Travel to Ma'alaea Harbor from POA

[erinlaw]

We are going on Pride of America in June and are interested in doing a Molokini snorkel tour with Trilogy. Would it be easy for us to find transportation for five of us to Ma'alaea Harbor where Trilogy is based? I have heard that sometimes they provide charters for the same excursion booked through NCL, but I don't know if that is still accurate.

 

Any information is appreciated!

[CruiserBruce]

Ma'alaea Harbor is about 20-25 minutes away. You can take a taxi, or rent a car. Don't know about shuttles.

[CruiserBruce]

Deleted...double post.

Edited January 25, 2016 by CruiserBruce

[Silver Sweethearts]

We are going on Pride of America in June and are interested in doing a Molokini snorkel tour with Trilogy. Would it be easy for us to find transportation for five of us to Ma'alaea Harbor where Trilogy is based? I have heard that sometimes they provide charters for the same excursion booked through NCL, but I don't know if that is still accurate.

 

Any information is appreciated!

 

A taxi to/from Ma'alaea is $35.00 each way according to a taxi service website. As far as we can tell, Trilogy wants $129. per adult for their tour, and that does not include ground transportation. An NCL website offers the following:

 

"Port: Kahului, Maui

Put on your swimsuit and hop aboard a catamaran for the channel crossing to Molokini, a tiny crescent of an island just off the Maui coast and one of the top ten snorkel sites in the world. It is all that remains above water of a volcanic crater that resulted from an eruption some 200,000 years ago. Explore a lush reef with colorful coral combinations found nowhere else in these islands and home to more than 250 species of fish.

 

 

Weather permitting, you’ll make a second stop at Turtle Arches where you can swim and snorkel while keeping your eyes open for the Hawaiian green sea turtles that frequent these waters. A continental breakfast, lunch and beverages are included. A shopping stop is included on the return trip."

Approximate Duration 6 hours. Adult from $125 Child from $79

 

This is probably not Trilogy, and we find it hard to believe a ship's tour would be cheaper and include transportation. This is just all food for thought and a bit of information if you want to pursue it. Another question would be how easy is it to get a taxi at the ship and at Ma'alaea? A rental car might be an idea and also be used for other sightseeing.

[JustThinking23]

On our upcoming POA cruise, my number 1 activity to do in Maui is the Molokini Snorkel. My wife's was the sunrise on the volcano. The only way I found to make this happen is to take the ships tour that is offered on the first day in Maui. All of the trips I saw left before the POA got into port, never mind picking up the car and traveling the 20-25 minutes. After snorkeling, we will pick up the rental car for the very early next morning. If the snorkeling doesn't make it to Molokini on the first day, there could be an interesting discussion on what to do the second morning.

 

One previous trip report said that their ships tour was with Pacific Whale Foundation.

Edited January 25, 2016 by JustThinking23

[greatlakesgirl]

 

One previous trip report said that their ships tour was with Pacific Whale Foundation.

We did the POA tour for the sake of convenience. This was two years ago and they were using the Pacific Whale Foundation back then. Not sure if they still do. We had so much fun! Transportation was included as was a continental breakfast and a BBQ lunch.:)

Edited January 25, 2016 by greatlakesgirl

[erinlaw]

I appreciate the information! We've been debating the value of just doing the ship's tour versus trying to secure a taxi for 2 adults and 3 kids.

[Budget Queen]

Last few trips I have done the Molokini snorkel on the second Maui day- and always have a car.

 

I will also comment that the above "cab fare" likely is not accurate. I was on a tour a couple years ago, with a cruise ship passenger, who was desperately looking for a ride back to the ship, because the cab had been over $50, and they now were short on funds. Cabs are not cheap in Hawaii.

 

The other issue is, you have to be accepting of not getting to Molokini. Some vendors, just dump you in areas you could have driven and swam out to. I'm picky with the vendor's I use, but conditions vary and cruise contracted snorkel tours, aren't as flexible with time, I have found.

[Budget Queen]

On our upcoming POA cruise, my number 1 activity to do in Maui is the Molokini Snorkel. My wife's was the sunrise on the volcano. The only way I found to make this happen is to take the ships tour that is offered on the first day in Maui. All of the trips I saw left before the POA got into port, never mind picking up the car and traveling the 20-25 minutes. After snorkeling, we will pick up the rental car for the very early next morning. If the snorkeling doesn't make it to Molokini on the first day, there could be an interesting discussion on what to do the second morning.

 

One previous trip report said that their ships tour was with Pacific Whale Foundation.

 

Why not just pick up a car for 2 days? with you trying to snorkel your first day- what time is the tour? You generally need no later than a 8am tour to make it to Molokini as the late morning winds start pounding, late morning, with alternative sites gone to for snorkeling. (even with "Molokini" listed) all have disclaimers. You state this is a priority for you? I've snorkeled this area at least 25 times, the only cancellations- were with ship contracted tours. (which I seldom take)

[Silver Sweethearts]

I will also comment that the above "cab fare" likely is not accurate. I was on a tour a couple years ago, with a cruise ship passenger, who was desperately looking for a ride back to the ship, because the cab had been over $50, and they now were short on funds. Cabs are not cheap in Hawaii.

 

Unless it has changed very recently, taxi fare on Maui is $3.50 to get into the taxi and $3.00 per mile. The distance between Kahului Harbor and Maalaea is reported to be about 8.7 miles according to several internet sources - which we'll round off to 9 miles. $3.50 (base fee) + $27.00 (mileage) + $4.50 (15% tip) = the $35.00 we mentioned. If you want to tip 20%, that would be a whole $1.10 more. Still in the ballpark.