7 Things To Do In Maui

I know a lot of my readers like Maui and the surroundings. Since I have been there many times myself, I thought I would share my top 7 things to do in Maui.

1. Take a hike through the rain forest. This is my favorite among all the things to do in Maui. It's great because you really get to see the nature of the Island. Besides, this can be done for free if you have a good map.
2. Participate in Luau on the beach. This is great fun and something you must do! Just ask at your hotel and they'll tell you a place where they arrange luaus if they don't do it themselves.
3. Relax on Kaanapali Beach. This is one of the most beautiful beaches in the world and a must see when you are in Maui. Just spend half a day doing nothing but reading, playing games, sun bathing and swimming.
4. Take the kids to Polo Beach. This place is great if you are on Maui with your kids. There's lots to do and the water is really calm so it's ideal for small kids.
5. Rent a bike. This is a great way to see the Island. Bike rentals are everywhere on Maui and there are lots of marked routes you can follow.
6. Snorkeling at Black Rock. This is the islands best snorkeling spot if you ask me. What's great about it is that there's lots to see even though you don't need to swim out very far.
7. Go shopping. If you have some money that is burning a hole in your pocket, it wont be a problem in Maui. There are lots of Boutiques, malls and markets all over the place. Just open up your wallet and enjoy.

That should keep you busy a for a while in Maui. Do you have other tips on fun things to do in Maui? Write a comment!

How To Choose The Right Hawaii Vacation Rental

You've finally decided your taking your family on a vacation to Hawaii, good for you! Since you're reading this blog post you have probably decided you want to go for a vacation rental. If you ask me, this is a great choice for many reason. Privacy, comfort and price just to mention a few. The only problem is, when you search for Oahu vacation rentals on Google, you get thousands upon thousands of results. So where the heck do you begin? I'm going to make it easier for you and share some of my vacation rental secrets with you.

1. Use a reservation service. It's not a good idea to limit yourself to a single owner. I'm going to tell you why. Vacation rentals on Hawaii run on almost 90% occupancy. So if you're limited to one single owner, you have to make your booking at least six months in advance and you might not have that possibility. So basically, the rental you had in mind might not be available. When you go through a reservation service on the other hand, you have lots other options to choose from.
2. Don't just go with any reservation service. Try to find a service that is owned locally. The big guys like VRBO and findrentals don't have a clue about stuff like weather, good and bad areas and etc on Hawaii. A service that is situated on Hawaii themselves will know a lot about this. They'll have a better chance of filling your needs since they have a greater knowledge of the area.
3. Skip the ones with automated payments. These services will generally not have any interest in helping you or even talking to you at all.
4. If they have 100 options or more, go somewhere else. I'm telling you this because I know that there aren't even that many good options to choose from on Oahu. So chances are you'll end up at a crappy vacation rental and we don't want that do we?

Since most vacation rental services have a no refund policy, you certainly want to get the booking process right. Make sure you get to talk to a real person when making your booking so you can actually ask the questions you want answered. Never assume that you'll get to talk to someone later!

With that being said, I'm sure you'll enjoy your vacation! There's really no place like Hawaii...