I had an amazing week of warm weather, ocean breeezes and many Mai Tais while in Maui at the end of March and would love to give you a few updates.
We flew into the island late at night so we didn't get the ocean view as we landed but knew we were in for a treat as soon as the ocean breeze combined with smell of jasmine hit our noses. Our home for the week was in the beautiful Andaz Wailea and the staff were generous with their time and we were settled in to our room within minutes of arriving.
The Andaz is beautifully designed both in the rooms and the public areas and the great service, food and amenities make it a perfect destination for us.
We spent much of our time hanging out on our lounge chairs in front of the ocean so not much to report other than it is a perfect way to decompress. Each day walking down the beach gave us a wee bit of justification for the Mai Tais we would drink later in the day.
Dinner our first evening was at the happening joint called The Monkeypod. We discovered this gem on our last trip to the island and fell in love with the Mai Tai's! A wood burning oven turns out hand tossed thin crust pizza, live reggae music plays in the background and as I said the bartender makes the best Mai Tais!
Other great places we stopped for dinner include Ka'ana Kitchen for amazing locally sourced ingredients; Morimoto Maui for sensational sushi and Mama's Fish House for a true Hawaiian experience.
Mai Tai joy
We also spent a fantastic day at O'o Farms exploring their land and we picked ingredients that would make up our lunch that we ate at the end of the tour. It was a great experience and we discovered some amazing new fruits and vegetables that we don't have access here in YVR.
Whale watching was on the agenda late in the week and we were hoping to catch at least a glimpse of one of these beautiful creatures. We were not disappointed! Early into the tour we spotted a mother humpback with her calf and two 'escorts' (males trying to pick her up) and as a bonus a few bottlenose dolphins. We followed them for over an hour and they breached and splashed and came close to the boat providing us with many 'wow' moments. We were so blessed to see these amazing animals.
Humpback breach
Our final night I noticed a friend, who I haven't seen in over ten years, was on the island. We connected and had dinner together. What a perfect ending to the trip.
Memorable and relaxing, Maui has solidified a place in our hearts. We can't wait to return.