Originally Posted by
departingBOS
Why do you feel the north shore is over rated and why does being there in the winter matter for snorkeling Honolua bay? One of the reasons I was thinking of doing a night on the north shore was to break up the drive to Hana a bit a get a little more exploring time on it. How long of a drive is it from Napili to Hana?
Napili to Hana is a long drive, but it's 45 minutes to the north shore, then 2-3 hours to hana past it, it doesn't really break it up much. Then you have to return/go on around. I'd say spend an extra night in Hana instead. I say over rated because the beaches aren't good for snorkeling as they're too rough. You could snorkel at baby beach but you'd just see sand :-). If you're a good surfer, they're good though. Typically far too rough for visibility to be any good. But if you want to see turtles, check out Tavares Bay instead of Ho'okipa. No crowds but still turtles and very picturesque.
Honolua bay can get some big swells in the winter. In the summer it's calm, but in the winter it can be surfing weather. It all just depends. View a surf report on mauinow.com when you're here and pay attention. If the swells are low, Honolua is beautiful.
One thing you learn about Maui is we have all types of beaches. Swimming, Snorkeling, Surfing, and Only Viewing. :-)