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Excursions from Marriott Maui

T

travelgirl8

TUG Member
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Location
Smithtown, NY
We will be going to Marriott Maui Ocean Club with family in July. Are there excursions that leave from the resort? The kids are looking for surf lessons for 14 and 17 year old. Any suggestions? Ages are from 8 years old to 76. Trying to plan daily activities with a lot of time at resort. Some of the 40 somethings want to see waterfalls and road to Hana.
Also looking for dining options near resort. We are planning to eat in for at least 2 meals. We plan on staying at Courtyard in Maui on arrival night and going to the food truck park there. Next day going to Ocean Club. Any help in planning is appreciated as this has taken up 2 years of points for us.
 
You can take surf lessons at the shack in front of Napili tower. There are several whale watch activities that leave from the beach, down by Whaler's Village. Some longer tours can pick up at the resort. Suggest you contact the resort's concierge. They will guide you and can make reservations. Water activities that leave from Lahaina port are a $10 Uber ride away. (Dinner cruises, snorkling cruises, etc.)
 
travelgirl8 said:
We will be going to Marriott Maui Ocean Club with family in July. Are there excursions that leave from the resort? The kids are looking for surf lessons for 14 and 17 year old. Any suggestions? Ages are from 8 years old to 76. Trying to plan daily activities with a lot of time at resort. Some of the 40 somethings want to see waterfalls and road to Hana.
Also looking for dining options near resort. We are planning to eat in for at least 2 meals. We plan on staying at Courtyard in Maui on arrival night and going to the food truck park there. Next day going to Ocean Club. Any help in planning is appreciated as this has taken up 2 years of points for us.
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Excursions that leave from resort/road to Hana - There are several Road to Hana Tours that pick-up from MOC but one we can recommend is Mahalo Tours. We've been on several when we have friends stay with us (we go to Maui every year and own two weeks OF at Napili Tower)...it's such a great experience and the relatively small group and the interaction with a very experienced, local guide is great. This assumes of course that you don't really want to drive the Road to Hana. BTW, this Tour will take you all the way around...most who drive usually have to turn back when they get to the pools. Anyway, check them out (concierge had recommended this to us many moons ago and we've been repeat customers).

As far as "dining options near resort", there is a very large group of Food Trucks across Times Supermarket (north of MOC) that are great for dinner. Bring your own beverage if you want. There are tables and benches and now, tents over the eating areas for when it rains. Easy parking. There is of course, Whalers Village with a food court (good value - there's pizza and there's poke also) and restaurants (moderate to relatively expensive). This is walking distance from MOC. Adult beverages at Monkeypod - go during happy hour! There is probably a thread that has a whole bunch of "where to eat near the MOC/Kaanapali/Lahaina" that you should search on this TUGBBS forum. You'll probably be inundated with other suggestions...good luck and have a great time at one of our favorite places to go! Aloha!
 
I have driven the "road to Hana" a half dozen times. As the driver it always required a lot of concentration. Occasionally I would have to stop quickly and/or swerve to avoid on-coming cars, etc. So, as the driver, it is a bit like being in a dirt-track racing competition. If you like that, it is great. But if you - - as the driver- - want to see the sights, it won't be as much fun. The last time we took a 15 passenger tour bus with a knowledgeable driver and it was much more enjoyable and relaxing. If I go to Hana again, that is how I'd do it.

Btw, the 7 sacred pools aren't sacred but are the result of a marketing campaign. Also the 7 sacred pools are beyond where the rental car companies allow you to drive. The driver of the tour bus explained that the reason the rental car companies don't want you to go that far is because there is no cell phone coverage there. So if your car breaks down, you are out of luck. BTW, continuing the drive all the way around is, IMHO, not that bad as long as there haven't been recent rains and as long as you have some experience driving on rough roads.
 
Another thought for excursions.

Besides getting picked up at the Marriott, or taking off from the beach, I would like to point out that it is also easy to take the public bus to Lahaina. In fact, one time when we were taking a tour boat out of Lahaina harbor, we decided that it would be easier to pay a few bucks and take the city bus rather than park our rental car. Maui has a pretty good mass transit system.
 
drlee said:
You can take surf lessons at the shack in front of Napili tower. There are several whale watch activities that leave from the beach, down by Whaler's Village. Some longer tours can pick up at the resort. Suggest you contact the resort's concierge. They will guide you and can make reservations. Water activities that leave from Lahaina port are a $10 Uber ride away. (Dinner cruises, snorkling cruises, etc.)
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Happy to hear about surf lessons right at resort. It's one of the requested things to do from my grandchildren. So you can walk to Whaler's Village from MOC? I'll look up Lahaina port to see what's there. The food trucks and Monkeypod sound good. I will check out the road to Hana tour from Mahalo Tours. The suggestion is a good one as BJRSanDiego's point about the driver not seeing much is a good one. It sounds like everyone enjoys being at MOC and choosing it was a good decision. I remember taking the bus to get to Paris and it was fun to ride local transit. It's an easy way to see the sights for little $$.

