Maui Master Thread

[wonderlust]

Car rental dude claimed that since state made it mandatory jail time there have been less issues.. Think as long as you park in visible place where there are crowds/other cars your fine. It's when you park in a deserted place that it is more of an issue.

[yakovwogi]

Car rental dude claimed that since state made it mandatory jail time there have been less issues.. Think as long as you park in visible place where there are crowds/other cars your fine. It's when you park in a deserted place that it is more of an issue.

Who wants cars and other people:)

[@Yehuda]

Who wants cars and other people:)

+1

[Martyb]

Just got a call from Enterprise. They say that there has been a recall of Mustang Convertibles and they wont have any while  am there
They said they can only give us a mid-size. Any else hear about this? 

[wonderlust]

Just got a call from Enterprise. They say that there has been a recall of Mustang Convertibles and they wont have any while  am there
They said they can only give us a mid-size. Any else hear about this?

Push them to give you a jeep wrangler

[yakovwogi]

Just got a call from Enterprise. They say that there has been a recall of Mustang Convertibles and they wont have any while  am there
They said they can only give us a mid-size. Any else hear about this?

No call from national.
Yet...

Would be disappointing

[Jeff_Go]

   Jeep Wrangler would be nice.  We just got a mid-size, and honestly, after being in the beach for awhile, having a roof over your head while driving back is a welcome relief.  Its not exactly cold in Maui..., not to mention the occasional showers....
to each his own..

[yakovwogi]

Arrived late last night. National has no convertibles due to manufacturer recall. Oh well.
Got to andaz and despite being confirmed via Twitter and direct email
With hotel
Before arriving we didn't get into a poolside suite which I personally wAnted. Dealing with the Twitter team and hotel management this morning.  Funny thing is I'm usually not a complainer. I guess maui is bringing out the best in me any suggestions?

[yakovwogi]

It is gorgeous here despite this. Don't really want to spend my time away being a complainer. But I do have a Wife to make happy.

[@Yehuda]

That's frustrating! You showed them the confirmation messages, and they won't do anything? Are they full or are there empty suites right now?

[yakovwogi]

That's frustrating! You showed them the confirmation messages, and they won't do anything? Are they full or are there empty suites right now?

They say it's full

[maskim]

I asked this before but I'll try one more time... I have choice of two hotels in Wailea. Both cancel able at this point. Andaz or marriot Wailea?

[Marco Polo]

I asked this before but I'll try one more time... I have choice of two hotels in Wailea. Both cancel able at this point. Andaz or marriot Wailea?

Andaz is supposed to be really nice.

Do you have a larger point stash with either one?

[wonderlust]

I asked this before but I'll try one more time... I have choice of two hotels in Wailea. Both cancel able at this point. Andaz or marriot Wailea?

I just came back from staying at the marriott for 4 nights & I checked out the andaz.. All things being equal I would say andaz is your best bet- it's spanking new vs the marriott has been around for 25/30 yrs..the Marriott rooms were nothing to write home about- didn't checkout the rooms in the andaz but I'm sure they are more modern etc the grounds of the Marriott are really very nice & their Infiniti pool I liked better then the andaz- it is really something special & is prob their biggest selling point. Keep in mind the beaches aren't too hot on premises. The andaz has a small little one in front of it that you have to cross over the main path (as opposed to beaches in Miami & Cancun etc that the beach is attached to the hotels. The marriot doesn't even have that-though all the hotels pretty much share the same beach on that side. The makena resort actually had the nicest beach from all the waliea hotels that I saw (andaz, 4 seasons, fairmont, grand waliea)

[Jeff_Go]

the andaz has the ulua beach in walking distance...id go for the andaz

[@Yehuda]

I just came back from staying at the marriott for 4 nights & I checked out the andaz..

Welcome back! So, was Maui all you ever dreamed of??

[wonderlust]

Welcome back! So, was Maui all you ever dreamed of??

For sure! Hope to get a TR up soon

[@Yehuda]

That explains it. You could probably expect more changes.

BING BING BING!

Flight is now at 3:35, a comfortable 1.5 hours after scheduled landing. Not sure why this flight time didn't exist in the first place. May it stay at this time.

