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Maui |
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Maui
Maui isn’t the largest of the Hawaiian Islands, but it may offer the most excitement. You can ascend 10,000 feet to see a volcanic crater large enough to swallow Manhattan, and the next day you can snorkel around the submerged caldera of another. See 1,000-foot waterfalls, surf, swoop through canyons in a helicopter, and drive one of the most beautiful highways anywhere. Then you can recuperate from all that excitement on the beach -- Maui has 80 of them to choose from.
Activities and Attractions:
Maui’s landscape is dominated by the nearly two-mile-high volcanic cone of Haleakala. You can drive yourself to the summit, or sign up for a tour where someone else takes the wheel. (A popular option is catching a lift to the top to see the sunrise, then hurtling back down the 37-mile access road on a mountain bike.) However you get there, you will never forget the sight of the 3,000-foot deep, 7.5-mile long moonscape of a crater.
If the mountain doesn’t call your name, surely the beach will. Many visitors flock to Kaanapali, on the western side of the island. One look at the four-mile stretch of golden sand and you’ll see why. The enormous span of beach means you’ll never feel crowded as you enjoy summer swimming and snorkeling.
If you do want to feel more secluded, try Hamoa’s gray sands. This eastern beach was described as looking more like the South Pacific than the actual South Pacific by none other than Hawaii author James Michener--who knew a thing or two about exotic.
Another beach option is Wailea Beach, which offers safe swimming with just enough winter wave action for surfing. It also offers a view of tiny crescent-shaped Molokini, a partially submerged volcanic crater 2.5 miles offshore. Hire a boat to take you there for some of the best snorkeling and diving of your life.
One other way to experience the beauty of Maui is by driving the road to Hana. This 50-mile road along Maui’s eastern shore is officially known as Highway 36. You can easily spend a day driving the curving, bamboo-canopied two-lane road between Paia and Hana, because you’ll be tempted to stop every few minutes for a new ocean vista, a fresh waterfall, or another view of a black or red-sand beach far below.
Another way to view the island is by booking a helicopter tour. An aerial view will show you instantly how Maui’s lush contoured landscape earned it the nickname of the “Valley Isle.” You’ll see rock formations and 1,000-foot waterfalls inaccessible to hikers as you zoom through uninhabited canyons. Or take a submarine tour. Operators in Lahaina offer trips 100 feet under the waves in an honest-to-goodness sub, giving you a view of coral and sea life you’d normally need a Scuba certification for.
Too much adrenalin? Relax! Maui is known for its spas. Try a Hawaiian seaweed wrap, a sea-salt scrub, or lomilomi massage and let Maui work its calming magic on you.
Insider Tip:
At the Leleiwi Overlook, about half way up the Haleakala, it’s sometimes possible to see your own shadow at sunset reflected against clouds, magnified and surrounded by a glowing rainbow halo. This eerie, ethereal effect is called the Specter of the Brocken. If it happens, be sure to snap a picture. There are only three places on earth where this happens with any regularity, the other two being in Scotland and Germany.
-Exclusively for Perfect Escapes by Nicole Clausing |
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