Writing about Hawaii is always tough for me because it brings back memories from a difficult time in my life. But with the recent natural disaster, it feels like the right time to share those memories. Plus, Maui needs the help of tourists to recover, and I have some beautiful memories from there.
Let me take you back to July 2022. I was working at a crazy event for my old job when I saw a notification from Going. Flights to Hawaii were only $350! I immediately texted Ricky asking if he wanted to spend Thanksgiving in Hawaii. We both had $300 Delta credits, so we’d only have to pay $50 each for the tickets. Even though Hawaii wasn’t on our bucket list, we couldn’t resist a $50 roundtrip flight. And we knew we’d be in desperate need of some rest and relaxation come November.
Fast forward to November, just a few weeks before our trip, and I got called into a meeting at work. They were letting me go. It’s hard to describe the emotions I felt during those days leading up to our trip. I was angry, betrayed, sad, and grieving the loss of my job. One of the first things I said to Ricky was, “What are we going to do about our trip?” We thought about cancelling and saving money, but everything was non-refundable. So, we decided to go anyway and be financially conservative. But it was tough to enjoy the trip when I was feeling so defeated.
We booked our flights first, then found a place to stay. We couldn’t afford a fancy all-inclusive hotel, so we found Maui Beach Hotel and its sister resort, Maui Seaside Hotel. The price was right, the location was perfect, and the amenities were good enough for us. We knew we wouldn’t be spending much time at the hotel anyway. The pool was great, and there was an amazing spot to watch the sunset on the beach. Getting a rental car was something we knew we needed given the distance between places we wanted to see.
We arrived in Maui on November 21st and picked up our rental car, a nice Dodge Charger. We had lucked out with the “we pay, they choose” option. However, we soon realized that the Charger was too low for the rough Hawaiian terrain. Lesson learned! Oh, and some hotels charge a parking fee even if you’re a guest. Luckily, the hotel gave us a room with two beds by mistake, and they waived our parking fee as a way of apologizing.
For dinner that night, we found a fantastic restaurant near our hotel called Tante’s Island Cuisine. It was so good that we ended up eating there multiple times during our trip.
When we decided to book our trip, it was purely because it was such a good deal. Little did we know, the Arkansas Razorbacks were playing basketball at a tournament in Maui the same week. Ricky really wanted to go, but the tickets were insanely expensive. We arrived in Maui on the second day of the tournament and waited to hear which day the Hogs would be playing before buying anything. Finally, we found out and decided to bite the bullet, but the website kept glitching.
After countless failed attempts, I reached out to the tournament organizers and explained the website issues. Surprisingly, they responded immediately and saved us tickets at will call, at no charge. It was unbelievable! We drove to Lahaina, still unsure if the tickets were really saved for us. But when we got there, the person at will call asked where we were from and offered us courtside tickets. We were thrilled! Sitting courtside at the Maui Jim Invitational was an incredible experience, especially so far from home. I still can’t believe our luck, even after almost a year.
The next day, we woke up bright and early to tackle the road to Hana. We had heard mixed reviews about this activity, but we decided to give it a shot. After completing it, my verdict is that you should definitely do it once, but just once. If I ever return to Hawaii, I probably wouldn’t do it again. However, it’s worth experiencing at least once. We stopped at some scenic overlooks and went on a few hikes as well. Unfortunately, we didn’t have much time at the Garden of Eden due to a tight schedule, but it was still worth the visit. The Bamboo Forest was a bit tricky to find, but it was definitely worth the effort. Our final stop on the road to Hana was the black sand beach, and it exceeded our expectations. We spent a couple of hours there, mostly hiking the bluffs.
On the same day as our road to Hana adventure, we had reservations at Mama’s Fish House. It was conveniently on the way back, so it fit perfectly into our timeline. Unfortunately, I had a terrible backache all day and suspected it was a kidney stone, as I had experienced them before. I tried to push through the pain but ended up throwing up. It was incredibly frustrating, especially since getting that reservation was so difficult. Ricky managed to speak with the staff and got us another reservation for a few days later. The kindness and hospitality of the Hawaiian people always amaze me. Although we considered going to the ER, I decided to tough it out since I had no money or health insurance. Thankfully, by the time our second reservation at Mama’s Fish House came around, I was feeling much better.
The following day was Thanksgiving, and we had planned a snorkeling tour at Maalaea Harbor. Despite not feeling my best, I didn’t want to miss out. It turned out to be amazing. The weather was windy, but we lucked out and were able to snorkel for the entire time. It was my first time snorkeling, and we saw incredible marine life, including a Green Sea Turtle. The sky even treated us to beautiful rainbows throughout the four-hour tour. For dinner, we went to our new favorite restaurant, Tante’s Island Cuisine, and it again surpassed our expectations.
So, the day after Thanksgiving, we kicked things off in Kahului with an unreal Acai Bowl from The Farmacy. It was seriously huge – we had to share it and still had leftovers. After that, we headed over to Hookipa Beach, which is actually one of the most famous windsurfing spots in the whole world. We chilled out, caught some rays, and watched the windsurfers doing their thing. When the wind started getting a bit too intense, we drove for about an hour to Makena Beach State Park.