[wonderlust]

I just got back from a trip to Maui. Though a lot of the activities have been already covered by others many times over I figured I would share my experiences & 2 cents to give ppl another vantage point

Flights:
Hawaii has been calling for sometime now, but this freebee made it a no-brainer:
I signed up for aa business extra a few yrs ago simply because they had a 5k advantage sign up bonus. This past yr I logged into my account & was shocked to see some company (I have no idea who) has been crediting their flights (30k worth) to me  & I had exactly enough for 2 rntrp saver awards to Hawaii. What's more, they had to be flown this yr or they would expire! The main issue with Hawaii that came up was the shabbos/day line issue. After many discussions with various  ppl/rabbis we decided our best bet was a Sunday morning until Thursday night trip and avoid the whole issue. Since the flight I was able to get was flying out 2 hrs after shkiyah Thursday night there was still an interesting shayla about the techum but I was told it was not a problem. Business extra allows for a stopover which we wanted to take advantage of on our way back by stopping off in la for a few days. Ultimately though there wasn't any saver availability on the lax-Newark flight so I had to throw in the towel and actually use some united miles (I just love this game:). We flew out Sunday morning from Newark to Dallas & from Dallas to Maui. When we got off the plane in Dallas we were right in front of the Amex centurion lounge which was a perfect place for us to rest, get some food (cereal & fruit) and daven. They even gave me a conference room to use so I had some privacy to daven which is a rare luxury in an airport. They actually offer complimentary massages but that is only avaible after 9:00am which was when our flight was-probably the only time I ever wished I had a longer stopover! On the DFW-OGG flight I was able to maneuver things around so that me & my wife both had our own 2 seat rows to ourselves. & on the Ogg-lax & lax-Newark I got bulkheads & exit rows so all in all the flights weren't too bad even for us commoners flying in economy (cattle) class. The flight out from Ogg-lax was the most annoying since we were told to try to get to the gate before shkiyah we had over 2 hrs to kill & there isn't any lounges or for that matter much else in Maui airport. Still I would rather have that & still have a full day Thursday.

Hotels: Initially I wanted to stay in the Andaz  but alas there was no award availability (as I checked numerous dates over the summer I am under the impression they just close off the summer months from award nights) the rooms were over 500$ a night and as I had a bunch of marriott points to burn (from when I was first starting out with the Milage game & got suckered into getting their cards) I was content with the marriott Wailea. Originally i had reserved an ocean view room which they offered to upgrade us to their deluxe ocean view. We however found the deluxe room very drab & boring (it is deluxe that it is closer to the ocean but the view isn't much just a rocky shoreline with the walkway right below our room)  we opted for the ocean view room overlooking the Infiniti pool & we were very happy with it. The rooms are older & not very impressive (no stand alone shower etc)-certainly a far cry from the jw in Cancun where we last stated, but the grounds are magnificent. The views are breathtaking & just sitting in the infinity pool & taking it all in makes contending with the mediocre room totally worth it. The hotel is right next to the grand waliea as well as the four seasons & fairmont. None of the hotels have a great beach & they pretty much all share the same ones. The andaz has at least a small beach in front of it but again nothing to write home about. The hotel with the nicest beach on its premises that I saw was actually the Makenah golf resort. It's 3 miles further down from the marriott & is more subdued but the beach is very wide & spacious with great sand & clear water. Might be a great choice depending on ppls priorities.

Cars: you can get a full size car for relatively cheap using cheap Hawaiian car rentals but a jeep or convertible will cost you at least twice as much & parking in the Marriott is 25$ a night ( and I think it's similar in other hotels) I decided to go a different route that worked out great. I rented a one-way from the airport to waliea for 65$ and got a mustang through cheaphawaiin. We then returned the car that eve. Budget is about a 10min walk away & the hotel offers free shuttles around waliea besides. The Marriott has an onsite enterprise which is run by a great lady named Jackie. She was extremely helpful especially for coming up with some creative rentals to avoid the overnight fee (enterprise uses the same lot as the Marriott parking garage)as well as after hour pickups & dropoffs. I rented a sonata on Monday using one of the many corporate accounts out there for 35$. On Tuesday we wanted a jeep for the road to Hana which we got from budget via cheaphawaiin for 75$. Finally for wendsday eve we did a one way rental from waliea to ogg that I dropped off at the airport thur eve for 75$ my total was 250$ & we had the cars we wanted without ever paying for parking. Not saying this is for everyone but it is a good option to be aware of.

