Maui recommendations for a base

Have you looked at the island of Kauai as an alternative? You may find that to be less developed and more to your liking. Or perhaps the Big Island of Hawaii which has a large variety of options from fancy hotels to smaller local inns and B&Bs For Maui, you may want to look at Kihei area since it's easier to make day trips from there and there are a wide variety of lodging options. Paia and Makawao are lovely little towns that are great for a day trip, and I would also suggested looking at the Napili area which is north of Ka'anapali Beach area and not as developed in terms of large resorts. Best of luck with your research - whichever island you choose will be a great adventure.

We've been several times, and always stay in Ka'anapali area (West Maui). I am sure you must be aware of the major fire that destroyed the main city (Lahaina) in West Maui, making Ka'anapali and parts north (like Napili) a bit more isolated, but still a lot to do and see. We like to visit upcountry, and have not noticed large numbers of homeless. It's just that Paia has lower rents so attracts lower income visitors. And often it's the dressed-down tourists who just look like they're homeless 🙂. Fires also affected some upcountry areas, so check carefully. I'd consider looking at Haiku as a town to stay in, if upcountry still appeals to you.

If you haven’t been to the Big Island, we really enjoy it and agree that it’s much less busy than Maui. We usually stay at the southern end of Kona at a Keauhou Kona Surf/Racquet condo for the majority of our stay. It’s handy to drive into Kailua-Kona, but we’re at a quiet location. Also, we have stayed for several nights at Mahana House Country Inn outside of Hilo, and your description sounds like this would be exactly a place you would love. We have also stayed at Hale ‘Ohu B&B at the tiny town of Volcano when in the area of the Volcano National Park.

For Maui, we like to stay north of Kaanapali in an older condo set on the water. We’ve also stayed a few nights at a B&B near your Iao Valley Inn, but it looks like it didn’t survive the Covid pandemic. That area is nice to be over in the upcountry sooner than from the west shore.

Although we love going into the up country on Maui, as others have said a more out of the way mountainside stay may be more possible on the Big Island. We have always stayed in Kohala, but have enjoyed all the coffee farms, cacao farms, and honey farms we have visited as we head south of Kailua-Kona.

Unless you're already committed, or just have your hearts set on Maui, you might want to consider the suggestion of the others who have recommended the Big Island of Hawaii as an alternative - would be a much more pleasant experience than trying to deal with the traffic congestion on Maui, which you'll encounter no matter where you stay but particularly along the corridor between Kahului and Kihei. Given your stated preference for off-the-beaten places and the desire to explore by car, the Big Island would be a much better choice I think.
We particularly like the area along the north shore of the island in the vicinity of Hawi and Waimea ... which we visit every year. It's very much off the beaten tourist track yet still within an easy drive of pretty beaches and the small town charm of some of the outlying little villages .
For a first time visit I think most would suggest Kaulua-Kona as a base in order to be more in the center of things, but it's all nice.

Hi All. thank you so much for all of your kindness and assistance with our question. A little more information: I hate flying, and we really want to go to Kauai. I have no doubt the big island is wonderful and if we make the long and expensive trek to Hawaii again, it may be in our future. Friends have gone there. And I do like the descriptions I have heard. But, and it is a big but, we will be flying direct from Toronto to Maui, and not being a big fan of buzzing all over the place , but really wanting to go to Kauai. We figured will spend a few days on Maui and then fly over to Kauai. This may ultimately prove to be more our speed. We are looking at the Poipu beach area of Kauai. Don’t know if anyone has any thoughts on that . Thank you so much for your information and insights.

Apologies- Air Canada runs Non Stop to Maui. One day of the week in the winter. I always get those terms confused.

joancait,
What tom_MN said about flights rings true. If you are changing planes, head for either Kauai or Hawaii Island. We have visited both, and loved both of them. Kauai has lots to see and do and lots of varied places to explore. There is good reason it is called theGarden Island. The big island is even more varied, in my opinion. Personally, I prefer the Hilo side...fewer resorts, more traditional and "old" Hawaii, beyond gorgeous scenery all over that side of the island. Choose either one to get, imho, a less touristy Hawaii visit than Maui. Having said this, we are off to Oahu for five days this month. We have always wanted to see the Pearl Harbor sites and pay our respects at the USS Arizona Memorial. We will rent a car for one day to see the North Shore (big wave season!). Another day we will go to the Bishop Museum (it sounds wonderful!) and stop in at the Cathedral. We plan to have a drink and special occasion dinner at a beachfront restaurant, stroll along the beach, explore Chinatown, hear the free Friday concert at Iolani Palace, and kick back while watching the sunset. Different from the Hawaii we have seen, but remarkable nonetheless.
Whether you decide on Kauai or Hawaii Island or Maui, you will have a great time, I am sure. Remember to pack your "Hawaii state of mind" with your sunscreen!

