United States / Hawaii / Maui

Stop over at the Company
Paia, Maui

Paia's an old plantation town. Not "Gone with the Wind" style. More rough. Taking its cue from the sugar cane & pineapple industries of the early 20th c. Shops are in turn of the century buildings that once belonged to the "company." A mix of painted wooden buildings. Like a frontier town of the old west. The ocean & wild shoreline are just across the street. But Paia does not feel like a beach town.

It looks nothing like the resort areas in Maui. Like Kaanapali & Lahaina. And that's exactly what we love about it. This is a rag-tag town. Upscale & downscale. Original Hawaiians. A surfer's Mecca. Creative types. Spiritual types. Nuts & berry types. Great little restaurants where shoes appear to be optional. And grocery stores, with lauhala mats on floors. Where food is sold from sacks, by the scoopful. Kona coffee. Freshly baked goods. And fresh fish, of course.

Everytime we visit Paia there seems to be another gift boutique. Like it or not, the little town has a growing tourist trade to be wooed. People stop as they pass through on their way to Hana. That means more rinky-dink shops selling cheap aloha shirts & worse...Souvenirs made in the Philippines, you assume are Hawaiian. Best bets are the handcrafted, made in Maui goods. And the stylish surf wear.

Paia is definitely worth a visit. You won't get a true feel for it by just passing through. Try to stay in the area a few days before plopping yourself down at a resort. It's part of the old Hawaii. Meaning it still has lots of character.