Maui Travel
This was our first BIG trip in over a year! Brett and I are notorious for inviting friends or family to our "couples trips" so this time, we made a huge effort to plan ahead, get babysitting lined up and go away, JUST THE TWO OF US. Travel to Hawaii can take an entire day so we had sure to take that into account when booking our dates, we really wanted to be able to shut off and feel total relaxation for more than a weekend. Our trip was seven nights, two travel days, which gave us FIVE full days to ourselves and it was perfect.
We didn't go with a ton planned on purpose. I'm typically the planner when we vacation, I just love the concept of arriving and not having to think about anything. But, I wanted to do things differently for this trip. We had a Jeep for the week in Hawaii, which I highly recommend. (TIP! If you're planning a trip to Hawaii soon book your car immediately. There is a huge shortage of vehicles for tourists.) As expected, we made a few reservations to eat at Maui staples but since it was just the two of us (and our Jeep) we were able to explore the island and find the "local favorites" and those were some of my favorite parts from our trip.
Here's a list of our favorites in Maui, Hawaii:
Coconuts - Order the "Calamari & Chips" trust me, the BEST we've had. Also, their "Fish Tacos" with the fresh catch and Poke was absolutely amazing! We ate lunch here twice.
South Maui Fish Company - Holy moly, this place was amazing. It's a food truck which made it harder to find (not to mention their strange hours) but it's A MUST. One of the best "fish tacos" ever, different than the typical "soft taco" but wow, amazing. We also got the "fish plate" which had tons of fish and was so delicious. Such a great value here.
Paia Fish Market - Our last lunch on the island was this place and it was also incredible. Brett ordered the "Obama Burger" which isn't technically on the menu. Grilled Ono with a special, wasabi sauce...it was fantastic. I ordered the "Seafood Salad" with blackened Ahi. The salad was done so well, with tons of lettuce and fresh veggies with a HUGE piece of fresh fish on the top. The salad also comes with a tiny shrimp cocktail. Another local hidden gem.
Maui Brewing Company - We drove off the resort and did dinner here one of our first nights. What a vibe! Live music, a beautiful sunset, and delicious food and drinks. We loved the casual ambiance here, a must-visit and great for kids.
Monkeypod - We always eat here at least once. There is almost always a wait here but on this last trip, it went much faster than expect3ed. The menu is great, you really can't go wrong ordering from this staple. We loved the "Corn Chowder" and "Pork Pizza" this trip.
Longhi's Wailea - Best tasting breakfast (that we found). I ordered a veggie scramble both times we came and it was good. The fresh-squeezed OJ is a must, as well as the bacon. Overall fabulous quality and they use really fresh ingredients which I loved.
MauiWine - This might have been the highlight of our trip. It was an entire experience... the beautiful drive in the Jeep up the mountain, the beautiful grounds at the winery itself, the fun staff, and the wine, wow, who knew! I tried the bubbles flight which was SO good, we were so impressed with all of their unique varietals. They even ferment some of their wines in pineapple instead of grapes. We heard from locals that there is no need to do "The Road to Hana" if you do this drive to MauiWine. If you enjoy wine at all, this is a must-visit.
Spago - If you're looking to go full-out and do a resort-style dinner - it should be Spago. The restaurant is perched upon the beautiful grounds of the Four Seasons Resort Wailea (which is a treat in itself). We had one of those meals where every bite was just incredible! Even the table bread was one of the best we had tasted. Top rated for a reason, it was THE perfect spot to end such a perfect trip.
Traveling to Hawaii after covid19
Most of Hawaii is open to tourism again… BUT understandably so, they are extremely cautious when letting you in and each island has THEIR OWN rules and restrictions.
Read everything. Make sure you understand the entire process because it’s new and different.
YOUR COVID TEST: THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR TRIP TO HAWAII
Find out the EXACT type of Covid19 test you need to pass and receive results before you can enter Hawaii. You can do this by following all instructions listed by YOUR SPECIFIC AIRLINE. You have a very short time frame (72 hours before your flight) to get your test completed AND get your results before arriving on the island. We heard that they do NOT make exceptions so this was the most stressful part of our trip. Brett took his PCR test before mine however, my results were posted almost 12 hours before his. We were sweating! Brett didn’t receive his results until we had already checked into our gate RIGHT before boarding. And then we celebrated with a mimosa.
REGISTER ONLINE: SAFE TRAVELS PORTAL
Before your flight, every traveler will need to be registered on the online platform. This is where you will upload your negative covid19 test results before your flight. If you get the results in time, print it out as well.
FINAL STEP: TEST VERIFICATION
Your negative test results will need to be verified by an employee. You can either do this in the airport, prior to your flight to Hawaii OR (what we did) upon arrival.
If they make you wear a wristband for your flight, don’t take it off until you have checked into your hotel. Our airline didn’t require this but I know some are. I also heard stories about making people quarantine because they didn’t follow directions and took their wristband off too early. Sounds obvious but being informed and completely understanding YOUR SPECIFIC travel instructions (island your visiting, airline, etc) will help take a ton of the stress out of an already stressful process.