Honeymoon on Maui

The Kapalua Bay Hotel was then managed by Marriott, but we’ve heard it is now being converted to timeshares. What a shame for us that we may not be able to return!

The hotel is on the west side of the island, just north of Kaanaapali, another popular area to stay. Kapalaua is actually farther north than all resorts on the west side of the island, except for the Ritz-Carlton, which is adjacent. We were told that rain was more common in this area, but the weather was gorgeous. We experienced occasional high winds, but they seemed equally probable everywhere that we went. The resort is in close proximity to Lehaina, which is a jumping-off point to most excursions and filled with great dining and entertainment options.

The hotel is/was beautiful, with large open-air areas and beautiful landscaping. The resort boasts beautiful world-class golf courses that I’m sure remain open even as the conversion takes place. The breakfast buffet was delicious and the fresh-juice machine was a highlight! We experimented each morning, throwing giant watermelon slices, whole carrots, whole cucumbers, papayas, ginger, and other fresh fruits and veggies into the machine, in all kinds of combinations. Aside from breakfast, we usually dined out in nearby towns. Although the resort was a wonderful place to stay, we’re not ones to stick around resorts and lie on the beach all day. We like to get out and explore!

There are plenty of nice hotel choices in Maui, including some massive luxury hotels in Wailea, such as the Fairmont Kea Lani, Grand Wailea, and Four Seasons. However, we preferred to be north of Wailea, closer to all of the action. There are plenty of nice hotels, such as the Sheraton and the Ritz, that are in Kaanaapali and other towns.

This was our first meal in Hawaii. Boy, were we jet-lagged! We were excited about trying the local cuisine. We'd heard that the islanders have a taste for fatty foods, which we thought was odd for such a warm climate. The food was a little greasy, but very good and reasonably priced. In case you have heard a thousand times, poi is not good. In fact, it's just plain yucky. Aloha mixed plate is located right next to the Old Lehaina Luau, and the setting is very pretty, with outdoor setting.

As we splurged on meal after meal, my husband would read my mind and would remind me, “It’s our honeymoon! We don’t care about money, right?” I said yes, but the $30pp brunches at the hotel, while very delicious, were getting to me a little. Finally, after a week, we made our way to Kihei and tried this little local café, recommended by a friend who, you guessed it, honeymooned on Maui too.

The food was great and super-cheap! The breakfasts were huge – cinnamon rolls, breakfast burritos, you name it…even scrambled eggs on top of fried eggs, which was a new one to us. I believe there were a few tables inside, but we always ate on the patio. It was nice and quaint; a place for locals and tourists alike. Aside from the great food and cheap price point, there was one other notable thing about this joint: Chickens! They strolled freely around our feet as we ate. Weird and pretty funny!

We put this on our list of recommendations for my husband’s step-sister, who also honeymooned on Maui. Afterward, she told us that she and her husband ate at the Kihei Café almost every morning!

We had the lobster benedict for breakfast and it was delicious. This is a great place for breakfast. There were lots of other yummy-sounding items on the menu, but how often do you get lobster benedict?

The environment downstairs, with French doors open to the sidewalk, is perfect for breakfast. However, the dining room upstairs, which is where most guests would be seated at dinner, was unremarkable.

The best fish tacos ever!!! They were only $10, which a fantastic deal on Maui. We had fish tacos for lunch at the Hula Grill a few days later, and they were very good, but Leilanis were the best!

This restaurant is in Kaanaapali’s “Whaler’s Village”, which is a fun place with lots of shops and restaurants. We had to wait about 20 minutes for a table, but it was easy to kill a little time walking around.

Leilani’s atmosphere is casual and very fun. We ate outside, which has a different menu (affordable) than the dining room inside (pricier). I’d assume the dining room was more upscale (reservations recommended, no shorts, etc.), but I'm not positive. We were not interested in dining inside at all. While we were in Hawaii, we wanted to spend as much time outside as possible, including during meals!

I’d heard about Hula Grill from several people prior to our honeymoon, likely due to the great atmosphere. We went for lunch, and it was nice and quiet, but I’d actually recommend going at night and sitting outside under a hut. I believe they have live music in the evening.

