Category: Before you go

I always tell people that if you find a round-trip price per person of $400 or less (from California), get it now and try to get time off of work later!  Book it right away because if you see online it in the morning and then wait until the afternoon or evening to purchase your ticket, the price may have gone up; sometimes, it may increase quite considerably.

This benchmark of $400 per person is if you are flying out of the Bay Area.  For the most part, the cheapest flights will be out of Oakland (OAK) to Kahului (OGG), but I have also seen good deals for flights departing from Sacramento and San Jose.

Previously, my answer would have unquestionably been Aloha Airlines.  Unfortunately, they went out of business in 2008.  I can still taste the warm white chocolate chip-macadamia nut cookies that they used to serve right before landing.  *sigh*

Nowadays, my family typically flies with Hawaiian Airlines.  However, we have occasionally flown with United and Alaskan.

In fact, if you apply for an Alaskan Airlines Visa Signature credit card and make $1,000 in purchases within the first 90 days of opening your account, you will get a companion round-trip ticket (it’s actually a discount code) for $99 plus taxes–that’s about $121 for a family member or a friend to fly with you!  This is really a good deal especially for couples and families.

Also, when flying with Alaskan, they might not give you a warm chocolate-mac nut cookie, but they do offer adults over 21 years old a complementary Mai Thai cocktail.

I, personally, however, really like Hawaiian Airlines.  From the first moment that you step onto the plane and hear the island music playing over the speakers, you immediately begin to relax and feel that–at last–your vacation has begun.

Yet, the music is not the only way that Hawaiian brings a little bit of the islands as you soar above the Pacific.  This may sound a little corny, but one can truly feel the aloha from the flight crew and agents; it’s a sense that I don’t really feel from the staff of other airlines that fly to Maui.

Maui has a variety of accommodations from high end resorts to budget friendly condos, from big name hotels to one of a kind Airbnbs.

However, when most people ask me, “Where should I stay?”, they usually mean, “What part of the island should I make my base while on Maui?”

To answer this question, my response is “It depends.”

In general, Maui is divided into 6 areas, each with its own unique qualities.

1.  Central Maui
2.  North Maui
3.  South Maui
4.  West Maui
5.  East Maui
6.  Upcountry

CENTRAL MAUI

Central Maui is home to the main commercial and governmental center of Maui.  You will land in Central Maui at the airport in Kahului and get your supplies at Costco, Walmart, or Target.  Wailuku is full of historic charm that one could experience in the shops and restaurants that cater mainly to locals.  Many locals call Central Maui home.  Visitors, however, prefer to stay in the resorts or condos in West or South Maui.

NORTH MAUI

Pa’ia Town in the North Shore is Maui’s own Haight-Ashbury District.  It is a kombucha drinking, organic kale eating, artsy, surfer town with a little touch of old plantation.

SOUTH MAUI

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WEST MAUI

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EAST MAUI

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UPCOUNTRY