🌺 5 Days in Maui: The Ultimate Island Escape

Day 1: Arrival, Snorkeling in Kapalua Bay & Monkey Pod Mai Tais

Welcome to paradise! After landing on the lush island of Maui, we hopped on the airport shuttle to pick up our rental car and headed toward the west side of the island.

First stop: Foodland for some essentials—and don't skip the poke!

Spend the afternoon at Kapalua Bay. This was one of, if not the best, snorkeling experiences of my life. The water is crystal clear, the coral is vibrant, and we swam with dozens of sea turtles—pure magic! *There is a little hut where you can buy goggles, floaties, sunscreen and cold beverages right on the beach!

For a coffee, sweet treat, or pastry, walk to Island Vibes Cafe - I loved the gluten-free Brazilian cheese balls!!

In the evening, we headed to Whalers Village for a little retail therapy and sunset drinks at Monkeypod Kitchen. I am not a big drinker but I had to try their famous Mai Tais & they totally lived up to the hype! (plus, they have delicious mocktails and a great food menu).

We headed back to our airbnb, made dinner, and crawled in bed for a movie to end our first night!

Day 2: The Road to Hana Adventure

No trip to Maui is complete without tackling the Road to Hana—a winding, waterfall-filled journey through some of the island's most beautiful spots.

We downloaded the Shaka Maui app, which narrates the route in real time with stories, history, and tips. It made the trip way more fun and helped us not miss any hidden gems.

We started with coffee and breakfast at Bella Surf Café in Paia, then hit the road:

Road to Hana Highlights:

• Twin Falls – Wear water shoes! This easy hike leads to gorgeous waterfalls and swimming spots.

• Maui’s Garden of Eden – A lush botanical garden with sweeping ocean views.

• Ka'eleku Cave – A cool little cave we found thanks to the app. Listen carefully for where to find this one!

• Coconut Glen’s – Refreshing coconut ice cream and freshly cracked coconuts.

• Black Sand Beach (Waiʻānapanapa State Park) – checked black sand beach off of my life bucket-list! This was our favorite stop of the day!

• Ae's Sassy Tacos – We wrapped up the day with fresh fish tacos before making the drive back.

  
  

🚗 Road to Hana Tips:

• Start early!

• Bring snacks, water, and motion sickness remedies if you’re sensitive to winding roads.

• Drive safely—pull over to let faster cars pass.

• Try to head back before dark—driving at night can be tricky and you take the same route home!

Day 3: Beach Vibes & Sunset Dining

A perfect chill day.

We started with breakfast at Slappy Cakes, where you can make your own pancakes at the table (they have gluten-free batter too!).

We spent most of our third day relaxing by the pool at our airbnb and the beach close by. We enjoyed shaved ice and lunch at the food trucks before getting ready for dinner.

Some of my favorite authors for vacation reads are:

• Elin Hinderbrand

• Kristin Hannah

• Emily Henry

• Jodi Picoult

• Liane Moriarty

• Taylor Jenkins Reid

• Lauren Weisberger

That evening, we headed back to Whalers Village for dinner at Leilani’s on the Beach. Between the beet salad, fresh-caught fish, and handcrafted cocktails, it was one of the best meals of the trip. We wrapped the day with a cozy movie night back at the hotel.

Day 4: Turtles and Paia

Today was a perfect Maui day! I absolutely love the town of Paia.

We grabbed a healthy breakfast at Island Fresh Café after stopping at a hole in the wall farmers market stand on the way into town. After breakfast we drove to Kaulahao where we scored one of the few parking spots along the beach and immediately were greeted by dozens of sea turtles both swimming in the water and lounging on the sand. It was a dream morning! If you visit, make sure to keep a safe distance from the turtles 🐢 

Once we were ready for lunch we made our way back into town and enjoyed fish tacos at Paia Fish Market, and green juice from Choice Health Bar. We spent the afternoon thrifting at Paia Consign & Thrift, visiting shops and markets around town, then headed to Ho’okipa Beach to watch the surfers and see tons more sea turtles!

We ended the day with a sunset swim and hot tub soak at our hotel, followed by a casual dinner at the local food trucks nearby

Day 5: One Last Morning in Paradise

Our final day started with a peaceful morning walk, followed by coffee at Bad Ass Coffee and breakfast + fresh juice at Farmers Market Maui that we enjoyed at Honokowai Beach Park across the street.

We made the most of our morning, returned our rental car and said Goodbye to the island for now!