The food was pretty good. We had fish tacos, but as I mentioned in my Leilani’s review, Hula Grill’s fish tacos were good, but Leilani’s were the best I’ve ever had.

Hula Grill is right across from Leilanis, in Kaanaapali’s Whaler’s Village.

We stayed at the Kapalua Bay Hotel, which we heard would be closed for conversion into time shares this summer (2006). Just in case the resort and/or the restaurant are still open when you’re reading this, I thought I should right about the fantastic breakfast buffet, served every morning. It’s all you can eat and it’s unbelievable.

They have lox and bagels, which unfortunately is not a common breakfast item where we live, in Minnesota, so it’s always a treat for me. They also have tons of fruit, lots of hot items and full Japanese breakfast. The best part though is the juicer! We mixed and matched a dozen different fresh fruits and veggies throughout the course of the week. Every visit, we tried different combos, normal and unlikely ones, like kids with a chemistry set.

This is an upscale Hawaiian chain that has expanded to the US. We didn’t go while we were in Hawaii, but have dined at Roy’s in Chicago and in Las Vegas. The food is amazing. It's Hawaiian, which I would describe as heavily influenced by Asian cuisines, but some other cultures as well. There are lots of seafood options and red meat entrees are offered as well. We’ve tried many items on the menu and have never been disappointed. Unless you have easy access to another Roy’s restaurant while at home, I’d highly recommend dining there while in Maui.

According to several acquaintances, other luaus can be cheesy and the quality of food is inconsistent. This one however, was consistently recommended. Book before you go, because this luau books up in advance.

The luau was awesome! It was one of our favorite experiences. The setting was very romantic and beautiful, especially at sunset. We were seated with a few other couples who were all good dining companions. No honeymooners at our table, which was shocking! They had a special dance for honeymooners and those celebrating an anniversary. I think about 70% of the audience got up and danced!

The food was great, as were the (unlimited!) drinks. However, I spent too much time eating, drinking and chatting and should have paid more attention to the show. It was very good, but it was over earlier than I’d expected.

This is definitely a “must do”. Don’t hold back. Be a tourist. Wear a Hawaiian dress or shirt, happily accept the leis, drink the fruity concoctions with flowers in them and have a blast!

This was one of our favorite experiences. Surfing was not as hard as we expected and it is really, really fun. The surfboards we used were huge and the waves were probably very small, but why am I even admitting this?! We sure felt like we rocked at the time, so I should just hold onto that! Then again, there are the pictures…there was a photographer who took many pictures of us and then sold us the CD with the digital images…good quality photos, but the people on the surfboards…they could improve!

Incredible! Everyone should do this, but please read this review so that you’ll be prepared and will be able to enjoy it even more than I did.

First, they pick you up at your hotel at like 1 or 2am, but you know, it really didn’t even matter. The whole experience was so exhilarating that I never felt tired, even for a moment…oh shoot, there was the time that I was totally passed out in the van on the way up. Does that count? After that, I didn’t feel tired.

Anyhow, you go to a meeting place where there are a couple hundred people pouring out of vans to get a muffin, a cup o joe, rain gear and a bike helmet. Then you get back in your van; a little like cattle being herded. Next comes the van ride up the volcano. That’s when everyone passes out.

At the top, it is COOOOOLD. People tell you it’s cold, so you bring a little sweater, but it is really, really cold. You need to do better than a little sweater because it’s about 35 degrees…at least that’s what it felt like. Also, if you are prone to elevation sickness, which based on this experience and an earlier one in Colorado, I am, take some meds when you wake up. I was very nauseous and went to the bathroom to get warm, pace a little and make it go away. I didn’t get sick, but other women did. What did happen was I missed the first few minutes of the sunrise. What a huge mistake! I should have powered through it.

When we got to the top, we got a great viewing spot, right at the fence. It was almost pitch black. All we could see were shadows. I mistook some enormous ones, off in the distance, to be boulders. Once the sun rose, all of the shadows that I thought were solid formations turned out to be clouds, with nothing but air surrounding them. What I’d thought was the ground had fallen away and we were looming above the clouds; held in mid-air by the volcano’s peak. It was amazing!

