Our Mission

O'hia, Ka'apahu HNP
(Photo: Forest and Kim Starr)

Maui is absolutely magical when you’re in the right place.

Let us show you.

Accurate, Comprehensive & Balanced
We’ve been building the most accurate, comprehensive and balanced online source of guidebook information, always with a keen eye on what has been damaging for Maui and our visitors as a result of the the most popular print guidebooks.

More specifically, our mission has three core components, all connected, and each focused on promoting, sustaining and preserving what is so special about Maui:

Environment
Our unique environment is the foundational block of our mission. Maui is a spectacular outdoor playground, but our environment need not become a consumable commodity. Besides our most basic responsibility to protect her, our island environment is like no other place in the world, which is what makes Maui so highly prized as a travel destination. Degrading our environment degrades all of our lives, and also our economic value as a travel destination.

Above all else, we educate visitors to treat Maui’s environment with respect and care, and to always remember her place as the provider for all our families, our health, prosperity, happiness and connection to a spirit far greater than ourselves.

Host Culture
Our Host Culture comes only after the 'aina because it too shares a strong environmental foundation. Hawaiian culture has always deeply understood this interconnection, from mountain to sea, and many traditional Hawaiian practices are based upon maintaining this balance. The Hawaiian Culture is also frequently named as a reason visitors come to visit our island, yet, in reality this is an area of focus that has been largely neglected or inaccurately portrayed throughout our tourism industry.

The Hawaiian culture is our host. We believe that the best and most valuable visitor experiences are built upon respect and understanding of the Host Culture, and always being mindful of this fact in what we do will deliver what is best for Maui, our visitors and our people.

Best Businesses for Maui
Maui is an incredibly unique place that outside corporate interests are unable to deliver authentically, and many do not benefit us equitably. Visitors don’t know that, and before landing here, many may not even expect that the spirit of Aloha is anything more than a marketing slogan. Our belief is that the best Maui experiences for visitors are genuine experiences based on what makes Maui no ka oi – and that many of the fundamental aspects that make Maui so unique and special are truly embodied in our people.

Our best small, locally-based businesses are not foreign corporate entities with different priorities and values – they are real people, true members of our community, who genuinely embody the spirit of Aloha that connects us all.

Keeping business local also keeps the money local – supporting our community and families. On an isolated island with few other sources of income, we believe it is important that the money brought by our visitors to spend here should enrich our island and her people as much as possible.

The third core component of our mission is to direct visitors to the best locally-based businesses, who themselves support Maui first, and who deliver a genuine Maui experience with the true spirit of Aloha.

We hope you will join us in making the best guidebook for Maui by supporting us and telling your ohana, customers, visitors and friends about MauiGuidebook.com