Maui Guide

Sharing my favorite spots to eat, things to do & where we stayed in Maui! Please note, I haven’t been back since the 2023 wildfires.

Restaurants

Mama’s Fish House

  • Need to book far in advance or sign up for the waitlist… it’s worth it!!!

Monkypod

  • So good we went their twice in on one trip! Get their Mai Thai’s & Banana Cream Pie

Leoda’s Kitchen & Pies

Merriman’s

Star Noodle

Leilani’s

Mala Ocean Tavern

The Plantation House

Fleetwood’s

Lahaina Grill

Lineage Maui

Morimoto Maui

Maui Brewing Co

  • We’ve gone here each time we’ve stayed in Maui and always love it! It’s such a great, chill vibe with gorgeous view, live music, good food, & beer!

Maui Gelato 

  •  soooo good

Baya Bowls

Duo 

  • Try the HAWAII 5-O BOWL at Breakfast

Thing to Do

Hiking

Kapula Coastal Trail

  • Hiking trail with the pretties views

Beaches

Oneloa Beach

  • Beautiful beach with some of the clearest water I’ve ever been in!

Stand Up Paddle Boarding & Kayaking

  • This was offered through our hotel

Snorkeling & Boat Tour

Snorkel Tour

  • This is the snorkel tour that we did & was recommended by a lot of you! 

Where to Stay

Andaz Maui At Wailea Resort: We’ve stayed there twice and loved it!

Comparing Kauai and Maui:

I got a lot of requests for me to compare Kauai vs Maui. The biggest difference in my opinion is that Maui is more developed, more commercial, and more touristy and Kauai, while still tourist friendly, has a more laid-back, quiet, less commercial vibe… feels more local. Although I’m describing Maui as more touristy and developed, I don’t think it’s anywhere near Oahu… but just when you compare it to Kauai.

Maui has a ton of great luxury resort options while Kauai has a couple but leans more towards boutique hotels or Airbnbs. Both have endless activities, hikes, adventures, and scenic views. I think Maui is more known for its pristine beaches while Kauai is more know for its lush, mountainous coastline - less beaches. But still very scenic!

Overall, they’re both amazing but have completely different vibes depending on what type of trip you like. If you want to stay somewhere nice and enjoy beautiful beaches and a nice pool while still having the options to get out and explore, I’d say go to Maui. Maui has more amenities, shopping, more beach options, but still a ton of outdoor activities. If you want a trip where you feel like a local, you’re constantly out exploring, eating at hole in the wall (but incredible) restaurants, you don’t mind driving all around the island, packing up the beach stuff for the day, hiking, probably getting rained on but you’re fine to go with the flow, then Kauai is more your vibe!

I also want to be clear that both places have both options - Kauai does have some more developed parts and a few nice resorts and Maui does have more local feeling, less touristy areas as well.. it just depends what you want more of. As to which one I prefer.. it’s such a tough choice because they’re so different! If I had to choose, I’d say that we would probably go back to Maui sooner because to us, it’s the best of both worlds! You have tons of nice resort options with lots of amenities but also the ability to go out and explore off property. We’ve been to Maui twice and never had rain but Kauai was much more rainy. Maui was also warmer than Kauai and had more beach option which we value!

Lastly, I should note that I haven’t been to Maui since the wildfires that took place in 2023, so I can’t speak to Maui’s current state.