West Maui: Napili Bay
Maui was such an incredible place with so much to do and see! After a five hour flight from San Jose we arrived in Kahului which is located in what’s considered to be the central part of the island. This area is known for strong winds, acres upon acres of sugar cane, and a beautiful back drop of the western mountains.
Our first stop on the drive to Napili was at a small hut selling fresh coconuts. They gave us the option of a coconut with more flesh or one with more water and we went for water which left us feeling nice and hydrated after a long plane ride.
And that picture should tell you how windy it was. Just look at my pants! It was so strong, it almost blew me and my coconut away.
Our first view of the coast was beautiful but also a little deceiving because it changes drastically as you start to head west. On the way to the hotel, we stopped at a place called Choice Health Bar {I did my research ahead of time, of course} for a healthy bite to eat.
The food there was awesome! I especially loved the vegan sushi topped with avocado and mango. It was like a work of art! I had to give my wasabi to Brandon though. My wimpy taste buds can’t handle that much heat.
The hotel we stayed at, Napili Kai Beach Resort, is nestled on Napili Bay in northern Lahaina.
The weather in this part of Lahaina is a little different than the downtown area, which is typically warm and sunny with very little wind. But the benefit is that the occasional clouds and light rain showers make the surroundings feel lush, giving it more of an authentic Hawaiian feel.
And there are musical Myna birds to wake you up every morning! I don’t think everyone is as excited about that part but we really enjoyed listening to them.
Napili Kai is actually an independently owned resort that’s been in business for over fifty years. Some of their rooms don’t even have air conditioning {you don’t really need it} but ours did.
It was an ocean front studio that had been recently remodeled and it had everything we needed and more, including an incredible view.
It was so relaxing to sit on the patio and listen to the ocean. What I wouldn’t give to wake up to that every day!
The room was also only a few steps away from the beach, where they provide complimentary chairs, towels, water, and snorkeling gear.
We rented a few stand-up paddleboards but unfortunately the wind made it really challenging. If you stopped paddling for even a minute, you immediately started drifting toward the middle of the ocean into a dangerous {Hawaiian translation: gnarly} current.
At one point, I got so frustrated that I sat down and started whining to Brandon about the wind. Then all of a sudden this little guy popped his head up!
I’m pretty sure that he said something like, “quitcherbitchin”.
Even though the strong wind wasn’t ideal, we tried our best to make the most of it for a few hours. We also snorkeled {this is a great spot for it!}, hung out on the beach and watched a little terror named Killian destroy everyone’s sand castle.
For dinner we ate at Napili Kai’s on site restaurant, Sea House. It’s fairly casual so we didn’t even bother getting out of our swimsuits. A little towel action was all it took and we were on the patio, enjoying dinner and taking in a beautiful sunset.
I tried the Monchong which is a native Hawaiian fish that’s similar to Mahi Mahi. I don’t usually cook fish at home because Brandon won’t eat it, but it was hard to pass up while we were there. It was so fresh!
Overall the best part about staying at Napili Kai was Mama Cat.
She’s the resident cat and likes to beg everyone for leftovers as they come back to their rooms in the evening. We let her in our room to hang out for a while but once she realized we didn’t have any goods, she was on to the next one. Typical cat for ya!
I have more details of the trip to share with you so stay tuned!
Sounds so cool! Hawaii is on my places to visit list for sure. If I had a view like that from my hotel and a nice patio I would probably hang out there alllllll the time. I’ve also never paddleboarded and probably would’ve thrown a mini fit too because of the wind haha.
The resort where you stayed looks so gorgeous! I’m not a big water sports person, but I really want to try stand up paddleboarding sometime. Although I imagine the wind would have made it annoying!
And those Myna birds – jesus, that’s intense.
I’ve never been to Hawaii. I would love to go! It looks like you guys had a great time. The food looks unbelievable!
I’ve never been to Hawaii. I would love to go! It looks like you guys had a great time. The food looks unbelievable!
So beautiful! What a view you guys had from your room!! I’m heading out west this summer and the thing I’m looking forward to most is just listening to the ocean. So therapeutic…
And, of course, I love Mama Cat. What a sweet bubby. :)
So so gorgeous! You’re making me want to go on a tropical vacation – which is not happening right now : ) haha And that cat is totally cracking me up – I love it!
Yay, keep the Hawaii posts coming! I love reading trip recaps. My aunt and uncle are in Maui right now and loving it.
You are making me really want to go back to Maui, like tomorrow!! Your photos are so beautiful! For some stupid reason, we were trying not to spend too much money on our trip, so we cooked most of our meals in our condo and didn’t get to enjoy too many meals out. I told my husband that if we ever go back, we will be eating out for every meal! That cat is so cute! We stayed at one place that had two cats, but I think they were feral cats and one jumped on clung to my towel on my way back from the pool!
beautiful! makes me want to go back to hawaii – so peaceful!
I love the honeymoon recap! I also love reading this because it brings me back to all my trips to Hawaii. It hasn’t even been a year since I was there but I want to go back soon! Lovely photos. Thanks for sharing.
Stunning! The resort, clear water and rainbow all look amazing! What a wonderful honeymoon. One year when we were in Mexico our hotel had a bunch of cats that all looked very hungry, my mom bought tons of tuna fish cans to feed then all every night. Doesn’t look like mama cat is mistreated there!
I loved reading your recap and yes – please recreate that pineapple dessert for us! I need to get back to Hawaii sometime for the fish and the fresh coconut waters. Happy you had such a great time and look forward to more recaps!
Absolutely gorgeous!!! Great pictures, it makes me want to go to Hawaii like ASAP, that’s next on our travel list! And I will NEVER get bored of the travel posts!! Keep ’em coming!
Oh my gosh I love Maui so much! We stayed further south in Wailea. The views are so amazing! I don’t think we got quite as many rainbows as you did! So beautiful! I would do anything to go back. The sea turtles were one of the coolest things!
Looks so beautiful! I love travel posts just as much as I love your recipes, so please keep them coming! Looking forward to seeing more!
OMG everything looks totally perfect and ideal for your honeymoon (minus the wind). I always research where to eat before we travel to a new area too- it’s the best part of traveling, no? The fact that there is a resort cat roaming from room to room is pretty awesome.
What a great getaway… making me want to jump on a plane and head to get some relaxing in!
lovely pictures! :) sounds like a great place to visit, glad you guys had a good time :)
What a beautiful place. I love our blog. I am glad I found it ;-)
I read this post last night before bed and seriously had dreams of the gorgeous ocean! Your photos are incredible and the resort looks absolutely perfect for a honeymoon. And I love the nickname Branmuffins for your future kiddos ;)
Beautiful! You’ve got me dreaming of Maui….that view is incredible!
That view from your room is AMAZING!
I’m the same way scoping out restaurants at places beforehand. Us healthy eating vegetarians have to plan ahead right? :)
stunning, stunning, stunning! I spent the least amount of time on Maui when I was in Hawaii and that’s one of my biggest regrets! Kauai was incredible and Oahu was okay but I felt like Maui was the perfect island. Guess I need to get married and go back ;)