Recommendations for Whale Watching Operators in Kahului

[CleverEuphemism]

We will be on Pride of America in early March, docking in Kahului and would like to do a whale watching excursion, hopefully based in Kahului.  I have searched the boards and most of the whale watching operators recommended on here such as Captain Steve's or Trilogy leave from Lahaina, which Google tells me is about an hour away from where the ship will be.  I am not sure if we will rent a car, and even if we do I don't know if we want to drive two hours for the excursion.  It seems there is a bus as an option but that worries me if it is crowded and no room, frequency of bus to return, etc.   Do any of these places offer pick up for cruise passengers?  Or is the really good whale watching out of Lahaina and we just need to accept it (and the ride out there)?

 

I did find Pride of Maui tour operators that leave out of Maalea, which is 30 minutes away and they offer pick up for $30, but their whale watching excursion combines with snorkeling and reviews seem to indicate the whale watching is just on the way to the snorkel location.  I would prefer a smaller boat than a huge tour but we are open to suggestions.

[Silver Sweethearts]

There are no tour boats at Kahului Harbor.  Whale-watching tours run out of Ma'alaea and Lahaina.  Google Ma'alaea Harbor to find out all of your options and pretty much answer all of your questions, as it is too much to go into here.  Whale-watching is big business on Maui, and excursions out of Ma'alaea are not something that is done because it "is just on the way to the snorkel location".  

 

As a side note about you not knowing if you want to drive two hours for an excursion, having your own rental car is really a blessing, as there is a lot of driving to be done here if you want to see what Maui has to offer - and you don't have to depend upon anyone else's schedule. 

[Beachiekeen]

You will be on Maui during prime whale watching season.  Lahaina is a cute town that could be explored after the whale watch. You could stay and attend the Old Lahaina Luau that evening assuming the schedule allows. You will have to get to Lahaina or Maalaea somehow and having a car would give you the most freedom.

[CruiserBruce]

I agree with the others about the desirability of getting over to Lahaina, if possible. But Pacific Whale Foundation operates out of Ma'alea, and their cruise in season should be whale watch only.

[CleverEuphemism]

9 hours ago, Silver Sweethearts said:

There are no tour boats at Kahului Harbor.  Whale-watching tours run out of Ma'alaea and Lahaina.  Google Ma'alaea Harbor to find out all of your options and pretty much answer all of your questions, as it is too much to go into here.  Whale-watching is big business on Maui, and excursions out of Ma'alaea are not something that is done because it "is just on the way to the snorkel location".  

 

 

That was specific to the Pride of Maui, I had read in several reviews on Tripadvisor that their whale watch/snorkel excursion was focused more on the snorkeling aspect.

 

Thank you all for the feedback.  Perhaps we will rent a car, as we have an overnight in Maui.  It seems like Lahaina is where a lot of the action is at so I guess we would end up there anyway.  I had hoped to split up the days, one more relaxing near the ship with just whale watching and one with more active exploring but we will go with the flow.  I'll keep researching.

[princeton123211]

14 hours ago, CleverEuphemism said:

I have searched the boards and most of the whale watching operators recommended on here such as Captain Steve's or Trilogy leave from Lahaina

Captain Steves is fabulous-- much smaller zodiac style boat that can get closer to the action than the larger ones tend to (you do need to stop engines when a whale is sighted close by). Much fewer people than Pacific Whale Foundation. We use Captain Steve several times a year and having tried a few others, I think that CS is probably the best. It would be well worth the drive to the dock just north of Lahaina he departs from. 

[Silver Sweethearts]

13 hours ago, CleverEuphemism said:

I had hoped to split up the days, one more relaxing near the ship with just whale watching and one with more active exploring but we will go with the flow.  I'll keep researching.

 

Don't know exactly how close you mean when you say "relaxing near the ship", but do know that there isn't anything to do in Kahului.  You have to get away from that area to find visitor activities.

[CleverEuphemism]

On 10/3/2019 at 10:48 PM, Silver Sweethearts said:

 

Don't know exactly how close you mean when you say "relaxing near the ship", but do know that there isn't anything to do in Kahului.  You have to get away from that area to find visitor activities.

Thank you, that is good to know--I think we will be renting a car and going with Captain Steve's.  I appreciate the advice!