Maui Six-Day Slow-Mo Guide

🌴(Days 3-6 only – Haleakalā sunrise & Road to Hana already locked in P1 & P2) Tone: chill drives, golden-hour beaches, poke every meal, no alarm clock. 🏖️ DAYS 3-4 | SOUTH SHORE LOOP Morning 📍 Maui Gold Pineapple Farm (near OGG airport) Free tour every 30 min → sample core-to-skin sweet slices. Exit box: 2 x “Maui Gold” pineapples $18 – TSA allows whole fruit, smells like cabin perfume. 🍍 📍 Molokini Crater – 07:30 boat from Kihei Boat Ramp Book Indigo Ocean or Redline – includes Turtle Town drift. Gear: mask + fins provided, bring reef-safe sunscreen only. Highlight: 100-ft visibility, parrot fish that photobomb GoPro. 🤿 Afternoon 📍 Mākena State Park Big Beach (Oneloa) – wide, loud surf, no reef = body-board heaven. Little Beach – climb 5 min over rock – Sunday drum-circle + sunset fire-dance (unofficial, starts 18:00). 📍 Wailea Beach Path – 1.5 mi paved board-walk Golden hour slot: 17:45-18:15 – sun drops between Lāna‘i and Kaho‘olawe, Instagram gold. Evening 📍 The Shops at Wailea – open-air, AC blast Island Gourmet Market – build-your-own poke bowl (spicy ahi + mango = local hack). Papaya counter – $4 half, sprinkle li-hing powder = sour-sweet addiction. 🏖️ DAYS 5-6 | WEST SIDE CHILL Morning 📍 Kaanapali Beach – resort strip but public access at Whalers Village Parking: first 3 hrs free w/ validation (buy coffee). Snorkel: Black Rock 08:00-09:30 = calm, turtles guaranteed. 📍 Ka‘anapali Coffee Farms tour (optional) – 2 hrs, bean-to-cup, samples of 5 roasts, buy farm-only peaberry. Afternoon 📍 Whalers Village + The Whalers Row Shave-ice: Island Cream – lilikoi-cheesecake flavour. Boutique browse: Billabong, local jewelers, no sales tax on clothing. 📍 Lahaina town 10 min north Banyan Tree Park – 150-year-old single tree covers 1 acre. Art galleries open 11 a.m.; free wine tastings Fri-Sat 17:00. 🚗 CAR LOGIC 12-day rental avg $55/day compact (incl. CDW) – book airport pick-up. Gas: $5.90/gal; full tank circles entire island < $40. Parking: Lahaina $3/hr public lot – pay by app. Speed limit 45 mph max coastal – photo radar loves tourists. 🌅 SUNSET BINGO Night 3: Secret Beach (Mākena) – 10 min walk, clothing-optional end, green flash possible. Night 5: Kaanapali + cliff-dive ceremony (daily 18:00, Whalers Village, free). 🧳 Pack-Me Reef-safe sunscreen (spray confiscated at HNL security). Light rain shell – 5-min drizzle bursts. Water shoes – lava + urchins = ouch. 💡 One-Line Memory Maui’s mantra: “Eat poke daily, chase every sunset, let the trade winds carry the schedule away.” 🌺🍍 #US #HI#Hawaii