General points:
1-Hawaii is freakin far!! (There got that one out of the way)
2- there are a lot of big chain stores not just Costco (which is all I ever heard about on this thread or Maui revealed) there is target, Walmart & safeways.
3- the sun is supper strong probably the strongest most ppl will ever experience so just because you tan nicely in Miami won't mean you won't bake in Maui.
4- the weather was actually amazing while I was here and the rule of thumb at most tropical locations definitely applies here as well: 'you don't like the weather? Wait 5 minutes... ' here it's even more than that, if it's raining & stormy at one beach you literally can drive a mile down to another beach that is calm and sunny. Really!
5- Maui revealed is a must! though the app I didn't find as helpful as the times you need it most were when you have no cell service.
6- it's been alluded to in Maui revealed but I'm going to be straight up about it: Hawaiian natives are not friendly or nice ppl (and not bright to put it mildly). I know I know you can't generalize blah blah but from my experience it was pretty consistent & you can right off the bat tell the difference from a born & bred pineapple vs someone that's from the mainland. Don't want to be judgemental-great! Just don't go there expecting to be enchanted with the natives because that isn't exactly the selling point of the islands. In contrast a place like Costa Rica the locals added so much flavor to the experience & were really enjoyable to hang with, hire as guides etc. these guys on the other hand are not a pleasure to deal with- again just my opinion from a very limited experience
7- everything in Hawaii moves at least 5 Times slower than the rest of the world so 2 min is 10min 10min is almost an hr & if they tell you in an hr or 2 you can just forget about it happening that day..
8- it seems all the beaches on the islands are considered public property so you can literally go to any beach you want & there is always access (at least that is how it was explained to me)
9- tabi shoes I didn't see such a need  for since most of the time you need hiking shoes to get to the water-hole etc & once there not sure how necessary they are In the water, but the mats for going to the beach & laying on looked very worthwhile..
10-the best thing you can do for your trip is to stay on your old time zone. This way waking up at 5;00 is really like waking up at 11:00 and turning in at 10:00 is like going to sleep at 4:00am. This will suite you so much better for activities ( a lot are better done in the early morning) and will help you leverage  your time wisely to get the most out of your days.
11- you should always ask when booking something if there is a discount, packages  or coupons. There is normally a 10% discount for booking online which they always are willing to give you even if you book over te phone-saved me a pretty penny just from asking..

Food & activities will come in a few days

[wonderlust]

Food:
Being that all is the food items are supposed to be insanely expensive in Hawaii we did a serious shopping trip before hand & brought basic food items & plastics along. Items we took: instant oatmeal, instant soups, chewy bars. Beef jerky from Wasserman & lemberger ( distributed as ufshnit in a lot of stores) cereals, grillers (veg burgers) &  flats & mini Pitas. You can prob buy most of the items at target/Walmart/Coscto just at a premium. The gift shop in the marriott even sold sabra chummus chips.. I Amazon primed a 14$ toaster straight to the hotel which was perfect for heating up all our foods & saved us the scavenger hunt for one when we arrived (I learnt my lesson from Puerto Rico where I brought tons of meat to grill but couldn't find any disposable/charcoal/propane grill on the entire island)the Starbucks as well as the breakfast the hotel offers both were accommodating in giving up phillidelphia cream cheese packets as well as hot water.  We decided to give the pomegranate meals a chance & brought enough meals for each night plus 2 soups & cheese blintses & eggplant pomisane & penne for lunch. I had a real fiasco with my order with them which I wrote about unthread. Not looking to get into it here but I will say that I was mishandled by them & their customer service is no longer at the standards of the brand that they created. Still I will be objective about the actual meals & how it worked out. Also I will say that when ordering with them make sure you are very clear with exact instructions & be clear what your intentions are in terms of being frozen, packaged, picked up etc. the issues that I ran into started with me speaking with a guy that didn't speak English as a first (or prob even second) language so you prob want to make sure you speak with an American vs chassidish or isreali- let's leave it at that!!
The meals for the most part come in a 5x7 which fit pretty well in my 8x6 toaster though the door didn't actually fully close.we brought extra alumni to rewrap stuff that were to large. I put the meals in freezer bags with ice & it stayed frozen for over 20 hrs! On the plane they told me by checkin that frozen liquid such as ice or soup has to be checked in or tsa would confiscate- I confirmed with tsa that it is indeed allowed on carry on if it is completely frozen( good to know) though their policy is to charge 20$ per meal to warm up, the Marriott was very accommodating about storing the meals in their freezer. Each morning I would have room service bring me the box we put it in( you don't want it in a cooler since it will defrost even in the freezer as my incident with pomegranate shows.) & I would remove the meals for that day & they would put the rest back. It took the meals longer to warm up since the toaster wouldn't fully close but otherwise it was  perfect. Also some of the wrappings weren't great but since we Brought aluminum along it was no big to rewrap. The food is indeed amazing and that's coming from someone that has a real ax to grind with them! I was shocked that it was indeed fulling enough and rvery night 
I went to sleep completely full. The meals are delicious and as it is relatively hassle free (compared to trying to grill on a porch while avoiding wind,rain,security) I can't believe I didn't do it before! Here is my ratings if it helps:
Meals:
Eggplant pomisan: 9
Cheezy blintses 8
Pastrami 7
Broccoli 8
Couscous 5
Sino steak 8
Ribs 9
Asparagus 6
Cabbage noodles 9
Meat balls 8
Grilled chicken 7
Roasted peppers 7
Asian rice 7
Penne 8
Veg soup 8 (salty)
Zucchini soup 8 (salty)