If possible, fly directly to Maui. Doing so can save you a 2-hour layover in Honolulu and another plane ride. If you're headed for Molokai or Lanai, you'll have to connect through Honolulu.

If you think of the island of Maui as the shape of a head and shoulders of a person, you'll probably arrive on its neck, at Kahului Airport.

Kahului Airport:
United Airlines (tel. 800/241-6522; www.ual.com) offers daily nonstop flights from San Francisco and Los Angeles; Aloha Airlines (tel. 800/367-5250; www.alohaairlines.com) has nonstop service from Sacramento, Oakland, Orange County, and San Diego, all in California. Hawaiian Airlines (tel. 800/367-5320; www.hawaiianair.com) has direct flights from Portland and Seattle; American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com) flies direct from Los Angeles and San Jose; Delta Airlines (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com) offers direct flights from San Francisco and Los Angeles; and American Trans Air (tel. 800/435-9282; www.ata.com) has direct flights from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Phoenix.

The other carriers -- including Continental (tel. 800/525-0280; www.continental.com) and Northwest Airlines (tel. 800/225-2525; www.nwa.com) -- fly to Honolulu, where you'll have to pick up an interisland flight to Maui. (The airlines listed in the paragraph above also offer many more flights to Honolulu from additional cities on the mainland.) Both Aloha Airlines and Hawaii an Airlines offer jet service from Honolulu.

Don't expect to jump a ferry between any of the Hawaiian Islands. Today everyone island-hops by plane. Since September 11, 2001, the two inter-island carriers have cut way, back on the number of interisland flights. The airlines warn you to show up at least 90 minutes before your flight and believe me, with all the security inspections, you will need all 90 minutes to catch your flight. Also, be sure to book your inter-island connection from Honolulu to Maui in advance.