What Are the Best Things to Do in Maui, Hawaii?

What's going on everybody? This is IslandHopperTV and today we have 25 things to do in Maui. Everything from the road to Hana and the waterfalls, all the way up to the summit of Haleakala and down into the golden sands of West Maui. Maui, Hawaii, commonly called the Valley Isle, is full of Aloha. First up, here we are at Makena Beach, also known as Big Beach and Little Beach. The Little Beach is actually a clothing optional beach, so do take that into consideration when walking over there. But here at Big Beach, you will find a very awesome beach, very spacious. Some areas are good for snorkeling, although on big wave days, they get shore breaks. Be careful with that. Also, don't go too far out here. Makena is known to be a bit of a risky place if you get too far out in the ocean. There are lifeguards on duty and it's $10 per car for parking, $5 per person for entry. Now we're going up to the summit of Haleakala. This here is known for its sunrises and sunsets. You can actually do a tour. It starts around three or four in the morning and you get up there and you get to watch the beautiful sunrise from on top of the House of the Sun here. You will see there are observatories and there is a trail that you can actually hike around. Just be aware of altitude sickness. It can occur for some of you who are sensitive to that, so do be sure to take that into consideration. There is a standard pass to visit Haleakala. It's $15 to $30 and it is cashless, so they don't accept any cash at this national park. Now here we are on the road to Hana. Now the road itself is 64 miles from Kahului to Hana. Estimated drive time is around two and a half to 3.5 hours without stops. There's over 600 curves, 59 bridges, and 46 of them actually being one lane. It is free to drive the road, although get out of the way for the locals because they're a lot more experienced. If you're sensitive to motion sickness, this road might not be for you. And some of the stops along the way include a bamboo forest like this one here at PPY Trail at the Haleakala National Park. This is down below Haleakala's summit, way down here at the coastline. And you can see they've got this beautiful bamboo forest that you can walk through with waterfalls along the way. And also there's a black sand beach over here which I really like. It's called Wainapanapa. They have a big black beach and then a smaller black sand beach as well as a trail that you can hike around. But this here, Wainapanapa, is a very beautiful place. They also have camping on location here. But coming out here for your first time, be ready to do some swimming if you like to get in the water. Now let's talk about the Haleakala National Park area that's down below here. This is actually where they do have more camping. This huge banyan tree, really a sight to behold. And then they have some pools here at the Ohio Gulch. This is known as the Seven Pools. Depending on how much rain and water there is, it's going to depend on how full the pools get. But I wouldn't do too much swimming in the lower part of the pools as it can be quite dangerous. Some of the top sites along the road to Hana are going to include the Garden of Eden Arboretum, the many beaches they have, and waterfalls. Now we're actually at Molokini Crater. So this is a crescent-shaped, partially submerged, volcanic crater where people like to go snorkeling and diving out here. It was formed by a volcanic eruption over 230,000 years ago, supposedly. The crater is 0.4 miles in length, 160 feet high. But most people just come out here on a tour. Ticket price for a tour is typically around $190 per adult. Children's rates are a bit lower. The name actually translates to many necklaces in Hawaiian. That's what Molokini means. And obviously out here you can do snorkeling. You can do snorkeling on many places in Maui. But definitely be prepared to get in the water and do some snorkeling with some tropical fish at the very least. And maybe even a green sea turtle. Just don't get too close. Also, whale season, which runs from around November until March. Getting out here and seeing these whales. I would say the whales are most active after they've given birth to their calves. That would probably be around February is probably the peak for it. But you can also get some good action in January and March. Ticket prices range from $59 all the way up to $139 per person. Now let's talk about luau. So here they highlight Hawaiian and Polynesian traditions. It includes a feast with traditional dishes, live music, hula dancing, and the entertainment also includes storytelling and fire and knife performances. Drinks typically include tropical drinks, beer, and wine. The most famous is the old Lahaina Luau, which did reopen in 2024. So it is open again. Now we're out here at the north shore. This here is Ho'okipa. So here is cool because you've got surfing and turtles. These are nesting turtles. Again with turtles, you don't want to get too close to disturb the wildlife. A lot of people get a little bit too close and you can cause harm and panic to the turtle. So if you're going to get close to the safe distance, it's typically recommended to be at least 10 feet, that's three meters away. The same would apply to seeing a Hawaiian monk seal. But this here is Ho'okipa, probably the best place to see these turtles. And now here we are at Eo Valley. So this valley is known for the iconic Eo Needle, a volcanic rock formation rising 1,200 feet from the valley floor. But this here is a famous site for a battle that happened here in 1790 where Kamehameha, the king of Hawaii, conquered Maui forces. So lots of hiking around here in the Eo Valley. They've renovated the area since the floods a few years ago. Now let's talk about some more beaches. So here we are in the area of Wailea. They have many different beach areas here. This is where they get that golden sand that's famous here on Maui. You will find so many different beach parks, Kamaole 1, 2, and 3. And then they also have many resorts in Wailea, famous ones. Now we're going to check out Kaanapali. So Kaanapali is just north of Lahaina. It didn't get burned down or destroyed by the wildfire