How To Make The Best Of A Week In Maui, Hawaii

by Meganin Travel Tipson Posted on

Each year as fall in Alaska gets progressively colder and darker by the day, I find myself daydreaming about warmer, sunnier locales. Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of fun to be had in Alaska during the winter, but it can also just feel like a lot. One year I decided to head to Hawaii for Thanksgiving and ever since I’ve been hooked. Here are my recommendations for how to spend a week on the island of Maui!

DAY 1: Wailuku

Murals, Food Trucks, & Driving to Waianapanapa

Due to a change in flight schedule, our trip started with an unexpected night in Wailuku at a hostel. It was a total happy accident, as we loved the small-town, local feel of Wailuku. The main drag has a great coffee spot and lots of local artists have set up shop in the small storefronts. There are also a lot of really beautiful murals throughout the neighborhood, and so we enjoyed a yummy breakfast Saturday morning at the Wailuku Coffee Company, then took the rest of the morning to poke around town on foot.

Later that afternoon, we picked up our camper van and grabbed lunch at the food truck lot right next door. After that, it was out to Waianapanapa State Park, where we had a camper van spot reserved for the night. Though we survived, I can’t say that I would recommend getting first acquainted with a rental camper van via the Road to Hana…

DAY 2: The Road to Hana

Hiking, Venus Pools, Tony’s, Night in Kokea

As we started exploring the state park the next morning, we realized that we had made one crucial error: not enjoying the early morning quiet of the park, pre-visitors! People very, very quickly started to show up to the park, especially the popular black sand beach. We opted to cross the beach and go for a hike, leaving the crowds of tourists behind to explore the coastline, keeping an eye out for sea arches. One of our favorite parts of the hike was discovering a pink cavern just below the trail!

Once we left the state park, we headed towards Hana. Our original plan had been to drive through Hana, along the southern coast, back up through the center of the island, but the route was closed due to roadwork. After an amazing lunch break on Hamoa Beach and a peek at Wailua Falls, we turned ourselves around, and headed back the way we had come.

Thankfully we had the Gypsy Guide app to narrate our route, giving us lots of ideas for stops and a history lesson on the way back. One of my favorite stops was the Venus pools, which we had actually passed our first time by. It’s the perfect spot for a swim, so make sure to wear your suit! I’d also highly recommend the poke nachos at Tony’s and catching sunset at the Keanae Point Lookout.

After sunset it was time to head inland to Keokea, where we had found camper van parking thanks to Hipcamp.

DAY 3: Biking Adventures

Maui Sunriders, Makawao, Paia

The next morning started with a drive to Paia, where we met our bike crew at the Maui Sunriders shop. We had booked our tour at the suggestion of a friend, and it was quite the wild ride! After gearing up with packs, helmets, and gloves, we got a quick safety briefing and piled into our bike-covered vans to start our procession up to our starting point, a pullout just below the entrance to Haleakala National Park.

Now if you’re thinking, “Oh no! A bike tour? I’m not in shape for that!” I can reassure you, you’ll be fine. If you’re not overly familiar with the geography of Maui, Haleakala National Park sits at the highest point of the island, meaning it’s more of a braking tour than a biking tour! Even though it’s not a very physically strenuous experience, be ready- it’s a busy road between bikers, national park visitors, and local traffic! And did I mention lots of braking as you coast downhill? That being said, it’s a pretty fun way to slow down and enjoy the views and there are lots of little spots to stop along the way!

While you can check out the maps for yourself on the bike tour websites for more information, we really enjoyed Makawao. It’s a cute little town, plus there are lots of options for a mid-day snack! The donuts at the corner store, Maui Cookie Lady, and food trucks all offer scrumptious treats. Give your hands a break from all that braking, take a stroll, and grab a snack before finishing your route back into Paia.

Once back in Paia, we decided to hang around town. There was quite a bit of Road to Hana traffic, and after spending the last few hours biking we weren’t really feeling ready to hop right into the car. We wandered around Paia and then ended the evening with dinner at Flatbread Company- so yummy!

DAY 4: Kipahulu & the Southern Shore

Kipahulu National Park, Maui Winery

Day 4 was a long day of driving! We started out at our Keokea Hipcamp site once again, fueling up at Grandma’s Coffee House before taking on the half of the Road to Hana that we had missed due to the road closures. The southern coast was beautiful. The route is much straighter than the northern shore, at least until you reach the last 8 miles or so before Kipahulu National Park.

Once we arrived at the National Park, we headed off on a hike. It was gorgeous- Banyan Trees, Bamboo forests, and waterfalls galore! At our final waterfall destination, we took a few minutes to sit and soak our feet in the cool pools before heading back towards the trailhead. Once we had made our way back to where we started, we dipped down along a smaller loop trail to the coast, taking a few minutes to listen to the waves and watching traffic pass over the ‘Ohe’o Gulch bridge.

