dvduser6

Okay. Finally taking a family vacation this summer and we'll be taking our kids to Maui for 5 days. We're doing a snorkeling trip, probably a bike ride down the volcano, some other sight-seeing things so far. What other activities would be good for an 11 and 12 year old?

jfoobar

Drive the Road to Hana, or take a bus trip to do it.

Look at these options:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...ui_Hawaii.html

I used TripAdvisor to help me pick some things for us to do on Oahu and most ended up being very good choices.

TheMadMonk

I've heard that "Maui Wowie" is supposed to be enjoyable. You should look into doing that with your wife and kids.

Deftones

sit on the beach, drinking some alcoholic beverages and enjoy yourself.

/thread

sherm42

The Road to Hana is worse than water boarding. Do you feel like driving for hours on a small two lane road with your kids in the back the whole time complaining and asking when you are going to get there? If so, the Road to Hana is for you.

Deftones

i dunno. 11 and 12 year old kids might enjoy the after part of Hana once you get where you are going. but i agree, it might not be for them.

i'd say the bike ride down the volcano would be fun. you can go relatively fast and the kids would probably enjoy that.

sort of expensive, but what about a helicopter tour? i've done one of Maui and it was awesome.

whale watching tour? not sure if that would entertain your kids and it might not even be the season.

movie diva

Here are 250 things to do in Maui, have fun http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio...ui_Hawaii.html

mrhan

Plus, you have the locals speeding through the tight ass curves. It's insane but I guess if I knew that road like the back of my hand I would be, too. Also, once you get to the end the kids will be highly disappointed because there ain't nothing special there that you can't see on any other part of the island. But if you do try it you have to get the information CD so it can tell you where to stop and see certain landmarks.

islandclaws

Dad?

I did this with my family when I was 13 or 14 and, yes, my brother and I complained almost the entire ride.

whoopdido

My parents did the road to Hana once and didn't enjoy it. I've been to Maui a half dozen times and have never bothered with it.

First thing you should do is relax. That's the most important thing to do on Maui.

Whale watching
Helicopter tour
Zip line thingy
Luaus--many good ones on the island
Bike down the volcano
Day trip to one of the other islands? Trip to the top of Mauna Kea and star gazing on the big island is an incredible experience
Walk around and shop and eat in Lahaina
Trip inland to Paia and Makawao
Warren and Annabelle magic show is a lot of fun--trust me bring warm clothes if you go. The dude keeps the A/C at about 60 degrees. At a minimum bring a long sleeve shirt to wear.

ResIpsa

Not to beat a dead horse, but the Road To Hana immediately jumped to mind as the one thing NOT to do with kids. It consumes most of a day, the traffic sucks and, yes, it is a bit anti-climatic as it ends at a rather pastoral little town having no obvious attractions (other than parking spaces and relief from having to stare at the taillights of the car ahead of you). We had to drive a long gravel road to complete the circle and get back to Maui proper, not sure if this has changed. Maybe we were lost.

I would second/third the volcano bike ride (get up early to try to see the sunrise from the summit), helicopter ride is fun and memorable (but pricey), boat tours (we did one that took us out snorkeling way out near Lanai, very beautiful) and more snorkeling/beach stuff. I found the luaus to be meh, at best.

whoopdido

There are also sunset dinner cruises. I've never done one but have thought about it in the past.

schizopak

Shave ice at Ulalani... daily.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restauran...ui_Hawaii.html

Besides that, just relax and hang out. I took a guided drive around the Road to Hana which my wife and I enjoyed (would have been hell to drive it on my own) but if I were a kid, I'd think it was boring. Lahaina has a lot going on so I'm sure you'll find plenty to do. Food is fantastic.

GMan2819

A few co-workers and I went to Maui for our annual meeting one year. We rented jeeps and drove around the whole island, including the road to Hana. A good amount of it was off-road. If your kids were driving age they'd enjoy it.

Don't know if they have age restrictions for the helicopter rides but that was fun as well though a little bit expensive. They do give you a tape (now it's a DVD) of the actual ride when it's over.

bdshort

The Hana highway is spectacular, but I don't think I'd do it with kids either unless they're good in the car. If you go past Hana a little ways you'll find the "Seven Sacred Pools" which is a really cool swimming spot. There is also an old church where Charles Lindbergh is buried. The road past Hana is paved, but it's pretty patchy and rough, and supposedly driving on it is against a lot of rental car agreements. When my family was there in 2005 we drove all the way around anyway.

The sunrise from the top of Haleakala can be spectacular, though when we went it was nice but not great. Also, be prepared for freezing, windy weather!

focker

Anyone visiting any Hawaiian island needs to purchase the "blue book" for that island. These are highly detailed guidebooks with honest reviews and inside information written by locals. It will tell you all the best things to do and places to see. You can find lots of adventures off the beaten path and away from hordes of tourists. Here is the link to the Maui version:

http://www.amazon.com/Maui-Revealed-The-Ultimate-Guidebook/dp/0981461034/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1339936995&sr=8-1&keywords=Maui+revealed

jfoobar

As of last autumn, most of the road is paved but some stretches are still unpaved, and yes it is still a lot of rental agreements. Getting towed out of there if your car breaks down supposedly will cost you north of $1000.

The rain shadow, and the change of terrain, as you move from one side of Hana to the other is amazing. But yes, I will acquiesce and admit that my original recommendation was not made with the notion of having kids with you. Frankly, I wouldn't even want to be in the back seat of a (non-convertible) car on that road as an adult.

whoopdido

Great advice. I've used the blue book for both Maui and the Big Island and they were extremely informative and helpful.

dvduser6

Thanks for all the input. Definitely not doing Road to Hana this trip. Even during my honeymoon with my wife we made it only halfway and decided to turn back. Tons of other stuff we did, including biking down the volcano. We're looking into parasailing and horseback riding. Never thought about a day trip to another island, but that would be cool if we can work it out. I'll post again and let you all know how it went.

jfoobar

I mentioned this to the wife and she seemed to recall that all of the road was "paved", with the quotes around "paved" being very deliberate.

bdshort

Maui Revealed was the guidebook we used when my family went there. It's how we found a lot of the places we went. I can't remember if it's kid friendly, or if it's still around, but there is a terrific magic show in Lahaina called Warren and Annabelles (IIRC).

(Ok, I just looked it up and it's still there, but unfortunately you have to be 21 to go)

bdshort

I remember it being paved, but with endless asphalt patches. We did it in a van or SUV with the family and my grandmother. When I go back I'm hoping it will be me and my SO, and I will rent a convertible.

jfoobar

Judging from the number of them that I saw, the car rental places on Maui rent a crapload of those 4-door Jeep Wranglers.

FinkPish

I went in March and we did a helicopter tour that took us out over Hana, so you got to see way more than you ever would from the road. Lots of gorgeous waterfalls that you would have to hike for hours to find, if you could reach them safely at all. Plus, the best part about the helicopter ride was the music. They had the typical ukelele music, but they also had huge movie score come in when we got to certain parts of the island, making the whole thing lots more epic.

We also did an early morning kayak trip to go whale watching. We got pretty close to a mother and her calf, but I think the season for that might be over. My brother and I also did a zipline excursion that was a lot of fun.

jfoobar

Correct, January through May.