Please help me revise my plans on Maui and Big Island

[gstepic]

this site is a great help and don't forget to..

Pick up a copy of the Doughty Revealed book for Maui and the Big Island. You will find they are very helpful and you also will get some interesting responses about the books from those living on the islands. We found them to be of great help. I think you said your leaving soon (probably not enough time to order on-line) so I am pretty sure I saw copies of the book at the airport in Honolulu so you should not have a hard time finding copies.

Gary

 

[DeniseM]

see the Place of Refuge.

Be sure you take your snorkel gear - right next door, at "Two Step" is the best snorkeling that we found on the Big Island.

My suggestion - take a picnic and get there early. Pay to go in the park, and park in the closest parking spot to the manned ranger's shack - that way your car will be under the ranger's nose while you leave your stuff in the car and go snorkel.

Walk back out the driveway with only your snorkel gear, make an immediate left onto the main road, and then an immediate left at the next driveway and walk down to the ocean. You will see where everyone is getting in at "Two Step" out on the lava bench. It looks hard at first, but Mother Nature has built two steps into the lava bench here that make it a cinch to get in and out.

Then after your morning snorkel, go back to the car and drive back into the picnic grounds (drive towards the visitor's center and then take the road that goes toward the ocean on the left, about 200 yards.) They have a lovely picnic area with gorgeous views and fascinating tidal pools. After your picnic lunch, explore the rest of the park.

 

[Art]

My understanding is that the ditches (old irrigation channels) were sufficiently damaged in the 2006 earthquake that Flumin Da Ditch will not reopen. That's a shame because it was a lot of fun. If you are on Kauai, Kauai Backcountry offers a tubing thing that is similar.

The Kona Coffee Tour is not like a Sonoma-Napa or Finger Lakes wine tour with tons of wineries with tastings, etc. Most of the the coffee plantations are relatively small and in amazingly difficult places to get to on the side of the mountain. We thought we would try the tour when we were there in December, but really found only a few that offer a worthwhile sampling experience. If you consider visiting any of the small farms, it is essential to call and set up an appointment. If you don't, you could end up doing a futile drive up or down the side of a cliff

Based on our experience, it is best to concentrate on the coffee places that advertise in the tourist racks such as MountainThunder and Blue Skies.

Art

 

[Luanne]

We like Bayview Farms. You can tour, or not. Their tasting room is one of the nicest I've been in. And their coffee is good too.

http://www.bayviewfarmcoffees.com/

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

I've visited several of the coffee plantations, but haven't been that impressed with the coffee. Last visit to the BI we stopped by Greenwell's - based on various recommendations - and I still wasn't that impressed. But I bought a pound of their City roast (whole beans) and brought it back to Seattle with me.

When I ground the beans and made the coffee myself, it tasted a heck of a lot better than it did at Greenwell's. I did some side by side comparisons with my favorites (Starbucks Sulawesi and Gold Coast) and I still preferred my favorites. But I can see that as a matter of taste - I liked the deeper flavors of my favorites.

But I was quite surprised at the difference in taste between what I got brewing it at home and what it tasted like at the farm.

 

[Cathy in Boston]

Steve - living in Seattle, you no doubt have access to a whole lot better coffees than I do, but Greenwell peaberry beans are my favorite. Just got a bag this week. I order by mail from Greenwell.

Back to what to do in Hawaii - on the BI, I agree, the Volcanoes Park is one of the greatest places in the world, I absolutely love it. Ditto Place of Refuge, not to be missed.

If you like great dining - Merriman's is wonderful.

Have a great trip.

 

[alanraycole]

Most of the things I would recommend have already been mentioned...

But, I will recommend one simple pleasure. I am almost embarrased to say that it was one of my favorite activities on Maui, where I am now. I have walked almost every day the entire length of the Wailea Beach walk. Don't laugh! Please, hush, you are hurting my feelings.

It winds past several resorts on one side and beautiful beaches and jagged lava ledges on the other. If you walk straight through, it will take about an hour round trip. If you stop to smell the sea spray, you could enjoy it for a whole day. I like it so much that I will spend my whole last day strolling there and enjoying the many beaches along the walk.

I am staying at the Maui Lea on Maui Hill, a pleasant resort, but the resort's best attribute is its proximity to this beautiful walk. It is about a mile away. Some of the beaches along the walk are crowded. Others, you can have almost all to yourself. There are surfers, families building sand castles, and lovers in love. There are also plenty of restaurants along the way to stop and enjoy lunch.

When I found myself analysing the resorts along the walk trying to figure out which ones would make the best timeshare conversions, I decided I needed therapy. But hey, there are no timeshares anywhere in Wailea... watupwitdat!