Seems to me that if Kauai is where you really want to go then that's where you should go.
We're not big fans of Maui to begin with - just too congested for us - but we did live on Kauai for 13 years, with the last 6 being in the Poipu area.
Your instinct is correct - the south and west shores of Kauai are the preferred locations. It's the "dry side" of the island thanks to the effect of the predominant NE trade winds ... a weather pattern that's common to all the islands.
Although our preference these days for our own return trips to the state is the Big Island, you really can't go wrong with a visit to Kauai either.
My suggestion is to take a look at the United/Air Canada flight that goes from Toronto to Lihue with a short stopover in Denver (my home airport). It's going to be a long haul no matter how you cut it - might as well arrive at a final destination that you really want to get to (IMO).

Aloha! The Poipu side of the island is considered the "drier, sunnier" side" (given Hawaii weather), as compared to the more lush, wet north side of the island (Hanalei, Princeville). You are also closer to the incredible hiking of Waimea Canyon from the Poipu area. We have been to Kauai twice, but stayed on the north side both times. Very much enjoyed the beaches, river kayaking, hiking, food, snorkeling, and tropical lushness of the north side.

We did Maui a few years ago, I enjoyed it, but not wowed. The big island is better.

Yeah lol. Puerto Rico is closer, but I’ve only wanted to go to Hawaii since my honeymoon, which was almost 35 years ago. Even though I hate flying, I’m willing to medicate and get on a flight to Maui. I know we are fortunate to nonstop flights from Canada, and not even West Coast Canada. BTW, we also have nonstop to Tokyo. It’s rather ironic when there are many closer destinations that one has to change planes for.

So… after reading everyone’s comments about the big island, I’ve decided to look at it. I don’t know if I’m supposed to start another thread, or I could just ask here. I was looking at a place called the Kane plantation guesthouse. It is listed as being in. Honaunau. The reviews are great but I am not sure as far as the location. Also a place called Hona Kai. Listed in the area called.Kailua-Kona, which I understand is pretty central?

hey hey joancait
i'm from the big island, born in hilo with my family still there, hamakua coast & waimea. it is a BIG island with lots to see and do. my own feelings are for the honu kai B&B, thinking you'd be much happier in that area than kane plantation in honaunau.
kane B&B is too far way from kailua kona, which is up in the coffee land/mac nut fields past kealakekua area. 2 lane hiway could take 45 minutes+ and gets very crowded with traffic coming and going, dark roads without street lights, winding road in from hiway to B&B.
honu kai is about 10 minutes down hiway #190 (mountain road) to kailua town, 15 minutes to KOA (kona airport) and beaches along the south kohala coast/waikoloa, many restaurants/shops/gorgeous ocean views along ali'i drive, sitting to have breakfast, lunch, dinners, gas stations, monarchy/hawaiian history in the area, whale watching winter months, swimming/snorkeling.
is there a flight in canada that will fly straight to KOA (kona airport)? that would be ideal for you and the honu kai B&B.
coffeetimes.com
click LBD, hawaii guide, big island. has so much info about areas around the island and what's there in the small towns/villages
bigislandguide.com/honu kai bed breakfast
scroll down to map, click view larger map, click the - to make it smaller and you can see the just of island down to the south and north up along the coast all the way to top (north kohala), moving around to waimea/honokaa, the hamakua coast to hilo up to volcano, down to south point/na'alehu "punalu'u black sand beach" back up to south kona/kailua kona.
bigislandhikes.com
check the areas that interest you and what you'd like.
any more questions just ask or send a private message "click my name in blue and click send message". i'll send you more info. research and come back to ask, happy to help you out and be prepared to make your "spreadsheet"
aloha

