It's that sad time of year when the North Pacific Humpback Whales depart Hawaii. At the time of this writing, the whales are still abundant, but we are definitely seeing fewer than we saw earlier this month. So, if you happen to be on Maui through the end of April, you may still have time to book a whale watch.
(UPDATED NOVEMBER 2021)
To be honest, the last thing visitors think of is the potential for epic pizza places on Maui. And though we don't have many, the pizza joints on this list are truly top-notch. Unique to Maui pizzas are the local ingredients and toppings you can generally only find here. Step outside of your normal pizza zone and try ordering something distinctly local. You might be surprised!
Seeing whales on a whale watch tour is awesome. No doubt about that. But do you know what else is awesome? Seeing dolphins! But is it legal to swim with them?
(UPDATED SEPTEMBER 2nd, 2021)
At its core, a sandwich is two pieces of bread stuffed with, uh, stuff. So what differentiates a great sandwich from a good one? Freshly baked bread is a start, but it's the "stuff" that magically transforms an ordinary sandwich into something memorable. Here are our five favorite sandwich spots on Maui.
Hawaii Magazine took a poll and published their list of the top five beaches on Maui. While it's a great list, we're going to re-order it... and swap in a couple of our favorites.
It's a fine list and hard to argue with. But this would be a pretty boring article if we didn't take a little bit of time to disagree. For one thing, the poll doesn't list any beaches from non-tourist areas on the north and east shores. So, let's fix that with our own top five list of beaches!
Also known as Big Beach and yes, it's a big beach, spanning over 1.5 miles! The beach is also wide, with over 30 yards of beach from shore to the water. While the water can get rough - rough enough that if you're a beginning swimmer, you may not want to enter the water - for most of the year, it's simply perfect. As an added bonus, around a northern bluff lies Little Beach. It's hidden from the general public, but if you know where to go (it's not hard to find) you'll come across this clothing-optional gem.
A smaller beach, but with a great location and actual trees for shade, we find this beach to be the best on the west side. Parking can be tough to find, but if you go early enough it won't be a problem. The water is nearly always glassy and it's a great place to learn how to snorkel. Turtles are abundant here.
A "locals" beach, but as long as you're respectful of the people and the beach, you will be just fine. Baldwin is another long beach. Located on the north shore, if you're coming from the airport, it's just before the sunny surf town of Paia. The waves at Baldwin Beach can get big, but that's part of the fun. If you walk down the beach from the main parking lot, you'll eventually run into Baby Beach. A beautiful cove with a large reef that blocks the waves, creating smooth, lake-like conditions that are perfect for your keiki, and it has some of the best tide pools on the island. Baby Beach is also accessible directly from the west side if you don't want to make the walk from the main parking lot. You can follow Google maps to Maui Country Club, but instead of turning right into the golf course, keep going straight and you'll run into the ocean.
Located in the heart of Kihei, this beach has a little of everything. Kam 1 and Charley Young are connected, though we've never figured out where one ends and the other starts, so we'll just lump them together. The north end of the beach, Charley Young, features small, yet body surfable (for beginners) waves most of the year. There's also tide pools that are ripe for exploring. The southern part of the beach, most of the year, has calmer waters... and more people. But parking is ample, and the south end features three sets of showers and a nice bathroom.
The largest black sand beach on Maui, Honokalani Beach (pictured above), resides in this beautiful state park. But the park has more than just its fascinating black sand going for it. It also features overnight camping, easy to navigate lava caves, blow holes and Hawaii's largest known heiau (an ancient Hawaiian temple or sacred site). If you're staying in Hana or are doing the Road to Hana, running your feet in the black sand is a must do. Keep in mind, in COVID times, you need to make a reservation to enter the park at least the day before. You also have to pay for entry, but it's far less crowded because of it.
By the way, did you know that you can now save $10/person on our Maui Princess Dinner Cruise or a Snorkel Adventure to the island of Lanai? Well you can! Just use the promo code VIP20 after clicking on this link: Hawaii Ocean Project Adventures. Also, check out our other blog articles.
