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Paia Town & Sugar Mill
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PHOTOS |
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Click on a thumbnail to
see a larger version of the photo |
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OVERVIEW |
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An eclectic
town featuring some quaint little shops and
restaurants.
Nestled along the north shore of Maui is the
charming little historic beach town of Paia.
Once home to thriving sugar mills and
plantations, Paia has a much more native and
rural feel than do the larger tourist towns
of Lahaina and Kihei, where one can easily
be overwhelmed by the seemingly endless
array of hotels, mini-malls and tourist
shops.
Paia does, however, have much to offer in
the way of shopping, as it is full of unique
boutiques and quaint little antique stores
as well as an old-fashioned tattoo parlor.
It is also home to many locally-owned art
galleries that seem to offer a much larger
variety of native art than do the galleries
in Lahaina, for example, where it seems that
much of the art has been imported or
mass-produced. The Maui Crafts Guild,
located at 43 Hana Hwy, is located here. An
artist-owned and operated cooperative
gallery, it offers handmade crafts that
range from baskets, silks, jewelry, pottery
and glass to sculpture, wood, copper, and
much more. All items are 100% handmade in
Maui. If you are looking for a ‘special
something’ to take home to a loved one, Paia
is a great place to find that perfect gift.
Paia is also home to some of the best dining
establishments on Maui, offering a wide
variety of cuisines including Mexican food,
crepes, Indian curries, Mediterranean and
vegetarian cuisines as well as more native
fare. About one mile east of Paia is Mama’s
Fish House – considered by many to be the
best dining establishment in all of Maui !
Located in a coconut grove on a secluded
white sand beach with spectacular Polynesian
and tropical decor, Mama’s Fish House serves
fresh fish caught by their own fishermen, as
well as steaks and seafood prepared Maui
style. They are open for lunch and dinner
from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm., and reservations
are a must.
The Paia area is also home to some of Maui’s
most beautiful beaches, including Baldwin
Beach Park – one of Maui's most beautiful
white sand beaches. It is great for
swimming, as lifeguards are on duty daily;
and while the beach is usually un-crowded
during weekdays, it is a very popular spot
with the local residents on weekends. Only
minutes away further down the Hana Highway
from Paia is Hookipa Beach Park, which is
called the windsurfing capital of the world.
This is Paia's most publicized beach. While
you can watch surfers year-round here, the
winter months that bring the wind and big
waves to the North Shore are when the
windsurfers and kite surfers come out. It's
quite common to see wave-jumping and flips
at this time of the year. Several
professional competitions are held each year
at Hookipa, which attracts competitors from
all over the world. A good many of the pros
live in Maui and use Hookipa as their
training grounds. Please note, however, that
the currents, waves and winds can be
incredibly strong at Hookipa, and visitors
are strongly cautioned that this is not a
beach where warning signs should be ignored.
You'll see some of the world's best
windsurfers at Hookipa Beach, just outside
of Paia.
While Paia is not exactly off the beaten
path, a visitor to this little town can
easily feel as though they have just stepped
backwards in time and get a true sense of
the quiet and laid-back lifestyle that is
typical of the way native Hawaiians live. |
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DIRECTIONS |
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Paia is
located along Maui’s north shore on Hana
Highway - just five minutes northeast of the
Kahului airport. |
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