I received an e-mail from our blog reader who wanted to share about their Christmas vacation on Maui, and I thought it was very nice of him to offer that. I told him to send me the post via e-mail and if it is consistent with the theme of this blog, we’ll publish it. I love it when A Maui Blog readers interact and participate and this is one example. Living on Maui, we sometimes take for granted how wonderful it is to celebrate Christmas here on a warm weather. This post reminds me to be appreciative of this blessing. This is Tyler’s story from their previous Christmas vacation on Maui. They can’t come this year due to a new baby born to their family, but it is fun reminiscing their past Christmas here on Maui and he looks forward to coming here again with his new son.
White Sand Christmas
If you are like me and live in Utah or any other cold area then you know how harsh winter can be, with the freezing rain, whiteout blizzards and sub-zero temperatures. This makes for a slow and dangerous commute. You also know that there is nothing more magical than a white Christmas. Waking up on Christmas morning and seeing everything covered in a blanket of sparking white snow almost makes the rest of the winter worth it. However, it seems that the past few Christmas mornings we have woken up to freezing temperatures, and hazy polluted skies with no snow. So I decided that there had to be a better way to celebrate a white Christmas.
Unfortunately there is more to Christmas than just snow. Traditions, music, holiday lights and of course spending time with family are all important around the holidays. So I found myself in a dilemma, I wanted to go somewhere warm but I couldn’t leave all the other things that make Christmas magical behind. Then I realized the solution was easy, take it all with me. So we packed up the whole family, including Grandparents, and headed to Hawaii.
We arrived in Maui just in time to witness one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. Then the Christmas magic began, instantly every palm tree and rooftop around us light up with holiday lights. I thought I was going to miss our Christmas tree, but quickly learned that a palm tree decorated with lights is so much better. As for the Christmas music, Hawaii has its own music and it is awesome. The next morning we woke up to a white sand beach. It was even more magical and exciting than a white snow Christmas. The rest of that day was spend playing on the white sand beach, spending time with family and soaking up the sun.
You are probably wondering about the Christmas traditions. Well, we found our new family Christmas tradition. What could be better, we had everything we needed to make Christmas magical plus the warmth, beauty and hospitality of the Hawaiian Islands and people. The only thing worse than leaving the Island and going back to hazy polluted skies and sub-zero temperatures is waiting a full year before returning to Maui to celebrate another beautiful white sand Christmas.
Tyler is a writer and marketer for uscharterservice.com. He is an avid snowboarder (but prefers surfing while in Hawaii). He loves traveling and spending time with his family. He can’t wait to spend his first white sand Christmas with his new son.
Are you a friend of A Maui Blog and would also like to share your Maui Vacation Story with us? That would be wonderful! Contact me and we’ll work it out 🙂
Photo Credit: The Maui Sunset photo is taken by Lena Castles of A David Story. And the Palm with Christmas Lights photo is from my FB friend Mark Tate.
This is a lovely post! Although we were not there Christmas morning we did visit Maui during the pre-Christmas time. It was truly majical to think of Christmas with beautiful sunsets and warm beaches 🙂
Well done, Tyler and thank you for sharing!!
What a great story, thanks for sharing, Tyler. With high season en route, countless stories will be born with new Xmas memories made.
Thanks for the comments! Maui really is my favorite place, especially around Christmas time!
It’s soooo nice to hear from our Hawaii visitors with their emotions and feelings about spending Christmas in Hawaii. Much mahalo, Liza, for posting Taylor’s very own Hawaii Christmas experience.
BTW, Big Island residents are not just spoilt with white sand beaches + warm turquoise ocean waters but Christmas season is the time when our volcanoes Mauna Kea (White Mountain) and Mauna Loa are covered with snow. Sipping your Mai Tai on Mauna Kea or Hapuna Beach and taking in the views of sparkling WHITE snow covered Mauna Kea against the blue Hawaii skies is PRICELESS!
When coming over from another Hawaiian island for a summit Stargazing visit to Mauna Kea, make sure to check that the access road to the Visitors’ Center is open. Today 12/20/11 the road is actually closed. Snow and ice will keep the Mauna Kea Access Road closed through this morning, the Mauna Kea Weather Channel announced Monday.
But wait just a few days and things will turn around. Remember it’s freezing up there, so NO flipflops or tanktops. Put all your Mainland clothes on you got and you’ll dearly enjoy the snow in Hawaii for Christmas.
Mele Kalikimaka, Pua
I have been to Hawaii several times but I have not been to the Big Island yet. I will have to check it out next year, it sounds awesome! Thanks