Costco in Kahului is members only, and is $50 to join. It’s a wholesale setup which means you can only buy large quantities like three huge jars of pasta source, or a tray of 24 peaches. However the deals can be amazing, like 24 cans of coke for $7, about 30c a can, so it doesn’t take long to make back the $50 membership fee - especially if your accommodation has a fridge big enough to handle the pack sizes. Though if you’re shopping for yourself you would need to be happy eating a lot of the same thing for days on end.
It’s also a good place to go straight after a sail as they always seem to have a few free food samples to tide you over before dinner!
The pizza at Costco is a pretty good deal, about $10 for a huge pizza easily enough for 2 people, maybe 3. It’s also available by the slice if you need a quick feed after windsurfing!
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Shaved ice from Tom’s Mini Mart is perfect for some refreshment after a session an Kanaha as it’s just past the harbour. Look for the green building on the right - you can park around the back.
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If you’re staying for a few weeks or more a vacation rental is the way to go. Most will offer good deals if you’re staying a month or more.
Puukoa studios and one bedrooms
Island Style Vacations
VBRO
Maui Vacation Advisors
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Whether you’re checking out the conditions or just wishing you were there, check out the Kanaha web cam. A great way to get in the mood for your windsurfing holidays!
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At the budget end of car or van hire, which is where most of the windsurfing friendly places are, insurance costs can be almost half the total rental rate at around $10-$20 per day. If you’re in Maui for long enough to make it worthwhile, it’s worth looking at arranging a separate insurance policy which can be far cheaper. (See some links here if you’re coming from the UK.)
Make sure you check in advance that the place you’re hiring from will accept it! Over a month this could save you a few hundred dollars.
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The best source for monthly wind stats I’ve found is Windfinder. June, July and August are all over 90%, so if you primarily want wind (rather than waves) it’s hard to beat that. Even the shoulder months of April, May and September are over 75%. Tropical storms can upset the tradewinds, with August being the worst month for this. If you’re on a short trip planned in advance this can make August a bit riskier as there’s more chance of a continuous break in the trade winds.
Magic Seaweed has average swell stats for Maui here. October through to April has amazing consistency, with a big drop off over summer.
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Air New Zealand operate the piece system out of Maui - you get two pieces up to 46kg total. After that it’s USD$85 per piece, or USD$30 if a bag is over $23kg.
The only catch is that they list the maximum bag length as 250cm, a little shorter than most airlines who quote 270cm. That shouldn’t be a problem with most modern kit, though it can be tricky to get a board bag as short as modern boards.
Overall it’s a great deal, they’re the cheapest other than Air Pacific for some routes. I should be flying with them so will update when I’ve done it first hand!
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Air Pacific have some really cheap deals out of Maui, the cheapest by far on some routes it looks like. I had to call up to get the excess baggage rates - 30kg, then USD$85 per 5 kgs over. So a good deal to be had if you have no or little kit, but the excess baggage rate will eat up any savings on the fare if you have much over 30kg with you.
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Remember that most sites here probably have more kit available than they list, or their online list might not be up to date. So asking around when you arrive is the way to go, but from these listings you can still get an idea of the range and price of the available gear.
Craigslist - lots of great deals on here.
Neil Pryde Maui - used and ex-rental Neil Pryde boards and sails
Hot Sails Maui Shop - used, prototype and closeout Hot Sails gear
Naish Maui Specials - ex rental and closeout deals.
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Second Wind board & 2 sails - 7 days $290, 14 days $522, 28 days $783
Maui Windsurf Company board & 2 sails - 7 days $319, 14 days $561, 28 days $890
Kanaha Kai - board & rig - 7 days $290, 14 days $529, 28 days $820
Pritchard Windsurfing
Naish Maui - boards & 2 sails - 7 days $290, 14 days $495, 1 month $795
Hawaiian Watersports - Board & rig - 7 days $279
Obviously this is a pretty competitive market, so the prices don’t differ that much between places. So it’s the details that make the difference, it’s worth checking
- That they have the kit you want to sail.
- How close they are to your accommodation and preferred spots - Kanaha Kai for example is right near Kanaha - so you can change kit easily.
- What your situation is if you damage kit - do they offer insurance, how do they assess replacement value and so on.
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It’s also a good place to go straight after a sail as they always seem to have a few free food samples to tide you over before dinner!