We get a number of people asking about if we have baby stuff in the condo. We have some sand toys and other toys but for cribs, playpens, high chairs etc. you have to rent those from various companies on Maui. A couple that we have had people use are http://www.akamaimothers.com and http://www.nokaoibabyrentals.com. They will come in and set everything up before your stay and take it all down when you leave. People seem pretty happy with both of them and the rates seem very reasonable.
Category Archives: Condo
Low Cost / No Cost Flights to Hawaii
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A few people have asked how to get low cost flights to Maui so I thought I would share a few tricks.
Use Hawaiian Airlines Miles Program
We have a Hawaiian Airlines VISA card through their Hawaiian Miles program. We pass practically every purchase we make though this card and as a result we typically get enough miles for at least one round trip flight a year for no cost. Critical to this trick is to always pay the monthly balance to avoid any interest payments.
After we starting running our finances this way I wondered why we didn’t do it sooner. We only have to worry if there is enough money on our checking account once a month to pay the card balance and you get 30 days to pay for everything interest free. Most of the things I used to have to write a check for each month are now on auto-pay through this card and my life is a lot simpler.
We put all our normal expenses through this card and it is amazing how quickly this adds up. Some examples are:
- Groceries
- Gas
- Monthly cell phone bill
- Monthly cable TV bill
- Water bill
- Garbage bill
- Gym memberships
- Dining out
- Any large purchases (appliances, furniture)
When you sign up you get extra bonus miles and if you take the application they hand out on the plane you get even more bonus miles.
HawaiianMiles are earned 1 HawaiianMile per 1$ spent or mile flown and are at 10:1, you will need 25,000 HawaiianMiles to fly one way 2,500 miles (for us) to Maui.
Certain purchases earn 2x or more than usual. Look at their partners program.
We like this program better than the Alaska Airlines miles program because we can pool all of our miles together from all family members at no additional cost. Alaska charges you so much to transfer miles it it ends up not being worth it. However they have an awesome companion fare feature – see below.
Use Alaska Airlines Companion Fare
We also have an Alaska Airlines VISA that we use when flying on Alaska Airlines. While we do earn miles for flying, we don’t use this card for purchasing anything except Alaska Airline tickets themselves because you get 3x bonus miles that way. The beauty of this card is that each year you are awarded a companion fare. This allows you to buy a second ticket anywhere they fly for $99 (plus tax). The card itself has a $75 yearly fee, so for about $175 you can get a second round trip to Maui each year. If more than one family member also has this card, you can get that many companion fares each year. You get 25,000 bonus miles when you sign up, and usually they have extra bonus miles if you take the application from the flight attendant.
We don’t use this card for normal purchases to get miles because they make it prohibitively expensive to share miles with others.
Book in Advance
We always book our next flight immediately after we return from Hawaii, about 4 months or more ahead of time.
View Fares by Month
When you are browsing online for ticket prices, use the “view fares by month” or similar feature on the web site. You will be amazed at the difference in price leaving one day sooner or later than the day you might have picked. In the high season leaving on a Tuesday for example can be half the cost of leaving on Sunday or Monday.
Travel in the Off Season
This may be easier said than done but if you have the option, going in September or October will be the lowest cost. If it has turned cold where you live, it will be expense to fly to Maui. If it is a school vacation time, expect to pay double.
Hope this helps you save some money!
Slack Key Show
If you like Hawaiian music the Slack Key Show in Napili is a must see. Run by the legendary George Kahumoku every Wednesday at the Napili Kai resort and Sea House restaurant, it provides a showcase for Hawaiian Ki ho’alu or slack key guitar. Each week in addition to George there is a special guest. We have seen some of the top artists in the world there. Backing them up are Da Ukulele Boys and Sterling Seaton. Sometimes George’s son Keoki will also play and he is a real treat as well.
The show starts at 7:30. Some nights it is packed and you will need to reserve your tickets ahead of time by calling in a few days before. Other nights you will be able to show up at the door and buy tickets. I guess it depends on the season and who is playing. Parking is tight so you may want to get there early. You can take a walk on the beach of Napili Bay at sunset, you won’t regret that!
This is NOT a luau or any kind of fake tourist trap. It is authentic Hawaiian music and culture. It does not have a fancy production, just a stage full of musicians playing the best slack key and having fun with each other.
Dinner before is available at the Sea House. The food is pretty darn good and the sunset view has to be one of the best.
Surfing Goat Dairy
If you are going upcountry you might want to stop along the way at the Surfing Goat Dairy. You can feed the goats and get a tour of the facility. Take a taste of all the different cheeses. They are so cute!
From South Maui (Kihei, Wailea, Makena): Time: Approximately 35 minutes.
