Advice on Dive Spots in May ~Maui

[alphillyswim]

Hi, We will be getting married in Maui, arriving 5/19 and staying for a week. We would like to dive twice with a newbie couple...we have already booked Molokini with Prodiver later in the week. We were thinking of Cathedrals II for the day after we arrive. Is there another dive that we should be considering instead, maybe one closer to where we are staying (Maalaea) or better for newbies? Any advice appreciated. Thanks!

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

Aloha,

Congratulations on the upcoming nuptuals. My first question is "are you locked into staying in Ma'alaea?" Of all the places to stay on Maui, IMHO Ma'alaea is bottom three in nearly every catagory, including most romantic.

With regard to diving Cathedrals II with newbies as a first trip, there are a number of issues to consider. The trips are to Lanai, conditions permitting, and the dive site is typically chosen based on a number of factors, including weather, swells, visibility, skills, experience and previous dives of the customers on board that day, as well as possibly personal preference of captain &/or crew. If a responsible operator promised to take you and your newbie friends to Cathedrals II (overhead environment!!), I would be very supprised.

Your diving plan sounds fine, as long as you replace Cathedrals II with Lanai in your origional post.

 

[justleesa]

you might want to check our listing of Hawaii dive sites here

 

[Parrothead_Diver]

I agree with Halemano; I you have the ability to change to another location than Ma'alaea I would advise it there are MUCH better locations on the island.

If you are considering doing any shore diving then most of the "good" locations will be to the east of Wailea and to the northwest of Lahaina. Both of which will be about a 30-45 minute drive from Ma'alaea.

For boat diving most of the boats will go out of Kehai (15-20 minutes east of Ma'alaea) or Lahaina (about 30 minutes west).

Something you might want to consider is whether or not you are planning on traveling to the top of Haleakala to see the sunrise. If so, then you need to plan around this just like you would if you were flying. The top of the mountian is at over 10,000 feet.

 

[alphillyswim]

Thanks Parrothead and halemano! I was going to go with Extended Horizons, but they aren't diving that Sunday. I will try to find a closer dive that would be better suited for newbies, any other suggestions for op or location? Also, good point on Haleakala! Maybe we will try to do Haleakala on Sunday and dive Monday instead.

We are confirmed for beachfront condo at Ma'alaea, can't really change at this point. I am not too worried as we will be going to great beaches daily, staying at the Grand Wailea for a night and really couldn't find anything better for the price ($1,200 for 4 people/week ~we want to spend our money on the diving!)

Thanks!