Maui Oceanfront Half Marathon | Weekend in Maui, Hawaii

Welcome to Maui

Maui is exactly the paradise you think it is. We planned a week-long visit to Maui to follow the Maui Oceanfront Half Marathon race. The first two days of the seven-day Maui itinerary are largely the same as what’s described in this post, followed by several other days of fun to take full advantage of the long flight. For us active voyagers, Maui has several unique and challenging hikes which make the relaxing on the beach all the more worth it.

Where to Stay

We stayed in Wailea and would highly recommend it. Home to the most beautiful and swimmable beaches, it is also the location of the nicest hotels on the island. We were lucky to be able to stay at the Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort, which was an epic experience; if you can cash in hotel points or find another way to swing that, you will not be disappointed. Slightly north of Wailea is Kihei. We spent a bit of time in Kihei eating at food trucks, walking along the beach, and shopping for groceries. It has a more earthy, less resorty vibe, and is more residential than Wailea—so you’re more likely to find an affordable Airbnb condo in Kihea than Wailea. You can’t go wrong with either spot, and it’s only a 20 minute walk along the beach between them.

About the Race

In a word, I would call this race “quirky.” The course is beautiful—which will come as no surprise when you see the course route. The half marathon is an out-and-back, which is never my favorite. The upside of this is that for most of the race you can cheer on the marathoners (who only run one direction) or the half marathoners who are still making their way to the turnaround point. One thing I did not account for was the change in wind at the turnaround point. Only then did I realize we had a tailwind for the first half of the race (yikes!) The other drawback of the race is that they don’t close the course to traffic, so you run along side cars for a portion of the course. All that being said, it is a beautiful run which starts in the dark so you get to experience the sunrise as well as lovely vistas of the ocean for most of the route.

With an early morning flight from the East Coast you will arrive early evening. Unpack and unwind during your first evening in Maui.

4:00 - Arrive at the Maui Kahului Airport (A) and pick up a rental car.

5:00 - On the way from the airport to the Airbnb or hotel, stop at the Safeway in Kahului for groceries (B). If you don’t already have a Safeway card, sign up for one; food is expensive in Hawaii. Pick up sunscreen, as well as ingredients for breakfast and a pre-race dinner.

6:00 - Check in to the hotel or Airbnb (C). We weren’t very hungry on our first night, and were content to have a light snack and a glass of wine. You’ll probably be tired and head to bed early. If you’re feeling energized, by all means, get out there and take a walk along the ocean!

**Day 2.**
**Explore West Maui**

Saturday

Spend the day exploring the beaches and towns on the west side of the island.

7:00 - You’ll likely be up early with the time change. Have some breakfast, then pack your beach towels, walking shoes, and beach gear and hop in the car. If you are staying at an Airbnb or hotel that has snorkel equipment to borrow, bring that with you too.

8:00 - Head first to Kapalua Beach (A), about an hour drive from Wailea. Park and follow signs for the Kapalua Coastal Trail, a 2-mile rocky pathway with panoramic views of the ocean.

10:00 - From Kapalua, drive south to Ka’anapali Beach (B). Walk along Ka’anapali Beach, heading towards Black Rock Beach (C) (3 miles one way). If you do have snorkel equipment, you can use it at Black Rock Beach. Otherwise, enjoy some of the walk, read, take a dip, or watch the waves.

12:30 - Continue south by car to Lahaina (D), a whaling town with shops, restaurants, art galleries, and more. Walk around the town, and stop for lunch. Paia Fish Market is a popular spot (we went to both locations and would recommend the Kihei location over this one). Be sure to check out the Banyan Court, a public park across from Paia Fish Market which has one of the largest banyan trees in the United States. Pick up your race bib at the Pioneer Inn (658 Wharf St) across from the Banyan Tree from 9:30am-5:30pm.

3:00 - Head back to the Airbnb (E) to relax and cook. (If you’re not interested in cooking, you can get pasta at nearby Fabiani’s. It ended up being fine for us, though I wouldn’t go out of my way to eat there.)

**Day 3.**
**Race and Recover with an Epic Sunset**

Sunday

Enjoy a beautiful run along the ocean, relax on the beach, and then see the sunset at Haleakala Crater.

