a Hawaii family vacation at the Maui Westin Resort & Spa, the Director of Fun will help plan out all the child friendly activities you’d want to keep your children happy on the trip (as if “happy” and “Hawaii” don’t go together so perfectly anyway). Children will love starting the day feeding the koi, and ending it by making Hawaiian s’mores on the beach (these have pretty much the same ingredients as regular s’mores, plus fresh Hawaii pineapple). And for us old marrieds, the Director of Romance can help rekindle those honeymoon feelings. Fun and Romance: It’s what a vacation at the Maui Westin Resort & Spa is all about.