2018 Maui

2018-1-25  through 2-22  Maui trip:

4 weeks in Maui!!!!  Longest we've ever vacationed in one spot.  I'm so anxious, I'm starting my blog a couple days early.  I'll get all the mundane stuff stuff out of the way:

Flights:  ATL-OGG
We're using award miles again.  This time we're using Alaska Airlines for our flights to OGG and AA for our flights back.  I booked the flights about 300 days out, knowing there would probably be changes before Jan. 25.  First one came while we were on vacation in S. Florida in May.  AA decided to eliminate our red eye flight out of OGG to LAX.  So they moved us up to a 2:30pm flight and changed our LAX - ATL flight to LAX - Charlotte (CLT) - ATL.  With an 8 hour layover in CLT!  I had to call twice before I got someone who could or would change the CLT flight to one with "just" a 1 1/2 hour layover.  Then in Nov.---while on an 11 night Caribbean cruise---our Alaska Airlines flight ATL - SEA got eliminated and we got an email telling us to call them.   So I called and they put us on a flight to SEA a day earlier and said they'll put us up in a hotel that night.  Then we would take our 10:30am SEA - OGG flight on the 25th.  So our really LONG travel day becomes 2 long travel days, but at least we don't have to get to the Atlanta airport by 4am!  As always, I kept checking our flights for better itineraries and/or seats.  On Jan. 20 AA put their non-stop LAX-ATL red eye on mile-saver award travel, so I was able to called and got us switched to that flight instead of LAX-CLT-ATL.  Now we'll get back into ATL about 7:30 am instead of noonish----just in time for the lovely Atlantic rush hour traffic!  As we're driving through the city to get to the north side I'll just keep reminding myself it's better then sitting in the Charlotte airport waiting for another flight!

Click on links below for photos and individual blog posts:

Accommodations --- Kahana Villas Resort and Worldmark Kihei

Car rental --- Nissan Pathfinder

Cameras this trip:  My Canon 60D DSLR with a Tamron 17-300mm zoom lens and a Tamron 150-600zoom lens (which I hoped to use for whale watching, but couldn't on the boat tours due to wet rides and the whales were too far from the beach to use it.  Only ended up using it to take pictures of the lunar eclipse.); and a TG-4 Olympus underwater camera. 

My Daily posts:

1-24-2018  Day -1 --- off to Seattle:

1-25-2-18  Day 2---SEA - OGG and settling in: 

1-26-2018  Day 3---snorkel Kahekili and Lahaina for sunset: 

1-27-2018  Day 4---snorkel Kapalua and Lahaina for sunset

1-28-2018  Day 5---Sea House breakfast, Napili bay, Kapalua snorkel, Kahana sunset, Lahaina 

1-29-2018  Day 6---the Fischers arrive!

1-30-2018  Day 7---trip up to the North/West side and the Super Blue Blood Moon:

1-31-2018  Day 8---snorkeling Kapalua with newbies

2-1-2018  Day 9---whale watching tour out of Lahaina 

2-2-2018  Day 10---move to the South side by way of Haleakala:  

2-3-2018  Day 11---checking out the high surf on the South side 

2-4-2018  Day 12---half the road to Hana

2-5-2018  Day 13---RAIN and Fischers leave

2-6-2018  Day 14---Oneuli whale watching and walking the Hoapili trail

2-7-2018  Day 15---a walk along the Wailea Walking Path 

2-8-2018  Day 16---snorkeling!  Kapalua and MM14

2-9-2018  Day 17---snorkeling Makena Landing 

2-10-2018 Day 18---snorkeling Ahihi and a walk along the path by Maluaka

2-11-2018 Day 19---snorkeling MM14 and sunset at Kam 1-2 

2-12-2018 Day 20---snorkeling Kam 3 and Po'olenalena

2-13-2018  Day 21---snorkeling Po'olenalena and The Dumps!

2-14-2018  Day 22---Valentine's Day Trilogy whale watching tour 

2-15-2018  Day 23---A rainy day, but a great sunset  

2-16-2018  Day 24---Kula Gardens, Hookipa turtles, Kam 1 sunset 

2-17-2018 Day 25---Snorkel Honolua!!!  and Kapalua, then off to Lahaina 

2-18-2018 Day 26---Water spout!  walking north of Kam 1 

2-19-2018 Day 27---Walk along the Kam beaches and disappearing ring

2-20-2018 Day 28---Snorkel Maluaka and Wailea

2-21-2018  Day 29---last day!!! So sad!

2-22 and 23-2018---heading home to ATL

Highlights and lowlights of this trip:  The biggest highlight was sharing vacation time with good friends for a week.  Biggest lowlight is apparently having my wedding ring stolen!  Another lowlight is my glasses disappearing in the ocean and having to get new ones made at LensCrafters.  Speaking of things disappearing---so did my hat!  Definitely too many lowlights!  Our trip ended with another highlight!---finding my assumed "stolen" ring!