Maui DIY Questions

We are cruising on the Carnival Splendor and hitting Maui on 10/18/2018. We are docking at Kahului and will be there from 10am until 11pm. We've looking into renting a car thru Discount Hawaii Car Rental. I have some logistics questions to put out to all with more experience than me!

1. I'm assuming we would be docking where the Norwegian POA docks

2. Any idea how far you need to walk from the cruise ship to the car rental shuttle (dollar rental car - we've confirmed they have a shuttle but having trouble finding out exactly where it picks up)

3. We are planning on eventually going to the Old Lahaina Luau, which runs from 5:15 until about 8:15pm. Looks to be a 45-50 minute drive back to the airport, and the last shuttle leaves back to the cruise port around 9 or 9:30. Is doing this and getting back to the cruise ship with time to spare realistic?

4. We were originally thinking about going out to Hana before the Luau, but after thinking about this more, I don't believe it would be easy without rushing - looks like a 4.5 to 5hr round trip from the airport. Any suggestions on spending our afternoon?

First trip to Hawaii, looking forward to it and everyone's input - Thanks

We are cruising on the Carnival Splendor and hitting Maui on 10/18/2018. We are docking at Kahului and will be there from 10am until 11pm. We've looking into renting a car thru Discount Hawaii Car Rental. I have some logistics questions to put out to all with more experience than me!

 

1. I'm assuming we would be docking where the Norwegian POA docks Correct

 

2. Any idea how far you need to walk from the cruise ship to the car rental shuttle (dollar rental car - we've confirmed they have a shuttle but having trouble finding out exactly where it picks up) Not exactly sure...but not far.

 

3. We are planning on eventually going to the Old Lahaina Luau, which runs from 5:15 until about 8:15pm. Looks to be a 45-50 minute drive back to the airport, and the last shuttle leaves back to the cruise port around 9 or 9:30. Is doing this and getting back to the cruise ship with time to spare realistic? If the last shuttle is 9:30, yes, doable. 9 is too tight, IMHO.

 

4. We were originally thinking about going out to Hana before the Luau, but after thinking about this more, I don't believe it would be easy without rushing - looks like a 4.5 to 5hr round trip from the airport. Any suggestions on spending our afternoon? You don't have to go all the way to Hana...you can go halfway, if you wish. But otherwise, I would drive around...down to Wailea for lunch maybe, then up to Lahaina area..to Kapalua...wonder around Lahaina.

 

First trip to Hawaii, looking forward to it and everyone's input - Thanks

See comments above.

1. Yes

2. It’s close to the shuttle.

3. You need to budget in time- there’s often heavy traffic getting in and out of Lahaina that can add significant time. It’s only a two lane road for a good stretch near Lahaina and is often heavily congested. You have more normal highways as you get closer to the airport.

4. Hana is more like a 5-6 or even 7 hour day if you stop and see a few things and also take into consideration that the road drives slower than what a map app will tell you. Would recommend beaches at Kaanapali if you are going to Old Lahaina Luau as it’s super close and will give you more time to relax without worrying about traffic. There are some large hotels and the shopping complex at Whalers Village gives you a lot of options for food and changing.