Aloha! I will be combining Hawaii days since there was quite a lot of relaxing in pools on this trip.

So my friends decided they wanted a Hawaii trip and I was lucky enough to be able to tag along. The thesis of the trip was relaxing so this trip is focused more on eating and drinking. That’s okay and I really needed it!

From SFO it’s about a six hour flight to Kahului airport on Maui. We heard from multiple people that if you were staying at a resort that renting a car was unnecessary. I disagree with that statement. Maui has a lot to do outdoors where having a car is really useful. Especially for six people, I’m glad we got a rental van.

We elected to stay at a resort in Lahaina called Honua Kai. Our place had a nice view of the ocean, there was beach access, pools, a restaurant and general store all easily accessible.

One tip for your Hawaii trip is to be prepared for your eyes to water from the expense. That’s okay, and let that wash over you so you can enjoy. I was pleasantly surprised that all the food we ate was actually good, and it wasn’t just all a huge tourist trap.

Saturday

It was about an hour long drive from Kahului to Lahaina. Traffic gets pretty bad because the road is two lane and windy along the coast. At least it has plenty of good views.

Our first dinner in Hawaii was at Son’z Steakhouse which is actually in a different resort from ours. This place was nuts and had penguins! There were tons of birds chirping and hanging out right outside the dining area, so prepare for it to be a little loud here.

I got the 10oz filet and Justin got the bone-in ribeye. The ribeye is a LOT but it’s so good! For sides we tried out the mushrooms and onions and the brussel sprouts. I thought they were pretty good, but nothing particularly special. I also learned here that I love piña coladas!

After indulging and having meat sweats, it was a blessing to head back to the hotel for some rest.

Sunday

Today was spa day! We were heading to the Heavenly Spa for massages and relaxing by the pool. We booked these way ahead of time, I don’t recommend trying to walk in. Since Justin and my massage wasn’t until 1:45 PM, I had time in the morning for breakfast and getting my nails done.

For breakfast, we walked a quarter mile or so to Slappy Cakes. Thanks to jetlag, we woke up around 7 AM and were able to get there by 8 AM and totally miss any long lines or waiting. You can get batter and make your own pancakes here, or you can order pre-made pancakes. We just got premade red velvet pancakes but they were delectable. Our friends went later in the week and made their own too!

Since we only had one car but were all going to the same spa, I had my friends drop me off at Artistic Nails Spa on the way so I could get my nails done and then walk over and meet them at the spa for massages. While I love the colors I got, the treatment of my nails wasn’t very good, and they ended up nicking two of my digits (one toe, one finger).

With that done, we started walking to Heavenly Spa. We were hungry though, so we stopped by Leilani’s on the Beach at the Westin resort. I thought the food here was quite nice. We ordered coconut shrimp and I got the fish tacos.

Now I was ready for our massage! We elected for the CBD rub with hot rocks added and it was sooooooooo nice. I’ve never had a better massage in my life! I thought the hot rocks weren’t necessary but it was cool to try them. I always thought they just… left the rocks on your back (like in the pictures) but actually they rub them around on your back. The massage was 70 minutes and then you can spend the rest of the day enjoying the spa pool, sauna and other amenities. We chilled in the pool for a bit before using the spa shower to get ready to head out.

The other girls had gone shopping so while we were waiting for them to return we had a good chance to walk on the beach and check out the resort.

There were flamingos that lived at the resort too!

Finally, for dinner, we headed over to Cheeseburger in Paradise. Just what we needed after a cleansing and relaxing massage – a cheeseburger! I thought the cheeseburger was incredibly good, but I also learned I don’t like mai thais, even good ones potentially. We started with doubles but I had to ask for more mixer haha. Our waitress was cool though. And we saw our first whales from the restaurant!

March is a good month to see whales in Maui since it’s their mating season. In April most of them will have left.

• Maui
• Hawaii
• United States