8 Things To Do In Maui Hawaii For Your First Time
Aloha! Welcome to Hawaii: A First-Timer's Guide
If you’re dreaming of blue skies, gorgeous black beaches, beautiful clear waters, and some of the best island food in the world, Maui is the perfect destination for you.
Here are the 8 things to do in Maui Hawaii for your first time that are ACTUALLY worth it.
How To Get Around Maui
I highly recommend renting a car when visiting Hawaii as it’s the most convenient option. Public transportation isn’t as ideal to find in Hawaii if you want to do what you want, and on your own time schedule. Ubers and ride sharing can be expensive as well and most things especially in Maui are far from each other.
You can grab a Turbo (renting someone else’s car) or I recommend Hertz. I highly highly do not recommend Avis as we had a nightmare experience with them in Maui when we got a flat tire, and no one responded to us for 8+ hours.
We ended up having to HITCH HIKE (yes you read that right) and it was a complete nightmare. Luckily Hawaiians are some of the sweetest people I’ve met but Avis ended up losing our car and almost made us liable for the entire vehicle.
I also do not recommend renting a Tesla
8 Best Things to Do in Maui
The difference between Oahu and Maui is that Oahu is more of a bustling city with great shopping, great restaurants, and alot of beautiful attractions an hour away. Maui has more beautiful untouched nature and is a town where most travelers stay in grand resorts. The attractions are a little further from each other (1-2 hours away) but they’re EPIC and the stunning natural beauty here is almost unmatched. So the 10 best things to do in Maui, Hawaii
8. Wai’anapanapa State Park
This is one of the best things to do in Maui and a place that left me absolutely speechless… If you’ve never seen a black sand beach, you’re in for an absolute treat at Wai'anapanapa State Park. Located on the eastern coast, this may be a 1-2 hour drive but completely worth it. The black sand is glistening, jetblack, and stepping here is like seeing a surreal dreamscape.
However one thing to note about this place is you cannot bring any black sand back. There is a ban on sand souvienrs to protect the park and legend has it, if you take any sand back you WILL subject yourself to years of bad luck. To honor and respect the cultural heritage of Hawaii as well, its better to refrain from taking any sand and just appreciate it’s beauty.
You NEED to make reservations in advance to this place and I recommend coming right when it opens to get this place all to yourself. Otherwise it tends to get pretty crowded.
Check out my post here for Everything You Need To Know About Wai'anapanapa State Park For More!
Check out my video here below:
7. Sunrise or sunset at Haleakala National Park
This is probably one of the best things to do in Maui, but a hard one to figure out. Many people flock to Haleakala National Park up 10,023 feet up to see the most beautiful sunrise or sunset. But you need reservations for sunrise and it is constantly sold out (we couldn’t even get one reservation date the entire week we were here) but here’s what YOU’RE going to do.
You don’t need a reservation if you’re going for sunset, you just need to get there early. Opt to arrive 2-3 hours early, so if sunset is at 7PM. You need to arrive 2-3 hours early because the parking lot is quite small and fills up QUICK. If the top parking lot if filled by the time you get there, you’ll need to resort to lower parking lot which won’t grant you as great of a view.
With views like these, it’s easy to see why this is one of the best things to do in Maui, Hawaii
Warning: a insider tip is that it gets absolutely FREEZING up there. Make sure to pack a jacket and even some headache pills as the drive up is long and windy AND you might experience a altitude sickness including headaches, nausea, difficulty breathing and dizziness. I felt all of these but they quickly subsided and it turned into one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen.
6. See an authentic lual at The Wailea Beach Resort on Maui, Hawaii
You can’t go to Hawaii without going to lual and the one at The Wailea Beach Resort in Maui, is one of the best ones. Here you can expect open bar, a three course dinner buffet with amazing Hawaii local favorites, cultural performances like a fire knife show, and dancing entertainment. They tell you about the Polynesian ancestry of the islands and afterwards you’ll definitely see Maui in a different light. You also get a fresh flower lei (females) or kukui nut lei (for men) and pre show music and entertainment.
5. Helicopter Ride Over The Stunning Island
This is probably one of the more expensive things we did in Maui, but one that was the best things to do in Maui. We took a Doors Off Maui Helicopter and took a helicopter ride over the stunning island. You can see stunning beaches, lush rainforest, rugged cliffs, and cascading waterfalls. This 45 minute drive includes going over 2 different islands and truly being able to see the islands from a birds eye view. The guides were amazing in telling us about the culture and history of Maui while showing us jaw dropping hidden gems. If you’re on a time crunch in Maui, I would definitely put this on the top of my list to see Maui from a completely different perspective.
I highly highly recommend doing this, although it is quite pricey, it is truly one of the best things to do in Maui, and one that will leave you speechless.
Check out my video here below:
4. Road to Hana
You can’t talk about the best things to do in Maui, Hawaii without mentioning Road to Hana. It’s one of the world’s not scenic drives stretching over dramatic cliffs, pictureque waterfalls, lush rainforests and is one of the best things to do in Maui. Be careful though when driving here, as we got a flat tire here and there is no service.
I recommend exploring this place on your way to Wai'anapanapa State Park!
3. Eat at MonkeyPod Kitchen by Merriman
Probably one of the best meals we had in Maui, Monkey Pod is one of the best places to eat in Maui. They have live music, amazing cocktails, and excellent food. Once you come here, you’ll know why its a local and tourist favorite!
2. Explore the town of Lahaina
Located on the western side of Maui, exploring this charming town is one of the best things to do in Maui! It has beautiful beaches with crystal clear waters where you can snorkel or surf, and there are tons of amazing restaurants and a lively art scene.
1. Maui Ocean Center - The Aquarium of Hawaii
If you have some time, make sure to check out the Maui Ocean Center to find some of the most impressive marine ecosystems of the Hawaiian islands. Here you’ll see sea turtles, rays, sharks, and beautiful colorful fish while learning about Hawaiian oceans and a chance to see these marine creatures up close. It’s also located on the stunning Maalea Bay and is a great place to enjoy the views.
Where To Stay?
Wailea Beach Resort in Maui:
This four star luxury Marriott property was one of our favorite places to stay in Maui with an unbeatable location, right on the shores of Wailea Beach, we were able to see so many sea turtles on property! They also have amazing restaurants on property and nearby with multiple swimming pools, one of the tallest waterslides, and paddle boards, snorkels, and surf boards available for rent. There’s also a huge shopping center nearby making it the perfect place to spend 5 days.
Check out a video on this hotel here:
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