Makena Beach was hands down our favorite beach in all of Maui. The waves were just right, the wind was minimal, the sun was shining, and there was plenty of space to stretch out and claim your own piece of sand. That night, we went back to Mama’s Fish House and had the best time. It’s definitely more about the experience than the food itself, although I have zero complaints in that department either. If you’re in town and manage to snag a reservation, I highly recommend checking it out – just maybe not all the time.
The next day, we tackled the Kapalua Coastal Trail, and it was one of my absolute favorite things we did. The best part? It’s totally free, like most things we did in Hawaii. You just park in a public lot and take a quick 10-minute walk down to the coast. Once you’re down there, the first thing you’ll see are the Dragon’s Teeth – these crazy volcanic formations that look like they could be straight out of Game of Thrones. As you keep walking, you’ll stumble upon the sacred Kapalua Labyrinth, an incredibly important part of the coastline.
Now, I’ve gotta say, while we were there, we saw a bunch of kids running all over the labyrinth, trampling on the plants and rocks. It’s really important to educate yourself about the history and significance of the places you visit, and to be respectful of them. If you’ve been to either the Kapalua Coastal Trail or the Dragon’s Teeth, you can’t miss the massive Ritz Carlton hotel right nearby. Turns out, when they were building it, they found ancient burial grounds and remains. The Ritz Carlton was bulldozing over thousands of years of culture and holiness. Thankfully, after a long battle, they had to protect the burial site and relocate the project. This area, called the Honokahua Burial Site, holds around 2,000 graves and is incredibly sacred.
Now, during our trip planning, we debated back and forth on whether to do a Luau or not. Just like the Road to Hana, we heard mixed reviews. Some people loved it, some people didn’t care either way, and some thought it was a total waste of money. With our job situation, we were leaning towards skipping it. But, we actually lucked out and found an awesome deal. We ended up going to Feast at Lele in Lahaina (an area that was affected by recent fires), and we had an absolute blast. We had the best view of the sunset over Lahaina, the open bar and food options were totally worth it, and they even gave us these amazing flower leis that smelled incredible. The dancers and the show were seriously impressive too.
The next morning, we had plans to catch the sunrise at Haleakala National Park. But when that alarm went off, we knew there was no way we were dragging ourselves out of bed. I’m sure the sunrise there is breathtaking, but hey, sometimes you just need some extra sleep. One really cool thing about Haleakala is that when you’re at the summit, they have signs all over the place warning you about the change in elevation and how it can affect your body. Haleakala truly felt like a whole different planet.
On our way down from the summit, we decided to make a stop at Ocean Vodka, which had been recommended to us. I can confidently say it was one of our absolute favorite parts of Maui. The view was absolutely stunning, the food was all fresh farm-to-table goodness, and the cocktails were unlike anything we’ve ever had. They even offer distillery tours and have a gift shop. We ended up bringing back so many bottles because the vodka was incredible, but also because each bottle had a super unique design.
We had decided to fly to Honolulu on the 28th to visit Pearl Harbor. It was totally worth it! Skip the tour and do it yourself – you’ll save a ton of money. Our flight only cost $70 roundtrip and the hotel even provided transportation to the airport. We were in Honolulu in less than 45 minutes, and then took an Uber to Pearl Harbor.
Now, here’s the scoop on getting in. Entry to the base is free, but you’ll need to pay for a few extras. The memorial itself is free, but you have to reserve a time slot in advance. We started our day by checking out a cool and kinda scary submarine, followed by exploring some museums and monuments on the base. The highlight was definitely the memorial – it was such an emotional experience. We tried to be respectful and didn’t take too many pictures. Fun fact: you can still see oil remnants in the water from when the boat was bombed – crazy!
After leaving Pearl Harbor, we took a stroll through downtown Honolulu and snapped some pics at the Aloha Tower. It was a quick stop, but I loved it. Then we headed to Chinatown for some delicious treats from the Chinese bakeries. Unfortunately, most of them were closed, but we managed to get some pastries and souvenirs. We made our way back to the airport and were back in Maui in no time.
Our last day was all about trying out popular restaurants. We started with L&L Hawaiian Barbecue and it was fantastic – definitely had that homemade feel. We had some time before our next reservation, so we stopped at a shaved ice cream shop near Lahaina. Then it was on to Star Noodle, which was an amazing culinary experience. We walked around town and saw so many cool historical buildings, houses, and churches – really hoping they made it through the fires.
The next morning, we went shopping for souvenirs in Kahului and grabbed a poke bowl for lunch. We enjoyed it back at our hotel while taking in the beautiful sea view. Our trip to Hawaii was full of adventure and new experiences, despite some personal stuff going on. It taught me to live in the moment and not stress about things I can’t control. And guess what? Less than two months later, I landed an incredible job with unlimited PTO – life-changing stuff!
The full itinerary we used as a guide is linked below, I love this template and customizing it to other trips is super easy
I don’t remember if my TS was bad or not, I think my brain has blocked some parts of that trip, since life was so chaotic. But I do have a funny story, while we were waiting in line for the luau the lady in front of us kept looking back and giving me a nasty stare. Being so used to this happening all the time I explained I had TS. She scoffed and rolled her eyes at me, then I ticced again and she turned around and was visibly mad at me. I was just going to let it go, but then Ricky tells her: “you better be careful, she doesn’t have tourettes she has rabbies and she will getcha”. She was so mad and I couldn’t stop laughing, Ricky just shrugged and said “i have been waiting to use that one for a while”….