4:00 - Wake up. Have breakfast and head to the starting line at 525 Front St. in Lahaina (A). You’ll want to leave no later than 5:00 to arrive by 5:45; if you don’t leave before 5:00, you risk getting stuck behind the marathoners who are running from Wailea to Lahaina. The free parking near the race start fills up quickly; head straight to 750 Luakini St. in Lahaina for parking and you should have no trouble finding a spot.

6:30 - Race starts!

9:00 - Drive back from Lahaina to Wailea (~45 min) to clean up.

11:00 - What’s the best way to make sure you’re replenished after a half marathon in Maui? Have an all-you-can eat brunch at Ka’ana Kitchen (B). Yes, it’s very expensive ($50 pp). It’s also pretty incredible, and you can eat anything and everything you could possibly want.

1:00 - After brunch, spend a couple of hours relaxing on nearby Wailea Beach.

3:00 - Drive to Haleakala Crater (C), about two hours from Wailea (Google Maps will give you the time to the entrance by default, and it’s another 30 minutes up to the summit.) The drive up to the summit is, itself, an experience. The switchbacks will take you up 10,000 feet, above the cloud line, and give you panoramic views of the island. At the Visitor’s Center, you can do a short climb to the top of rocky hill for a good view of the area. (If you had a full day, I’d suggest the Sliding Sands Trail, but you likely won’t want to hike after a half marathon.)

5:00 - Drive to the summit (~5 min from the Visitor Center) to get a good parking spot. The lot will start filling up about an hour before sunset, so try to get there early. Have a snack in the car, and hang out until about 20 minutes before sunset. Follow the crowd to find a seat looking west. Pack extra layers, a hat, and a blanket to sit on—it will cool down as the sun goes down. The sunset itself is awesome; you’ll actually see what appears to be two sunsets as the sun passes below the cloud line and then below the horizon. The sky fills with all the colors of the rainbow.

7:00 - Have dinner at Monkeypod Kitchen (D). This was one of our favorite meals of the trip. The place was very busy and a reservation was necessary. The food was delicious, and they are famous for their pies for dessert. Get the pie special!

**Day 4.**
**Snorkel with Sea Turtles**

Monday

If you really only have a weekend in Maui, then I suggest doing the snorkel tour on your last day. It was one of the highlights of our week. Ask for a late check out to be able to clean up after spending the morning in the ocean. If you have more time to spend in Maui, check out a full itinerary for the week here.

7:00 - Arrive for the snorkel tour at Kihei Boat Ramp (A). We did the Morning Molokini Snorkel 4 hour Excursion hosted by Maui Snorkel Charters, Inc. We would highly recommend the tour ($150) which included five stops—three at Molokini Crater and two in Turtle Town (though the stops change daily). We saw whales up close (some even came under our boat), swam with a half-a-dozen sea turtles, and saw lots of interesting marine life like manta rays, coral, and colorful fish. The boat had 18 people, so we didn’t feel like we were in a huge group, and the tour staff were very knowledgeable and friendly. The tour includes snacks and a light lunch on the way back.

12:00 - The tour ends around noon. Head back to the Airbnb/hotel (B) to check out.

12:30 - If you’re still hungry, head to South Maui Fish Co. (C), a food truck in Kihei with amazing poke.

1:00 - Head to the airport. There are flights back to the east coast around 3:00 by way of Honolulu. You can also take an afternoon flight to another island. From Maui, we headed to Kauai, which you can read more about here.

Have More than 4 Days?

After running the Maui Oceanfront Half Marathon, we spent seven more days in Maui. From Maui, we flew on to Kauai for another six days. Two weeks in Hawaii, including a week on two different islands, was great; we were there long enough in each place to be able to see a ton and also relax, and really got into a vacation groove.

Costs for Two People

One-Way Flights (NYC to Maui) - $800
One-Way Flights (Maui to Kauai) - $200
Lodging - $750 ($250/night)
Rental Car (incl. gas) - $250
Food and Drink - $400 ($100/day)
Race Entry - $200
Total Costs = $2,600 (in 2020)

Pre-Travel Checklist

Confirm open hours.
Make restaurant reservations.
Reserve a car permit for Haleakala Crater (only if you plan to go at sunrise, a permit is not needed for sunset.)
Download offline google maps for Maui.