1,000 Places to See in the U.S.A. & Canada Before You Die (111 page)

Breaching is considered by many to be a social activity of whales.

W
HERE
: off the shores of Maui, Lana’i, and Molokai, plus parts of Kauai, the Big Island, and Oahu.
H
OW
: The Pacific Whale Foundation (tel 800-942-5311 or 808-879-8811;
www.pacificwhale.org
) offers catamaran cruises and snorkel tours from Ma’alaea and Lahaina harbors.
H
AWAII
H
UMPBACK
W
HALE
E
DUCATION
C
ENTER
: Kihei. Tel 808-879-2818;
www.hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov
.
When:
closed Sat–Sun.
B
EST TIMES
: Nov–Mar for whale migration.

Luxury Links, Fantastic Food

Maui, Hawaii

Across the island and worlds away from the small-town life and thick rain forest of eastern Maui is the sun-drenched, beach-blessed northwest coast. One of the area’s top destinations, the 23,000-acre Kapalua Resort
, encompasses residential developments, luxury accommodations, restaurants and shops, and golf galore. With five bays, the property’s beaches are a big draw, especially the secluded D. T. Fleming Beach Park and Kapalua Beach, with perfect conditions for swimming, snorkeling, and kayaking. At the heart of the resort, on a knoll in a dramatic setting between these two sandy stretches, sits the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua Hotel. The developers’
original plan was to build the hotel on the beach, like most of Maui’s luxury hotels, but construction revealed hundreds of ancient burial sites in the sand. The hotel was relocated to the top of the hill, which became a plus: The views are nothing short of spectacular.

Surrounding the Ritz-Carlton are 54 holes of championship golf on three courses, making it one of the world’s regularly short-listed golf resorts. It includes the Bay Course (designed by Arnold Palmer and Francis Duane); the Village Course (designed by Palmer and Ed Seay); and the Plantation Course (designed by Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore), the site of the PGA Tour’s Mercedes Championships. The resort is also home to the Kapalua Golf Academy, one of the best golf schools in Hawaii.

In recent years, Kapalua has also become a culinary attraction for its many well-known restaurants: Pineapple Grill Kapalua, where Asian and Pacific Rim ingredients fuse into culinary masterpieces; Sansei Seafood Restaurant and Sushi Bar, where Maui chef D. K. Kodama devised his distinctive marriage of Japanese and western delicacies; Vino Italian Tapas & Wine Bar, another Kodama creation based on Italian cuisine; and Plantation House Restaurant, known for its 360-degree view and its Hawaiian-Mediterranean menu.

The Ritz-Carlton features a 10,000-square-foot, three-tiered swimming pool, and two outdoor whirlpool spas.

W
HERE
: 30 miles northwest of the Kahului Airport. Tel 800-527-2582 or 808-669-8088;
www.kapaluamaui.com
.
R
ITZ
-C
ARLTON
K
APALUA
: Tel 800-262-8440 or 808-669-6200;
www.ritzcarlton.com
.
Cost:
from $365.
G
OLF
C
OURSES
: Tel 877-KAPALUA or 808-669-8044;
www.kapaluamaui.com/golf
.
Cost:
greens fees from $185 (from $130 for hotel guests).
K
APALUA
G
OLF
A
CADEMY
: Tel 808-669-6500;
www.kapaluagolfacademy.com
.
Cost:
golf school from $325 per half-day.
P
INEAPPLE
G
RILL
: Tel 808-669-9600;
www.pineapplekapalua.com
.
Cost
dinner $55.
S
ANSEI
: Tel 808-669-6286;
www.sanseihawaii.com
.
Cost:
dinner $50.
V
INO
I
TALIAN
: Tel 808-661-VINO.
Cost:
dinner $50.
P
LANTATION
H
OUSE
: Tel 808-669-6299;
www.theplantationhouse.com
.
Cost:
dinner $50.
B
EST TIMES
: 4 days in early July for the Kapalua Food and Wine Festival (
www.kapaluamaui.com
).

History and Gustatory Pleasure in a Former Whaling Capital

Maui, Hawaii

Nestled between the West Maui Mountains and the cobalt blue waters of the Pacific, Maui’s western coast is home to the colorful 19th-century whaling village of Lahaina, which now concentrates on excursions to watch
the whales its sailors once tried to harpoon. In 1820, when whaling thrived and ships lined the Lahaina Roadstead, King Kamehameha moved the royal capital from Kailua-Kona to here, where it remained until Honolulu assumed the mantle in 1845. By 1860, sugar had taken over as the driver of the island’s economic engine, a position it held for more than
110 years. Today tourism is the big kahuna, with visitors thronging Lahaina’s walkable streets, lined with art galleries, trendy cafés, restaurants, and shops—many, many shops.

This old sailing ship is a relic of Lahaina’s past as the center of the global whaling industry.

