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Snorkeling in Maui


Steve&Robin

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My husband and I are going to be on the Pride of America cruise in a couple of weeks. We really want to go snorkeling in Maui, but have a couple of questions.

 

We have heard the water is really rough in Maui in November. Is this true? Is it too rough to go snorkeling? I am not a strong swimmer. Are there some places better then others?

 

Also, the cruise itinerary indicates that we will be in Maui for two days. On the second day can we get off the boat really early in the morning, or do we have to wait until 8:00? Most of the interesting looking snorkel trips leave early in the morning.

 

Any good suggestions for a snorkeling company in Maui?

 

Thanks for your help! Aloha.

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Hi Robin. We just got back from the PoAm last week. If you want to snorkel on your own while in Maui, just rent a car for the two days. There is free parking, the rates are really reasonable, and you can come and go from the ship as you please. I don't know about the waves in November but we didn't find them very large last week. We did all our snorkeling on the west coast, mainly near Kaanapali but did one snorkel trip to Molikini where we snorkeled off a crater with many, many other boats. Also snorkeled a bit at some beaches near Kihei and Wailea. I was not impressed with snorkeling anywhere in Maui to be honest. But I am comparing it to the Caribbean I guess. We did see sharks, octupus, and maybe 6 different fish but nothing really colorful.

 

I wish I had my revealed books handy -- we did snorkel in Kona and had our best experience. It was a dolphin cove of some sort, I'm thinking 15-20 miles south of the ship but rather difficult to get to. Was only in the water for a minute or two when my sister tapped me on the shoulder to look to the right -- directly into the eyes of two sea turtles with two just behind them -- never saw anyone swim so fast in their life:eek: Once I got over it, we had fun swimming with them.

 

Have fun. I highly recommend the "revealed" books for their insight into snorkeling areas.

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In Hawaii, in general, you can find smoother water early in the morning. Most dive boats head out to their dive sites at about 6:00 a.m. That way they can get their dives in and be back to the dock by noon, which is about when the trade winds start up and ruffle the water. Obviously, snorkel boats would be affected the same as dive boats.

 

A trip to Molokini is worth the effort. The crater is crescent moon shaped and the water inside is generally a little more calm. Visibility can be 100' or more.

 

Another place that you can do on your own is Black Rock, which sits on the shore of the Sheraton Hotel in Kaanapali, near Whaler's Village shopping center. Black Rock is highly rated for both divers and snorkelers.

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A trip to Molokini is worth the effort. The crater is crescent moon shaped and the water inside is generally a little more calm. Visibility can be 100' or more.

 

Sorry 10x, I disagree. Molokini has been a wasted trip since the 1980's. Sure, the visibility can be great. Nothing to see though. No coral, few fish other than grouper and an occasional butterflyfish. Plus can be pricey.

 

If you're wanting to go off the beaten track, try an area called "Aquarium" which is at the end of the Wailea road, also known as La Perouse. It's nice, but still not as good as Kona at Kealakekua (the dolphin bay). Have fun!

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I guess to each his own. My wife snorkeled there and saw lots of fish. She's not an inexperienced snorkeler that might be happy with seeing anything. We have been on 11 cruises and we try to snorkel/dive at nearly every port so she's seen lots. She's better at finding octopus when snorkeling than I am while diving.

 

I have dived Molokini 4 times, including the back wall, and have seen garden eels, sharks, octopus, and tons of fish. Diving was so good there one day that everyone on our boat wanted our second dive to be there as well.

 

I have also dived at Le Perouse and found it to be every bit good as Molokini, but necessarily any better.

 

Now, as for Kealakekua Bay, that tops them all. I'm hoping to spend a month in Kona the next time we go and can't wait to get back in the water there.

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Sorry 10x, I disagree. Molokini has been a wasted trip since the 1980's. Sure, the visibility can be great. Nothing to see though. No coral, few fish other than grouper and an occasional butterflyfish. Plus can be pricey.

 

If you're wanting to go off the beaten track, try an area called "Aquarium" which is at the end of the Wailea road, also known as La Perouse. It's nice, but still not as good as Kona at Kealakekua (the dolphin bay). Have fun!

 

I couldn't agree with you more. We were extremely disappointed with our trip out to Molokini. Didn't see much of anything. Save your money!

 

In Kona we had turtles swimming with us. We saw an eagle ray, a moray eel, and a number of different types of fish! Very awesome!

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I have been diving and snorkeling for years in Maui and my favourite spot is Makena Landing/Five Caves on Makena Bay south of Wailea. The is not Makena Beach also known as Big Beach which is further south.

Direction from the Maui Dive Guide ( free guide from Maui Dive shops )

Just past Makena surf condo turn right onto Old Mekena Rd and go 4/10ths of mile to parking, restroom and showers.

There has been lots of construction on Maui in the last few years thus things may have changed so ask a local for direction or go into a Maui Dive shop for a free guide and to rent equipment if needed.

From beach I suggest you snorkel to right along shoreline looking for caves just under the water surface ( not deep ) which can have small white tip sharks and green turtles. If you are a strong swimmer and continue to swim to point the lava ridge continues underwater and follow it from above you will come to turtle town. As the name suggests there is lots of turtles and is where the snorkel and dive tour boats go to after visiting Molokini Crater. Go early in the morning as the water gets rougher nearer to mid day and this is the reason the tour boats don't go to Molokini in the PM.

I have seen much sea life near shore here. The corel here is the hard type and is not as colorful as the soft Caribbean variety but the sealife is better and more colorful.

makenA.jpg.f85c029c174d5f85efbf58702cd6ae7a.jpg

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I'll 2nd the opinion to pass on the Molokini snorkeling tours. We paid $90+ pp for a morning (5-hour) excursion with a top-rated boat (FourWinds I believe). We were elbow to elbow and there were many other boats there. I have snorkeled in nearly every port that I've visited on a cruise for the last five years and this doesn't compare to any of them and for the $$, simply not worth it IMHO. And, just for the record;) I am a strong swimmer and swam past the crowds and to the far left of the crater where I saw no more fish there than closer to the boats and center of the crater. We did have fun though, the boat ride itself was fun, BBQ lunch pretty good, Captain Bob absolutely hilarious, and the slide was a hoot! So if you just want a nice morning boat ride, go for it. If you are looking for good to great snorkeling, I just can't recommend it. Do your research and try another place in Maui maybe?

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