Johnny and I had a wedding in Seattle at the end of September. Since we were on the West Coast and halfway to Hawaii, we figured we would make the trip! We packed a lot of activity in 7 days. Since this is our 7th wedding of the year, we haven’t had time for a honeymoon, but this was the perfect break and allowed us to relax. October was an ideal time for Hawaii! It was not busy, and the weather was perfect!
I will write about what I packed for the trip in an upcoming blog!
Day 1: Flight to Seattle
The first day started with our flight to Seattle. We have a direct flight on Alaskan Airlines. The plane was not full, so we lucked out with a row to ourselves! I slept the whole flight, but it was so nice landing at 9 am and having the entire day ahead of us.
We took an Uber to our hotel, the AC Hotel Seattle Bellevue/Downtown. We picked this hotel because it was where the couple had the room block for the wedding. The hotel was in a great location in Bellevue, was very clean, and had the gym that we needed. A bonus was we got 2 free nights using our Marriott Bonvoy Points!!
After we checked in and refreshed, it was time to explore Seattle!
We started at Pike Place Market! I was amazed at how massive it was! I expected it to be a street like the strip district in Pittsburgh, but it was multiple levels!!
We were starving at this point so we ate at the Athenian Seafood Restaurant And Bar. We both had fish and chips, local beers, and I tried my first oyster!! We walked around even more, got pastries from Pike Place Bakery, coffee from ghost alley, and then saw the gum wall!
Next up was Miner’s landing! We walked there from Pike Place Market, which was an easy downhill walk. We went on the Seattle Great Wheel to get a break from walking and see more of Seattle. If we were to go back I would skip this. It was fun but not worth the cost in my opinion.
The Mariners game was next! From Miner’s landing, we walked to TMobile Park. We were there early, so we ate and drank around the ballpark to pass some time. We had a blast inside the park. This was my 14th MLB stadium, and it did not disappoint. I love finding unique places in the park, like seeing the Bull Pen area. We didn’t make it through the full game because we were exhausted from travel and time change, so we went back to the hotel and went to sleep.
Day 2: Exploring Bellvue and the Wedding
We started our day by going to the gym and then getting bagels from Blazing bagels. After we walked to find a cute coffee shop, we went to Dote coffee bar, where I got an amazing chocolate croissant. Thankfully, this was next to a Nordstrom Rack. I underestimated the Pacific Northwest weather and did not have an appropriate dress. Johnny saved the day and found a long-sleeved dress for me!
Now that I had an extra dress and Mariners souvenirs, we were questioning how everything would fit into our carryons. We sent these items home to avoid the stress, thanks to FedEx! Way cheaper than buying a new suitcase.
The wedding was at Fox Hollow Farm. I wish we lived in Seattle because this venue looked like it came out of a dream. The layout was perfect, and the scenery was stunning! We danced all night and then got back to the hotel and prepared to fly to Maui the next morning.
Day 3: Flight to Hawaii
We got back to the Seattle airport and got our flight to Maui on Hawaiian airlines. My TV screen on the flight was broken, so no movies for me, unfortunately. We were both exhausted from our two quick days in Seattle so we slept most of the way.
We landed and got a ride to the west side of the island to get to The Westin Maui Resort & Spa, Ka’anapali. From the moment we got out of the car, I was in awe. The lobby is outdoors! With a water fountain! And coy pond! AND flamingos! They truly know how to welcome you to Maui. We were very lucky to be able to use our Marriott Bonvoy points for our stay.
After we checked in we got lunch/dinner on the property at Hale Moʻolelo. This was my first introduction to the Aloha Always drink, which was my drink of choice for the week! We ate, explored the hotel, and watched sunset on the beach. This was the best sunset I’ve ever seen. Truly had us in awe. We grabbed snacks from the Mahele Market & Eatery and went to sleep. All of the travel was catching up to us!
Day 4: Westin and Haleakalā National Park
We started our morning by going to the gym. It was a nice gym for being a hotel. It even had its own dedicated yoga studio and classes! Westins truly do care about health.
