Hello Hana! …Now what? So you’ve made the trek along the long and winding road to Hana and—once your stomach settles down from car sickness—what ever will you do? Get uplifted on a tandem powered hang gliding flight with Hang Gliding Maui. Don’t gasp. It’s safe, exhilarating and a very different (and spectacular) way to explore Hana. Owners and husband and wife, Armin and Karin Engert, use an Airborne trike with tandem seating for one instructor and one student. The trike runs with a small motor, which can be turned off per your request, in case you’d like to glide your way back down to the ground. Which I’d recommend, as you wouldn’t really be hang gliding now, would you? All the necessary gear such as helmets and flight suits are provided. All you need are socks and shoes…well, and preferably a T-shirt and shorts.
Bask on black. Or red. Or gray. Sand that is…here are three not-to-miss beaches near Hana: Pa`iloa Beach (Black Sand Beach) within the Wai`anapanapa State Park—beautiful, but can be dangerous for swimming due to strong currents. Check out the stone bridge and take a short hike into the lava tube to the right of the beach. The state park is located off Hana Hwy., just beyond mile maker #32, at the end of the paved road on the left. As tempting as it may be, do not take any sand off this, or any, beach. Hawaiians believe that when we die our souls go back into the earth, which includes sand. You don’t really want to take someone’s great grandmother home with you, do you?
Kaihalulu Beach (Red Sand Beach), located in Hana, is difficult to reach, but well worth the effort. You’ll need to find the Hana Community Center on Ua Kea Road. At the south end of the community center take the narrow path that passes an old cemetery. You should find the beach at the end of the path. Unless it moved. Which is highly unlikely. Note: You might also find the occasional nude sunbather.
Hamoa Beach (gray sand beach) is situated along Haneo’o Road about a mile past Hana. It’s consistently rated a favorite beach among visitors for its salt and pepper sand and lush vegetation.
Just in case gray, red or black sand isn’t your thing, a few locals recommend these Maui beaches: Honokohau Bay, Honolua Bay, Mushroom Reef in Kahana, Waihee Beach and Kamaole III.
Visit a goat farm. Yeah really. The Surfing Goat Dairy offers “daily tours” for $7. You can meet the animals (including Charlie the pot belly pig), pet the goats and get a glimpse of the inner workings of the dairy’s operations. The best tour though is the “evening chores and milking” tour, for only $12. Get down and dirty with the goats as you round them up, hand-milk one, help with the feeding and learn all about how the dairy’s award-winning cheeses are made. Don’t forget to buy one of the goat’s-milk soap bars before you leave—it’ll make your skin as soft as a baby goat’s butt.
Get married at Makena Cove. Hmmmm. Don’t think this needs much commentary from me. It’s pretty straightforward: If you have someone you want to marry, grab him/her, book a flight on Hawaiian Airlines (my personal fave because of the yummy FREE meals and friendly flight attendants) and get out to this popular beach wedding spot. A word of advice though: Shoot for a morning wedding as the beach at sunset tends to feel more like the Las Vegas Strip with all of the other weddings going on.
Go to jail. Ok, not really. But do visit Hale Paahao (The Prison) on the corner of Wainee and Prison streets in Lahaina. The prison house was built in 1852 and had separate quarters for men and women. According to the Lahaina Historical Guide, most prisoners ended up there for deserting ship, drunkenness, working on the Sabbath or reckless horse riding. Those jailed for longer than a year were sent to Oahu. …Sheesh, I’d hate to hear what shenanigans those prisoners got themselves into…
Wander away from the tourist shops in Lahaina. (To the north on Ala Moana Street) because that is where you’ll find the cool Pagoda and the Great Buddha statue at the Lahaina Jodo Mission. The statue, pagoda and temple were built to commemorate the centennial celebration of the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii. Quite unexpected architecture in the middle of Lahaina.
If you get sick while on Maui: Like I did, visit the good, thorough and personable Dr. Norman Estin at Doctors on Call (three West Maui locations: Hyatt Regency, Westin Maui and Ritz-Carlton/Kapalua). I went in to see him for some weird eye infection I had going on. Unfortunately, I went to him after a waitress at a restaurant told me that the best way to cure an eye infection is to squeeze lemon juice directly in the eye. (Which, like a complete moron, I did, and almost passed out from the excruciating pain.) When Dr. Estin heard what I had tried in order to cure my ailment, he didn’t lecture me. He just casually smiled and gently shook his head, put some real eye drops in my eye, wrote me a prescription and sent me on my merry way. I could see the next day, and I was very happy about that. No more lemons for me.
Row, row, row, your outrigger canoe. Whether you are a guest at the beautiful Four Seasons Maui or not, you can always learn how to row an outrigger canoe, used by the first Hawaiians who ventured to the islands from Tahiti. Your two guides, part of the resort’s championship paddling team, will introduce you to Hawaiian-style paddling techniques and terms, and also teach you the historical and cultural significance of the outrigger canoe. The guides have a fun sense of humor (at least mine did), so don’t hold back joking around or asking them whatever you’d like to know about rowing or the ocean or even a good place to get a drink and watch the sunset.