Last week, it was announced that the Department of Natural Land and Resources are going to put trash-collecting Seabins into the notoriously polluted Ala Wai Boat Harbor in Waikiki. Initially, this will be a six-month trial to see if the technology works and how cost-effective it is. If the trial works as expected, however, the hope is that Seabins will be deployed across the state.
Seabins are, essentially, trash cans for the ocean. How they work is rather simple. The Seabin rises and falls with the tide, while a pump pulls water into the device. As the water gets sucked down through the bottom, debris gets trapped in the netting, and voila, the ocean is that much cleaner. The netting can capture micro-plastics as small as 2mm in diameter. Each Seabin can hold up to 20 kg of trash. Over the course of a year, each Seabin captures about 1.5 tons of garbage a year!
The machines, however, do have a real human component. It's recommended Seabins get emptied twice a day. They also need to be cleaned once a month and given regular maintenance. This seems to be the "catch," but over in Oahu, two private companies, Hawaii Volcanic Beverages and Hawaii Glass Bottom Boat Tours are partnering with the state to provide maintenance.
While it would be great to have Seabins launched across all the open waters surrounding the state, at this early stage of development, they need to be powered using a conventional AC outlet, meaning the Seabins need to be tethered to a dock. So, initially, the Seabins will need to be used in and around harbors with direct sources of power.
Will Seabins be deployed in Maui? We'll find out in about six months...
By the way, did you know that you can now save $10/person on our Maui Princess Dinner Cruise or a Snorkel Adventure to the island of Lanai? Well you can! Just use the promo code VIP20 after clicking on this link: Hawaii Ocean Project Adventures.
So, you want to explore the island of Molokini, but getting to a tour departure location from your West Maui accommodations has proved too much of a hassle. Well, don't fret. In actuality, the little island you see across the water, Lanai, is actually a much better snorkel destination! Fortunately, this is one adventure that you don't have to skip out on due to inconvenience.
We will take you on an exciting Lanai Snorkel and Dolphin Tour that departs from the scenic Lahaina Harbor located just off of Front Street. We want to ensure that the best Maui adventures are in reach for our guests. If you haven't been out to Lanai yet, we strongly recommend it, assuming you're interested in snorkeling the vibrant coral reefs that reside there.
You'll board one of our spacious, stable double-deck adventure yachts, departing at 7am and returning around 1:30pm. On your trip, we'll provide you with continental breakfast and a barbecue buffet lunch featuring burgers, veggie burgers, chicken breasts, and hot dogs with sides like potato salad, tropical fruit, chips, cookies and unlimited soda and juice.
You'll be snorkeling in the pristine waters of historical Lanai, as well as one other location chosen on the day of departure that is fully dependant on water conditions. We will never "force" you to snorkel in areas with poor visibility or overly rough water conditions.
Our professional staff will get you fitted in the latest snorkel gear and help you with safely devices like floaties, boogie boards and life preservers if you aren't fully comfortable in the water. Of course, we'll also have professionals in the water watching over you to make sure you're as safe and comfortable as possible.
Oh, about those dolphins. While not a guaranteed sighting, on a majority of trips, fabulous spinner dolphins greet the boat and play in our wake. There aren't many photo opportunities better than a leaping dolphin!
As for the things you should bring with you, we recommend a towel, sunglasses, sunscreen, a hat and whatever else you want to use to cover your skin for the hours that you'll be out in the sun. Last but not least, you might want to bring cash for souvenirs. All proceeds from souvenir sales go to our Research Direct program, which supports top Hawaii marine scientists. We believe in conservation and these are truly, Hawaii's top researchers.
So, let's circle back to the top of the article. Why is Lanai a better snorkel destination than Molokini? The main reason has to do with congestion in the water. In fact, the Molokini caldera is so congested with boat traffic that the Hawaii State legislature recently put forth a 2019 bill to Governor Ige to reduce the number of tour boats that can enter the waters. Governor Ige ultimately vetoed the bill stating: “This measure is unnecessary as DLNR already limits the number of Molokini Shoal MLCD commercial use permits to 40. DLNR is in the process of working with the commercial use permit holders to adjust the operating schedules to coordinate access to better manage the impact of commercial activity on this precious natural resource.” Your read that right. 40 boats! To summarize, snorkeling in Molokini can be a real cluster****!