and many of the resorts are still here. But you will see another big beautiful beach here along Kaanapali. But this is more for resorts. Activities include snorkeling, scuba diving, kayaking, paddleboarding, windsurfing. So much to do out here in Kaanapali. There's also an area here called Black Rock Beach. Some people like to jump off the rock into the water. Just be very careful doing that. Out here on the north shore they have the Waihe'e Trail. So if you love hiking you can hike up onto this ridge, get beautiful views looking out towards the ocean and even towards the Eo Valley area. Lots of hiking out here on this side of Maui. So you've got the Haleakala mountainside and then you have the area over here which is known as Pu'u Kukui or West Maui Forest Reserve. I would say this area is a lot more accessible for those of you staying in Kaanapali than Hana. One of my favorite areas to actually get a hotel is going to be Napili. So they have the Kapalua and Napili area right here. But very nice on the west side of Maui. Great views looking out towards Absolutely beautiful sunsets here as with most places in Maui. But it is one of the more family friendly areas. Like I said it's a lot more laid back, calmer waters just because of where it sits with the other islands. You can also do snorkeling, paddle boarding, sunbathing. You will see some green sea turtles. They do have some beautiful restaurants with views here. So check out the Gazebo restaurant. And as with many places in Hawaii, Maui also has surfing. You can do surfing out here on the west Maui side. You can also do it on the north shore which we'll be highlighting here in a moment. But lots of surfing. Just not as big of waves as you're going to get on say Kauai or Oahu or maybe even the big island. This is probably the more relaxing waves. Except for one place, Piahi Jaws on the north shore. The north shore of Maui gets some big waves. In fact, the biggest waves in Hawaii are here in Piahi. In fact, recently in December of 2024, a series of waves came to Piahi here where they got 70 to 80 feet tall. So Jaws. That's why they call it Jaws because of these big waves. Big wave season is from November until about April. Now let's talk about chasing waterfalls on Maui. So, so many different waterfalls and it just depends on the rainy season. But you can still see them around the area of Hana. Some famous ones include Twin Falls, the Waimoku Falls which is probably the most amazing. It stands 400 feet. It's Maui's tallest. That's out there in the PPY Trail in the Haleakala National Park. Then you also have Wailua Falls which is near Hana. Mile marker 45. That one's 80 feet tall. And then you have another beautiful one called Maka Maka'ole. That's a beautiful one that's out there by the Waihe'e Ridge. And if you're looking to slow it down a bit, you can actually go out to the Pineapple Farm. They have the Dole Pineapple Farm on Oahu, but they have a Pineapple Farm here on Maui as well. By the way, if you check the comments and the link below in the description, we did make a video for Oahu. You can watch that one next as well. So here we go. This one's for the adrenaline junkies out there. We've got windsurfing. So I used to live out in Kihei and I would go down to the beach and see plenty of people out there on the west side of Maui out in the Bay Area riding around on these windsurfing. It gets a lot of wind out here, especially in the evening time, but you'll always see these people out there surfing the waves with these windsurf. If you're looking to do this or you've always wanted to windsurf, Maui is going to be probably the best place in Hawaii to learn. For me, there's an awesome road. It's called the Highway 340. This is on the north shore of Maui. You've got Pu'u Ko'o'i and you've got several other places around here to explore along this road. Also known as Kahakili Highway, but it is basically one lane and out here you'll find the olivine pools, which is basically these really cool colored pools that you can swim in. They're kind of like tidal pools, I guess you could say, along the lava shore here. And you can see there are a few of them, but people come out here and do some swimming. They also have the Nakalele blowhole very close to here, as well as some trails around here. So definitely a cool place on the island. But I do want to say, as with anywhere in Hawaii, in particular Maui in this case, always be careful of the ocean when standing on these lava rocks, especially when you can tell that the ocean is experiencing higher than usual waves. Typically if you can see white caps on the waves, that means that the ocean is quite choppy. So don't get too close to the ocean, because there's always that chance of a rogue wave. But this kind of activity can be high risk. So if you don't feel like swimming, you can easily just walk around and check out the olivine pools. Now here we are at Kapalua. So Kapalua is near Napili, but they do have a few different beaches out here, including the Slaughterhouse Beach. Don't mind the name, but this is really a beautiful side of Maui. Quite peaceful, beautiful golf courses as well. So if you're looking for a nice five-star resort, you can stay at the Ritz-Carlton. They also have a beautiful golf course, which does host the PGA Tour from time to time. Some beaches here are going to include the DT Fleming Beach Park. They also have the Dragon's Teeth Access Trail. Lots out here. And if you want to do some real crazy hiking, head down to La Perouse Bay. They have some real unique lava fields out here. I've out in those lava fields. Quite interesting. And then also you have the Lanai Maui Ferry. So this actually takes you out of the marina area, but you can head over to Lanai and check out a whole new island. They have some beautiful places to check out on Lanai, including the Four Seasons Resort and a nice beach, as well as Lanai City. Ticket prices are around $130 for adults and $68 for children. And it actually, right now, is leaving out of Manali'i Harbor instead of Lahaina, as it usually does. But just take that into consideration. All right, Island Hoppers, thanks for watching. Check out Oahu, Hawaii next by clicking this link here.