Our leftover flatbreads from the night before were a great post-hike snack (camper van mini fridges for the win!), and then we started heading back. Our destination for the night was Camp Olawalu, but we made an impromptu stop at Maui Winery along the way. We taste-tested two flights, and really loved their pineapple wines!

DAY 5: Haleakala National Park

Sliding Sands, Lahaina

Day 5 featured national park visit part 2. Our morning started with a quick stop at the Olawalu General Store before tackling the drive to Haleakala National Park’s summit, which involved a lot of switchbacks. **Pro tip: if you pay the entrance fee at one of the National Park sites in Hawaii, your admission receipts are good for three days. We used our Kipahulu tickets to get into Haleakala “free” the next day, gradually working our way up above the clouds to the observatory.

The views from the top of Haleakala are incredible. Being up that high with a bird’s eye view of the entire island is breathtaking, and it honestly feels like you’ve landed on another planet- between the observatory, silversword plants, and rocky terrain, you might as well be on Mars! We wandered around a bit at the summit parking lot, then hit up the Visitor Center quickly for some postcards before making our way to the Sliding Sands trailhead. While we would have liked to have hiked the trail in its entirety, we had a slower morning than we intended and making our way across the island from Camp Olawalu took us over an hour. Plus, since we were visiting in November, sunset was a little before 6pm.

If you decide to work a hike into your visit, the National Park Service has a guide available on their website. One of the Visitor Center employees tipped us off that frequently when hiking Sliding Sands people park at the end of the hike, hitch-hiking to the “beginning” of the trail so they are making their way back to their car and avoiding the risk of getting stranded at the end. If you end up hiking the trail in its entirety, it sounds like that is the way to go! That being said, if you aren’t feeling up to the entire 11 miles, you can always do a portion like we did, split it up into a two-day backpacking trip, or try another hiking option.

In addition to the views from the top and hiking Sliding Sands, a really popular experience at the park is watching the sun rise (but make sure that you have a reservation!). We actually headed out right before sunset, hoping to avoid the crowds and a long drive back in the dark. We did make one last stop at one of the overlooks on our way out, and it was fun to take one last moment to stand above the clouds, looking out over the Sliding Sands hike from the opposite-side perspective.

Since we had run out of daylight, we decided to go spend some time in Lahaina for the evening. We wandered along the main drag, eventually making our way to Kohola Brewery and then Waikiki Brewing Company. Kohola had a very local feel, tucked back off the road a ways and featuring live music. We really enjoyed the vibe, and the beer! We ended the night at Waikiki Brewing Company before heading back to our campsite.

DAY 6: Beaches & Brews

Kihei, Wailea, Kealia

For us, day 6 actually fell on Thanksgiving Day! We had plans for a Thanksgiving feast, but other than that had left plans for the day pretty open. We worked our way down the coast from Olawalu, stopping in Kihei to rent paddleboards at Auntie Snorkel. After a two-hour paddle, we returned our boards and continued south to Makena Beach Park. We spent a couple of hours soaking up the sun before backtracking, stopping in for Thanksgiving dinner compliments Maui Brewing Company. Maui Brewing Company did not disappoint, with great food and beer in a really awesome atmosphere. Once we were so stuffed we thought we would burst, we headed towards Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge.

Kealia Pond is a tiny little gem, tucked between the road and the ocean, and honestly if you’re not paying attention you would probably drive right past it. We really loved walking along the boardwalk and beach as the sun set, and it was the perfect ending to our day. Definitely a more lowkey attraction, but one of my favorites.

DAY 7: Northwest Maui

Lahaina, Iao Valley

After Thanksgiving, our Black Friday was spent shopping the local wares of Lahaina! We treated ourselves to a Dole Whip, then headed towards the Banyan Courtyard. There were lots of art galleries and little stops along the way, and we eventually worked our way through the Lahaina Museum in the old Lahaina courthouse. We then headed in the opposite direction, hitting up Honolulu Cookie Company for as much Hawaiian shortbread as we could carry!

After our shopping spree, we decided to get out of town for a while and headed to Iao Valley State park. The park was very tiny and offered a few walks, but nothing overly long or strenuous. The views are beautiful, but you won’t need much time to enjoy the park.

DAY 8: Head Home

Head home…or add more adventure!

Day 8 was all about sneaking in our last few moments of R&R before flying home. We tidied up the camper van, departed our campsite, and drove a short way down the coast to Ukumehame Beach Park. We had hoped to snag a kayaking tour, but it was a bit of a last-minute decision and they ended up not having space for us so last minute. It’s at the top of the list for next time though! And speaking of which…

Even though we squeezed so many experiences into a week, I of course have some ‘next time notes’ of things that we either didn’t quite have time for or discovered along the way:

Olawalu Kayaking

Molokini Boat & Snorkel Tour

More hiking!

Hui No’eau Visual Arts Center

Lavendar Farm

Hali’imaile Distillery Tour

Maui Ocean Center

Until next time, Maui.