Of the two places you've mentioned, Kailua-Kona would be more central and would allow easier access by car for explorations around the island, including across the Saddle Road over to Hilo.
That said, the Kane Plantation Guest House looks pretty nice and is located near the Puuhonua o Honaunau (City of Refuge) National Historical Park - one of the top sites on the island. It's a beautiful place and the little bay there is the best snorkeling spot on the island. It'd also be closer to some of the coffee plantations further down the coast that Kona is famous for , including the one at Ka'u which has something of an international following.
The belt road heading south from there is a very pretty drive and will eventually take you to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park ... another one of those must sees on the island - all without having to negotiate traffic thru Kailua, so there are a number of pluses to the location. It's an hour and a half drive to get to the volcanoes from Honaunau, but not an unpleasant one, and is frankly one of our favorite day trip excursions on our own visits.
Looks like there's a connecting flight to Kona thru Denver as well as the one to Lihue, so you basically have two options: Kauai or the Big Island if you decide to take a pass on Maui this trip.

Thanks for this. Soooo much info. All super. Looking at Kauai weather vs big island weather in February, it seems like Big Island has greater chances of better weather. (And I’m aware this originally began as a question about Maui😂). Am I correct in this assumption? Maui seems to have areas on one side of the island, you can escape the rain, and the Big Island, being big, I assume will probably have good weather on offer somewhere. Is Kauai the most weather vulnerable in February, with less chance of escape because it’s so small? Sorry for all my questions. The more I learn, it seems the more I need to learn.

You've identified one of the main reasons why we return to the Big Island every year ourselves. As long as the NE trade winds prevail - and they do about 90% of the time - then the weather patterns on all of the islands is quite similar, ie the south and west shores will be in the rain shadow of the mountains and therefore drier, whereas the NE sides will face the brunt of the approaching weather and thus will be prone to more rain. Hilo on the BI and Hanalei on Kauai are famous for being lush and gorgeous, but that scenery does come at a price ... and a potential risk for a visiting tourist.
With Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea dominating the center of the Big Island the Kona coast will indeed be the safer bet - it's why we go there ourselves after all. Might mention that the Kona side is sheltered from all but the most westerly sea swells too, making it generally safer for most water sports.
My only caveat is to be aware that the prevailing NE trades can occasionally give way to a condition where the winds shift out of the south - a Kona wind in the local parlance - when the weather can turn rainy and generally ugly for several days on any of the islands. Still, I think the Kona side of the Big Island is your best best for sunny weather.

I’ve been to all of these islands several times and all have reasons to visit. But, I’m done with the Maui traffic jams, Kauai because I froze and had to escape to the non rainy areas each day, and the city feel of Oahu even though you can escape to the north shore.
I’d go back to the Big Island. I’ve been there three times and love the variety the island has to offer. Spend some time in both Kona and the Hilo area.

We love the Big Island, both for the ability to get away from crowds, the beauty of each part of the island, and the strong sense of aloha we have found there. We actually found Maui to be a better atmosphere than we were expecting, and easier to get off by ourselves more than we thought--both in the upcountry and along the Hana road. We do really like the beaches there. Kauai was our favorite island before we started going to the Big Island. On the north shore we liked the lushness, warmth, beaches, and cliffs--it reminded me somewhat of Costa Rica. We loved Waimea Canyon hiking on the south side. Oahu was the only island I went to for a long time--my brother lived there so my first several trips were just to that island. I went to the north shore and enjoyed it, but was mostly in Honolulu and Kailua. I loved Molokai for its sense of remoteness and hardly saw any other people--but that was early 80s. I have a vivid memory of my brother and I being the only people on several beaches. I loved Lanai for its quiet, and peacefulness, and a charming town.

We have stayed in Ma'alaea several times in Maui. It is a small community in a very central location. It is easier to drive from here to Kaanapali, Hana, Wailea or the airport. It is more affordable than West or South Maui. There are only a few restaurants here. We spend most of our day exploring and come back here to sleep. It is near a marina where a lot of snorkeling cruise boats are located. And the Maui Ocean Center is nearby. In the winter, you can watch the whales in the bay from your lanai. There is one small main street that has all the condos which are all oceanfront. There is a long secluded beach at the end of the street. Only locals use the beach, but the water is a little rougher and is preferred by local surfers. Because of the whales, the condos book up fast in the winter. Good luck.