1. Go North HI-31/ PIILANI HWY.
2. Turn RIGHT onto HI-311/ MOKOULELE Hwy. (6 miles)
3. Turn RIGHT onto HANSEN RD. (1.17 miles)
4. Turn RIGHT (.3mi) onto HI-370/ PULEHU Rd /OMAOPIO Rd.
5. Stay on PULEHU RD. approx 6 miles.
6. Bear LEFT at fork ….stay on OMAOPIO RD until you come to the farm on the right hand side (1.49 miles).
Hikes
Jonathan and Carrie were kind enough to share some hiking information…
I’ll put this in the review, but here are my thoughts on the hikes we took from your Suzanne Swedo Best Easy Day Hikes Maui book. I should add that although we walk a lot in the city, we’re not big hikers or campers or anything. I also don’t have the greatest balance. We basically took sun hats, and a water bottle, and headed out on the trail.
- ‘Iao Needle. Very cool. There are some trails off the main trail that are pretty interesting. The walk up to the top is a few flights of stairs and there are some inclines and declines if you want to check the whole place out. But pretty easy.
- Tropical gardens of Maui: dead easy, very beautiful, $5 per person charge. We saw lots of great foliage. Kids might get bored.
- Makele Blowhole. The most physically challenging on the ones we did. You’ve got to climb down a lot of rocks to get to the blowhole and then climb back up. Teenagers seemed to navigate it with no problem; my balance isn’t great so I found it a little challenging but in a good way. It was totally worth it. The blowhole itself is spectacular. Also, for people not inclined to white knuckle driving, it should be approached from the west. If you come from the east (Kahului, etc) you have to traverse some pretty sketchy mountain roads that are much more intense than the Road to Hana. The views are breathtaking, though.
We did all three of those in one day and had a picnic lunch.
- Garden of Eden. Get a little taste of the road to Hana on this one–you’re about 45 minutes in. This place seems very kid-friendly, lots of beautiful plants and views, and birds to feed. It rains there most afternoons as far as I can tell. Also a very easy hike.
- Twin Falls. We only did the right one as we didn’t want to walk through a stream. Most of the hike is very easy with a slight incline on the way out. At the end you’ve got to traverse some narrow elevated paths (if you fell off or stumbled, you’d get wet but not hurt) and scale a few rocks to get the falls and pool. Also beautiful, but I gather it’s a pedestrian waterfall for Maui.
We did those on the same trip.
- Olowalu petroglyphs. This one is the most different from the book. Not all the landmarks are there anymore, but some signs are up to guide you. The petroglyphs themselves are now protected and sort of fenced off. In the book the hike ends with you climbing up rocks to get to them; now you have to stand at the foot of the rocks and look up. The area itself is pretty ugly, and it’s an easy walk up a dirt road. If you’re into ancient art (we are), the petroglyphs themselves are super cool, and worth the easy trip, perhaps on the way to a day in Lahaina (we went there for lunch afterward). If not, skip it.
Top Ten Things To Do
Angela asked us for a top ten things to do.
Oh there is SO MUCH to do where do I begin and what do I pick as the musts? First let me tell you that in the condo there are a selection of guide books. They are filled with things to do. There are also two books on hikes in Maui with maps and trail info. Also there is a CD that you can play while you drive Hana Highway that works great to tell you where you are and where to pull off. Also a book on Maui restaurants. Ok I’ll try a top 10…
1) Snorkeling
In the hall closet are swim fins and towels, you will need your own mask & snorkels. You can rent them there or bring ones if you have them already. Right off our beach Kam III is excellent with lots of tropical fish and turtles. Towards Wailea just a mile is Ulua beach, really great there too. To the left of Kam III is the Eddie Pu trail that you can walk to Keawakapu beach for really good reef snorkeling. And on and on….
Check out this blog entry.
2) Boogie boarding
Kam II and III are easy fun waves. You can rent boards across the street at the Surf Shack for $7 a day.
3) Sunsets. Go right across the street onto to big grassy section, or walk along Eddie Pu trail and stop at one of the benches. We go every single night that we are there. Never gets old. Always different. People come from all over the island to Kam III to see sunsets.
Check out this blog entry.
4) Molokini
Take a boat trip to Molokini, it is only a mile or so off from Kihei. You can go right from Kihei boat dock across the street.
5) Hana Highway, go early like before 7:30, bring camera. Take it slow, lots of twists and turns and one lane sections.
This will take ALL DAY round trip. In Hana have lunch at Hana Ranch outside on the patio. AWESOME!
Check out this blog entry.
6) Haleakala
Ok, so I must admit that we have never gone to see the sun rise. Some people say it is a life changing experience. We have gone up there in the afternoon to check it out, but the drive is too much for me in the dark pre-dawn. You have to get up at like 3:30 AM in order to get there in time. And it is FREEZING COLD! Bring lots of jackets!
7) Iao Valley. Really cool looking mountains.
Check out this blog entry.
8) Lahaina. Fun tourist shopping. Check out the Banyan tree.
9) Aquarium at Ma’alea harbor. Spend time in the under water tube.
Check out this blog entry.
10) Sit on the beach and do nothing.