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10 minute walk to Whaler's village. Several shops and good restaurants: Lelani's, MonkyPod, Hula Grill. Use open table to reserve at Lelani's and HulaGrill. (Monkeypod doesn't take them). There is a free shuttle from Marriott to Whaler's, the golf course/Roy's restaurant, and hotels as far north as Kaanapali Beach. (Kaanapali Trolley). Time at Marriott is generally a couple of minutes after the hour. Free, but for tips. The bus to Lahaina leaves from Whaler's Village, and is $2. Stops at Maui Maul, which is where Safeway is. We often would take bus to Safeway, and Uber back if we have groceries or liquor. Your teenage kids might be interested in a slack key performance, ask the concierge about it. A luau can be fun, but often reservations need to be made far in advance. On Thursday afternoon, the resort puts on a "hula show" at the main pool (kids in the pool, adults in chairs around) with local performers, many young. Fun, while not the full luau event, still get the hula part of the experience. The Hyatt (next door to Marriott south) has a luau and several good restaurants.
 
While you are at the courtyard you might look at eating at Mamas Fish house just south of Paia. Expensive but great atmosphere and food. Must make reservations 2 or 3 months in advance.
 
If you go to Leilani's at Whaler's Village, be sure to order a piece of hula pie (see my avatar)! HUGE and delicious....
 
cowboy said:
While you are at the courtyard you might look at eating at Mamas Fish house just south of Paia. Expensive but great atmosphere and food. Must make reservations 2 or 3 months in advance.
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I already tried to get reservations at Mama's Fish House. I was put on waitlist. They are already booked for July!! Heard it was a great place. Thanks!! Hula Pie.... looks good. Is it ice cream? Glad to hear about the trolly and bus. Maybe we don't have to rent cars????? We would have to rent 2 because there are 9 of us. Is it better to go to Costco or shop at the Safeway locally? Sounds like there are plenty of places nearby.
 
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travelgirl8 said:
We will be going to Marriott Maui Ocean Club with family in July. Are there excursions that leave from the resort? The kids are looking for surf lessons for 14 and 17 year old. Any suggestions? Ages are from 8 years old to 76. Trying to plan daily activities with a lot of time at resort. Some of the 40 somethings want to see waterfalls and road to Hana.
Also looking for dining options near resort. We are planning to eat in for at least 2 meals. We plan on staying at Courtyard in Maui on arrival night and going to the food truck park there. Next day going to Ocean Club. Any help in planning is appreciated as this has taken up 2 years of points for us.
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Sea Maui and Gemini both great sailing companies pick up in front of Whalers village (snorkeling- sunset sails both great We always do the Sunset sail on our last night). We are going again in May- (5th time) staying at Westin Nanea - make reservations to any restaurants now -can always cancel closer if change plans. Monkey Pod- Hula Grill- Leilani's all great choices. Duke's is another great one further away about 2 miles next to the Westin villas. The aquarium is pretty nice- great 1-3 hr outting. We always hit Costco right after arriving- about 3 mins from airport to get the bulk of our groceries- then will go to Safeway for odds/ends. HA Baldwin beach and nearby is small beach that all the turtles sun at have seen 30-80 each time North side of Island -Ho'okipa Beach Park . Prison Street pizza is also a great one to have delivered to the villa's for a cheap lunch/dinner. Enjoy your trip!
 
Some folks will advise renting a car, and if you're planning to leave the area, that's a good call. But if you're planning to hang around Kaanapali, we always rent a car for one or two days, stop at Costco on the way to the resort, and maybe also Safeway. Turn the car in at the West Maui airport (they will bring you back to the hotel) or at Hyatt if you've rentred a Hertz. Enterprise is also available from the Sheraton. A one way rental costs an extra 20 dollars or so a day, but it's better (in our opinion) than renting a car to have it in the garge while you enjoy the beach.
 
dlpearson said:
If you go to Leilani's at Whaler's Village, be sure to order a piece of hula pie (see my avatar)! HUGE and delicious....
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The MOC concierge will have a Welcome Package for you which will include a Discount Card (I'm trying to remember the official name for it) but it has discounts/deals for restaurants, shops, etc. One of the deals is "FREE HULA PIE" from (I think) Leilani's (and maybe a few others - like Kimo's in Lahaina). If going to Mama's, go for lunch, not dinner. It's the same food and price but the view will be so much nicer because their beach is beautiful especially if the windsurfers and kite surfers are out doing their thing. It will definitely be one of the most expensive lunch you will buy (and trust me, when I was in Corporate America in NYC, I had some unbelievably expensive lunches!)...don't forget to order their Bloody Mary, the seared tuna ahi (not on menu but can request it if you call ahead a few days) and also The Pearl (which may compete with the Hula Pie). If you'd rather not take out another home equity loan to pay for Mama's, go to Paia's Fish House in Paia for awesome seafood also...
 
dlpearson said:
If you go to Leilani's at Whaler's Village, be sure to order a piece of hula pie (see my avatar)! HUGE and delicious....
Click to expand...

Ahh. My favorite desert! Hula Pie!

By the way. Kimo’s sells Hula Pie plates and sporks, but Leilani’s doesn’t. Picked those up in my last visit as a fun souvenir that maybe someday I’ll use at home on a homemade Hula Pie.
 
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