Maui ideal to watch people run

Paul Vogelsang

This year, when planning our vacation, we happened upon the Maui

Marathon, and what a great decision that turned out to be. The

marathon took place in September, and the event had a travel sponsor

that helped us plan the hotel, airfare and rental car, which made

everything easy and affordable.

We had never been to Maui and were anticipating large crowds, as

it is a beautiful vacation spot, and the marathon attracts people

from all over the world.

Boy, were we surprised. There weren’t any crowds, the weather was

beautiful, and the water was amazingly warm. We stayed at the Westin

Hotel, a wonderful hotel with lavishly landscaped pools that featured

slides and waterfalls, with a magnificent white sand beach a few

yards away. You definitely got the best of both. We had a great room

with an ocean view, so we watched some amazing sunsets. The hotel has

spa facilities, which we plan to visit next time. There was so much

else we wanted to see first.

We enjoyed snorkeling at Turtle Cove, Little Beach and in front of

our hotel. The water was crystal clear and carried quite a few fish

of all sizes. We went horseback riding in the “Up Country,” where the

island views were breathtaking and the horses were better behaved

than some people we know. Right next door they had a “Zip Line Tour”

that was both fun and a little terrifying, as you zip from one

platform to another on a wire several hundred feet in the air though

the trees. Wow! We also visited a sugar factory and the Maui

Aquarium, the Maui Plantation, and we visited a national park that

was a lava flow.

We enjoyed many of the island’s local and chain restaurants, never

had to wait and always had friendly service from some of the nicest

people. We recommend Canoes, and any of the restaurants in “Whaler

Village” -- they were all great. We also attended an island luau that

we recommend to anyone. Besides learning about the history of the

island, you get really good food and drinks, too. We ate lots of

great food, drank too many Mai Tais and got great tans.

All it all it was a truly magnificent vacation, so I’m sure we’ll

be training for the Maui Marathon 2005.

* PAUL VOGELSANG is a resident of Costa Mesa.