We got breakfast and then went to the Activities desk to book some tours. We had Chris helping us. He answered all of our questions and was absolutely amazing!
We booked a tour for that evening to see sunset at Haleakalā National Park. We had a tour bus that picked us up at our hotel and drove (almost) three hours to Mt. Haleakala, an active shield volcano. We were up slightly over 9,000 ft above sea level! So high that we were above the inversion, and we could only see clouds around us. The sunset was beautiful. It was nice to sit and watch the sun set over the clouds.
We then had the three-hour ride back. We were so hungry that we ordered pizza from Round Table Pizza to be delivered to the hotel. We had our typical pizza order as well as Hawaiian pizza. I didn’t like pineapple on my pizza, but Johnny loved it.
Day 5: Sea Maui Snorkeling & Luau
We started our morning snorkeling with Sea Maui. The meeting place was within walking distance from our hotel, which was perfect after having a late night. We did the express snorkel, which takes you to Mala Wharf. This spot was INCREDIBLE. We saw over 20 green sea turtles, a ton of fish, a few rays, and even a shark! I wish we had an underwater camera so I could show how beautiful it was. There were multiple times a turtle would come up for air only five feet away from us! On the way back to Whalers village they had drinks and snacks for us to enjoy while enjoying the Maui sun.
When we got back we got brunch a Ulu Kitchen and hung out at the adult pool and relaxed. One of the drinks on the menu said it was Junior’s award winning Mai Tai and we met Junior at the bar! He made two drinks just for us off the menu. I wish we could have ordered them again, but we didn’t know what was in them. We then went to the beach before it was time to get ready for our Luau!!
The Wailele Lu’au was held at our hotel in the events space. When you enter you are given a beautiful lei and seated at your table. The bar and food are unlimited, with more specialty drinks. Before dinner started, I was able to go on stage and learn some of the hula dancing basics. While we ate the show started and continued throughout the night. It ended with a fire knife performance. If you go to Maui you have to experience the Wailele Lu’au!
Day 6: Beach Day
Johnny and I love a relaxing day at the beach, so that is what we did. We got breakfast and coffee after the gym from Island Vintage Coffee. We loved this coffee place so much that we went there every day in Maui! I am so thankful we found this on our first day there.
When we returned, we went to the Beach Casabellas we had rented for the day. These were amazing! You have padded reclining chairs, shade, fresh towels and cold water delivered to your seats, and a server coming around to get your drink or food order. We stayed here from 9am to sunset. The only break we took was to get lunch on the property. It was truly a dream. Enjoying the sand, sun, and water at the beach all day is my happy place.
For dinner, we went to Leilani’s, next to our hotel in Whalers Village. This was by far the best food we experienced on our trip. If you ever go you have to get the Hula Pie, you will not regret it.
Day 7: Beach Day
This was pretty much a repeat of the previous day. We got coffee and breakfast from Island Vintage Coffee and then returned to the Beach Casabellas. We even saw a rainbow over the water. I swear Maui was trying to convince me to stay with all of its beautiful sights. We stay there from 8am until about 5 pm. The only break we took was going to Leilani’s on the beach for lunch (the beach bar version of where we went to dinner the night before).
After we got ready we watched the sunset on the beach. After sunset, we walked to Maui Brewing Company. We tried a bunch of beers with their flight and got an appetizer.
For dinner, we went back to Leilani’s. It was so good for dinner we had to go again and, of course, get the Hula Pie.
Day 8: Flight back to Pittsburgh
This day was so so so sad. I was not ready to leave. We went to Island Vintange Coffee and sat on the beach. Then we packed, and I may have shed a tear or two while doing it. After we packed we went back to Ulu Kitchen for brunch and then to the airport.
Overall, this trip was amazing! The flight back was long but so worth it! If we were to do this again, we would have gone to another west coast city on the way back to break up the trip even more. Landing in Pittsburgh at 7am with a six-hour time difference was rough. We cannot wait to go back to Hawaii.
Sustaining Nicole 
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