If you have any questions or need assistance with your Lanai Snorkel and Dolphin Tour booking, you'll find our contact information on the top of this page. We look forward to seeing you onboard! Mahalo!
By the way, did you know that you can now save $10/person on our Maui Princess Dinner Cruise or a Snorkel Adventure to the island of Lanai? Well you can! Just use the promo code VIP20 after clicking on this link: Hawaii Ocean Project Adventures.
Maybe it's a rainy day. Maybe you want to escape direct sunshine. Or maybe you're killing time or picking up last minute souvenirs before you need to drop your rental car off at the airport. For whatever reason, if you find yourself hungry at Maui's largest mall, the Queen Ka'ahumanu Center, here are our five favorite things to eat in the food court.
By the way, did you know that you can now save $10/person on our Maui Princess Dinner Cruise or a Snorkel Adventure to the island of Lanai? Well you can! Just use the promo code VIP20 after clicking on this link: Hawaii Ocean Project Adventures.
OK, so you know how you approach a crosswalk and the crosswalk signal is flashing how much time you have left to cross the street and you see there's 12 seconds to cross the short intersection so you walk across the street and hit the sidewalk with two seconds to spare? Well, that is now illegal. What exactly is illegal? Attempting to cross the street when the countdown timer has already started. True story!
Today, Senate Bill 663 goes live in the state of Hawaii. With it comes a $130 fine. Would the police actually write you up a ticket? Probably not, or so Honolulu Police Capt. Ben Moszkowicz of the Traffic Division told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, "Honestly, under the new state statute we probably wouldn't cite people... We kind of try to use some common sense. If they're still in the intersection when the red hand goes on, then we would probably cite them then."
So the moral of the story is, you can probably cross the street like you normally do. But just know, the police can cite you for entering the crosswalk when the walk light is blinking. So, don't be a jerk to the officer who gives you a warning or you may end up with a $130 ticket!
By the way, did you know that you can now save $10/person on our Maui Princess Dinner Cruise or a Snorkel Adventure to the island of Lanai? Well you can! Just use the promo code VIP20 after clicking on this link: Hawaii Ocean Project Adventures.
Yes, we're #luckytolivehawaii, but we also know Maui is a great place to visit. How great? Well, U.S. News and World Reports named Maui the 4th best place in the country to visit. What they wrote about Maui:
With idyllic beaches and verdant parks, Maui offers ample opportunities to relax. Here, you can spend your days admiring the scenery as you cruise along the Road to Hana, fly above the island in a helicopter or lounge across the black sands of Waianapanapa State Park. If you'd rather cool off than sunbathe, sign up for a snorkeling tour. Sampling Maui's seafood is also a must, but don't overlook other island delicacies like haupia, a creamy coconut custard.
Interestingly, Maui is the only place in the top 5 that isn't a national park.
U.S. News and World Reports Top 10 Places to visit in the U.S.A.:
Kauai comes in at number 16. So of the top 20 places U.S. News recommends visiting, three are from Hawaii. Not too shabby.
U.S. News and World Reports also released their list of the 30 Best Places to Visit in the World. While Paris tops the list, Maui is the first U.S. destination to make the list, landing at number six overall.
U.S. News and World Reports Top 10 Places to visit in the world:
Their description of Maui:
Whether you're driving along the Road to Hana, enjoying a bird's-eye view of the lush coastline from a helicopter, snorkeling with sea turtles or simply relaxing on the island's honey- or black-colored beaches, you'll find that Maui is unlike any other tropical destination. Don't miss a chance to visit Haleakala National Park, which is home to the world's largest dormant volcano.
Maui is the only Hawaii destination to make their top 30.
By the way, did you know that you can now save $10/person on our Maui Princess Dinner Cruise or a Snorkel Adventure to the island of Lanai? Well you can! Just use the promo code VIP20 after clicking on this link: Hawaii Ocean Project Adventures.