From the bungalows in North Kihei, Lanai sits on the western horizon every evening, a long low island across the channel. Most of our guests never realize they can be standing on it by breakfast. The Expeditions ferry leaves Ma'alaea Harbor, a short drive from our door, three times a day, and the crossing takes a little over an hour. In one day you can snorkel the clear water of Hulopo'e Bay, walk out to Sweetheart Rock, eat lunch across from Dole Park in an old pineapple town, visit more than 700 very relaxed cats, and ride the last boat home past the West Maui Mountains in the evening light. Here is how we plan it.
Lanai as a day trip from Kihei
Lanai is the quiet island of Maui County. It is about 13 miles wide and 18 miles long, with about 3,200 people, one small town and only about 30 miles of paved road, and about 98 percent of it is privately owned. After a few days of Maui beaches, that slower pace is half the reason to go.
The other half is the water. Hulopo'e Bay, a short walk from the ferry landing, sits inside a protected Marine Life Conservation District, and on a calm morning the reef just off the sand is full of fish. Spinner dolphins often come into the bay, and the tide pools at its eastern point are some of the best we know for kids. In 1997 Dr. Stephen Leatherman, the coastal scientist known as Dr. Beach, named Hulopo'e the best beach in America.
Up the hill, Lanai City is a plantation town built in the 1920s around a green square of tall pines. For about 70 years the island grew pineapple, and at its peak it produced roughly three quarters of the world's supply. The old plantation houses with their tin roofs still line the streets, and the cafes and shops face the park.
Lanai is also an easy day trip because you do not need a car to enjoy it. The beach is a walk from the harbor, and a shuttle runs up to town. If you want the wild side of the island, the red-rock Garden of the Gods and the north shore's Shipwreck Beach, you can rent a Jeep for the day.
Best of all, you come home at night. Lanai is a day trip for us, and there is nothing better than walking back into the bungalow, rinsing off the salt and sitting out with a cold drink, watching the island you just explored turn dark across the water.
The day at a glance
From the bungalows to Ma'alaea Harbor
The ferry to Lanai leaves from Ma'alaea Harbor, the small boat harbor at the north end of Ma'alaea Bay. From our bungalows in North Kihei it is about a 10-minute drive up North Kihei Road and the Honoapi'ilani Highway, which makes Kihei one of the easiest places on Maui to start this trip. If you walk Sugar Beach in the morning, you are looking straight at the harbor at the far end of the sand.
Since the 2023 fires, Expeditions sails only from Ma'alaea. Its Lahaina departures have not resumed, so Ma'alaea is the harbor to head for, even if an older guide says Lahaina. Our Lahaina guide covers what is open on the west side today if you want to pair the trip with a visit there on another day.
Plan to reach the harbor 45 minutes before your sailing. Boarding closes 10 minutes before departure, and the boat leaves on time. For the 6:30 a.m. ferry, that means leaving the bungalow at about 5:30 with coffee in hand. The road is empty at that hour and the drive is easy.
Parking at Ma'alaea Harbor is paid by QR code on the signs in the lot, so have your license plate number ready. Parking is $1 an hour, about $12 to $14 for a full ferry day. Leave yourself a few minutes to find a space, since morning snorkel and whale boats load from the same lot.
If you would rather not drive, a ride service drop-off works well at this hour too. Either way, the short trip from Kihei makes Lanai an easy day from our side of the island.
The Expeditions ferry schedule, fares and booking
Expeditions runs three round trips a day, every day of the week. Boats leave Ma'alaea for Manele Harbor on Lanai at 6:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., and leave Manele for Ma'alaea at 8:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. For a full day on the island, take the 6:30 a.m. boat out and the 5:30 p.m. boat back. That gives you nearly ten hours on Lanai.
Regular one-way fares are about $66 for adults and $34 for children 2 to 11, and children under 2 ride free. Military fares are $40 with ID. Hawaii residents pay $40 for adults and $15 for kids and seniors with a Hawaii ID. A round trip for one adult is about $132, and a family of two adults and two children pays about $400 for the day's ferry rides. Fares were last raised in October 2024 with approval from the state Public Utilities Commission, so check the booking page for the current price.
Book on go-lanai.com, where each direction is a separate ticket. Buy both legs at once so your seat home is held. Popular sailings fill up, so we suggest booking as soon as you settle on a day. You can also call Expeditions at (800) 695-2624 or (808) 661-3756.
Each traveler can bring two checked pieces and one carry-on. Extra bags, bicycles, surfboards over 7 feet, sailboards and kayaks cost extra and need to be requested in advance. E-bikes, e-scooters, e-skateboards, one-wheels, electric luggage and their batteries stay off the boat, so leave those at the bungalow.
Looking ahead, Maui County plans to take over the Lanai ferry, with a target of mid-2027 and a long-term goal of four round trips a day. Until then, Expeditions runs the boat, and go-lanai.com is the place to check.
| Plan | Leave Ma'alaea, Maui | Leave Manele, Lanai | Time on Lanai |
|---|---|---|---|
| Departures each day | 6:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 3:30 p.m. | 8:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m., 5:30 p.m. | |
| Full day | 6:30 a.m. | 5:30 p.m. | Nearly 10 hours |
| Half day | 6:30 a.m. | 1:00 p.m. | About 5 hours |
| Later start | 11:00 a.m. | 5:30 p.m. | About 5 hours |
Whales and island views on the crossing
The ferry crosses the 'Au'au Channel, the protected stretch of water between Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Kaho'olawe, in about an hour and ten minutes. On the way out you leave Ma'alaea with Haleakala behind you and the West Maui Mountains to your right, and Lanai slowly grows from a gray line into red cliffs and green slopes. On a clear day you can see Molokai to the north and, far to the southeast, the peaks of the Big Island.
From mid-December to mid-May, this crossing is one of the best whale watches on Maui, and it costs the price of a ferry ticket. Expeditions counts December 15 to May 15 as whale season on the channel, and the heart of it, as on our own beach, is January through March. Humpbacks come to these shallow, warm waters to mate and calve, and it is common to see spouts, tail slaps and breaches from the boat. Our whale watching guide explains what to look for.
The captain keeps the boat at a respectful distance. NOAA requires boats to stay at least 100 yards from humpback whales in Hawaii, so bring binoculars and head up to the open-air top deck for the widest view.
The morning crossing is usually the smoothest of the day, since the trade winds tend to build in the afternoon. If you are prone to seasickness, take your remedy before you board and keep your eyes on the horizon. Most guests are too busy watching for whales to notice.
When you step off at Manele, take a minute to look back across the channel. Maui sits on the horizon with the West Maui Mountains on one side and Haleakala on the other, and somewhere along the low shoreline between them are our bungalows in Kihei.
From fall into early spring, the sun sets over the channel on the ride home, and in whale season you are often watching humpbacks in the last light. In summer you cross in daylight with the Maui coast in view. It is one of our favorite hours of any Maui trip.