The bike ride down the volcano was equally breathtaking. The ocean was visible to the left and to the right. We stopped a couple of times to strip off layers as we descended into warmer weather and to take pictures. We never pedaled and in fact, we occasionally rode our brakes when we picked up too much speed. The views were just beautiful, and since we couldn’t talk and didn’t have to pedal, nothing distracted anyone from enjoying the view.

I would do this again…but in case I didn’t get my points across already, I’d bring warmer clothes and I’d take motion sickness meds.

You read very little about sights that are North of Kapalua. In fact, most guidebooks discourage tourists from exploring more remote parts of the island, maybe due to narrow roads or lack of gas stations. However, our guidebook recommended visiting the Nakalele Blowhole, which was only a short drive North of our hotel, so we decided to explore.

The Blowhole was just a short walk from the road. Very few people visited while we were there, so it was peaceful. The Blowhole is much like the geysers that you see at Yellowstone National Park, except that you don’t have to wait very long to see it spout. It’s very active, with water spraying every time large waves crash against the rocks. See pics.

Aside from the Blowhole and a very pretty, elevated, craggy, rocky shoreline, there is not much to do here, so you only need to allow for 45 minutes to an hour. If you’d like to see more, the Olivine Pools (small dark greenish natural pools on top of small cliffs overlooking the ocean) are nearby and not heavily trafficked at all. We’d recommend making the short trip there as well.

When you first depart from the airport on Maui, you’ll see signs advertising a CD that will guide you along the Road to Hana. We bought one and it was helpful and interesting; worth it. It was a little bit tough to follow. You were supposed to pause the CD until you got to a certain point and then start again. We were always a little ahead or behind, which was just one manifestation of our inability to follow instructions.

Another sign of this was that we took the Road to Hana the entire way around the island. The rental car companies will tell you not to do it. Some brochures and possibly even your hotel will tell you not to do it. However, we had a great guidebook that encouraged us to go for it, so we did.

The roads are not treacherous; not even close. The only possible danger is running out of gas. There are no gas stations on the back-side and very few other cars or people, so make sure you have a full tank.

Our recommendation is go for it! The Road to Hana that most people see is filled with lush, tropical vegetation. But on the other side, things really get interesting. All of a sudden, the “Hawaii” that everyone envisions disappears and your gazing across the landscape of…Montana! At least I was struck by a resemblance: a huge grayish “mountain” in the distance with lots of short grass separating us from it. The plain was complete with cows and goats grazing. Both landscapes were beautiful, but it was the striking contrast that made the ride really interesting.

Set aside a full day for this excursion. We didn’t get an early start that day and while we saw a few, very pretty waterfalls and other sights, we had to skip over a lot of points of interest. We hoped to go back for more, but never made it. I hope there will be a “next time”…

According to several acquaintances, other luaus can be cheesy and the quality of food is inconsistent. This one however, was consistently recommended. Book before you go, because this luau books up in advance.

The luau was awesome! It was one of our favorite experiences. The setting was very romantic and beautiful, especially at sunset. We were seated with a few other couples who were all good dining companions. No honeymooners at our table, which was shocking! They had a special dance for honeymooners and those celebrating an anniversary. I think about 70% of the audience got up and danced!

The food was great, as were the (unlimited!) drinks. However, I spent too much time eating, drinking and chatting and should have paid more attention to the show. It was very good, but it was over earlier than I’d expected.

This is definitely a "must do". Don’t hold back. Be a tourist. Wear a Hawaiian dress or shirt, happily accept the leis, drink the fruity concoctions with flowers in them and have a blast!

It’s always tough for us to decide whether to take a chance on a magic show or not. Some are incredible, but many are a bit cheesy and even seem more appropriate for children. This one, however, was really great. We could have easily passed this opportunity up and we were so glad that we didn’t!

The magician, Warren, was hilarious and the magic was outstanding. It was impossible to figure out or even to fathom that these things could happen without the involvement of real "magic"!

Warren offers newlyweds seats up front and makes them part of the show, which looked really fun, if you don’t mind being teased a bit. My husband was reluctant to run up and volunteer, so we missed the opportunity.

The before-show appetizers and cocktails were delicious. I’d recommend ordering a la carte rather than purchasing the full meal package. The appetizers we purchased were large enough to satisfy us.