The town’s heritage lives today through the Historical Walk, which includes 20-plus sites marked with plaques and noted on an easy-to-follow map. Among the main sites are the 1836 Baldwin Home, built for the first missionary to Lahaina; the Old Lahaina Courthouse, now housing the Lahaina Heritage Museum and art gallery; and the plantation-style Pioneer Inn, built in 1901 and still accepting guests. There’s also the Old Prison, where whalers who refused to return to their boats at sunset were confined; and Hawaii’s biggest banyan tree, planted in 1873 to mark the 50th anniversary of Lahaina’s first Christian mission. Only 8 feet tall when planted, it now reaches more than 50 feet high, has 12 major trunks, and covers nearly a full acre’s worth of park near the courthouse.

Lahaina has also made a name for itself in the culinary world, with a growing number of renowned restaurants. The bistro-style David Paul’s Lahaina Grill offers unique Pacific Rim cuisine, and French born and trained chefs Gerard Reversade of Gerard’s and Patrick Callarec of Chez Paul (just outside of town) combine Gallic traditions with local ingredients. For cultural entertainment there’s ‘Ulalena, a sort of Hawaiian version of Cirque du Soleil that tells the story of Hawaii in chant, song, original music, acrobatics, and dance.

W
HERE
: 22 miles west of Kahului Airport.
B
ALDWIN
H
OME
: Tel 808-661-3262;
www.lahainarestoration.org
.
O
LD
L
AHAINA
C
OURTHOUSE
: Tel 888-310-1117 or 808-667-9175;
www.visitlahaina.com
.
P
IONEER
I
NN
: Tel 800-457-5457 or 808-661-3636;
www.pioneerinnmaui.com
.
Cost:
from $115.
L
AHAINA
G
RILL
: Tel 808-667-5117;
www.lahainagrill.com
.
Cost:
dinner $66.
G
ERARD’S
: Tel 808-661-8939;
www.gerardsmaui.com
.
Cost:
dinner $58.
C
HEZ
P
AUL
: Olowalu. Tel 808-661-3843;
www.chezpaul.net
.
Cost:
dinner $52.
’U
LALENA
: Tel 877-688-4800 or 808-661-9913;
www.ulalena.com
.
Cost:
$50.
When:
closed Sun–Mon.
B
EST TIME
: Halloween—also known as the “Mardi Gras of the Pacific.”

Feasting and Dance: A Night of Aloha

Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii

For most Hawaiians, luau are rich traditional feasts held by families and churches; for visitors, they’re often uninspired commercial clichés produced by hotels. The nightly Old Lahaina Luau stands apart: intimate
, genuine, and suffused with the spirit of aloha, it’s widely recognized as Maui’s best. After visitors are greeted with leis and libations, they can wander about the one-acre villagelike ocean-side site, chatting with local residents working on traditional Hawaiian crafts. As evening
comes, the cooks uncover the
imu,
or earthen oven, and remove the traditionally prepared pig and vegetables. A conch shell calls everyone to dinner; chairs are available, but guests can opt to sit on lauhala mats, as the old Hawaiians did. The menu features both customary luau dishes:
kalua
(roast pork),
lau lau
(pork wrapped in luau leaf), poi, and
ahi poke
(marinated raw tuna), as well as stir-fried vegetables, steak, fresh island fruit, and assorted desserts. After dinner there’s a beautiful program of dance and chant, presented in an informative and spellbinding narrative.

The presenters of the Old Lahaina Luau also offer the Feast at Lele, a combination fine dining–luau event with a broader experience of Pacific Island culinary and performing arts. It takes place at another oceanside spot, with white-clothed, candlelit tables set on the sand, where waiters serve a five-course dinner of foods from around the Pacific, including kalua pig from Hawaii, Maori fish cake from New Zealand, and taro leaf in coconut milk from Tahiti. Entertainment features colorful costumes, songs, chants, drumming, and dances from across the islands.

The team from the Old Lahaina Luau has yet a third option: an engaging cultural experience called Ho’omana’o (“to remember”). Held every morning at the same oceanfront location as the evening luau, it begins with a breakfast buffet including island french toast with mango orange marmalade, kalua pork hash, and
haupia
(coconut) oatmeal. Hula dancers and singers entertain, the sun sparkles off the calm ocean water, salty breezes refresh—and then the fun begins. Guests are ushered to three
kulana
(stations) to participate more fully in Hawaii’s culture, not just watching and listening, but actually trying a few steps of the
kahiko
(ancient hula dances) or learning how to toss a spear and practice throwing a fish net.

According to myth, the hula was born when Pele (the goddess of fire) asked her sister, Laka, to dance for her.

W
HERE
: 22 miles west of the Kahului Airport. Tel 800-248-5828 or 808-667-1998;
www.oldlahainaluau.com
.
Cost:
$89.
T
HE
F
EAST AT
L
ELE
: Tel 886-244-5353 or 808-667-5353;
www.feastatlele.com
.
Cost:
$105.
H
O’OMANA’O
: Tel 800-248-5828 or 808-667-1998;
www.oldlahainaluau.com
.
Cost:
$69.