Maui Realtors Journey to Southern Italy and Greek Islands
The slow season for Maui real estate market is usually in May or September, so I prefer to travel during those time periods. Usually a two to three-week trip works best. It’s funny, I’m always asked where Maui realtors go on vacation or if you even leave the island. Well, we do have a life! I love to take a big trip at least once a year. Having lived in Maui for 50 years, I love my Maui life and love to surf, windsurf, and garden. So why leave? Why even go on a vacation? I’m asked wherever I go, “Why are you here when you live in Maui?”
My wife and I love to travel, to places like Costa Rica, Paris, Europe, Tahiti, and New Zealand, really it’s about adventure. I love history, art, beautiful places, great food, and mixing it up with other cultures. Being a realtor it’s a habit to take my computer and keep an eye on my business. Having all my bases covered it’s time to start planning a trip. My travel partner is my wife, Ivy. She pretty much leaves all the planning to me; she loves a good adventure and trusts me. We both pick a couple of points of interest to mix it up. Last year we were in Spain and Portugal. I love getting off the beaten paths of most traveled destinations, The famous travel guru Rick Steve’s talks about exploring small towns and the countryside, just getting away from the crowds.
This year I relied on some friends in Barcelona and Greece for some guidance and suggestions of their favorite places to visit. They suggested southern Italy and some smaller Greek Islands. So, while we did plan quality downtime with these two destinations, we decided to begin with a couple of days in Rome, tucked in Athens and Pompeii in between, and end our trip with Florence. We just spent three nights in Florence, our B&B was right in the heart of Florence, walk out our door, and our favorite restaurant was right there.
We spent a week in southern Italy on a beautiful bay and a week in the Greek islands, at a beautiful hotel on the water, both very laid back and quiet, (we were in pre-season). There was windsurfing, stand-up paddling, amazing food, homemade gelato, and visiting small villages. We love the passion of the Greek & Italian people, much aloha there as well!
Renting a car is the only way to go when you are exploring the country and coastal regions, yes you can ride the trains, and take taxis in the bigger cities (which we did) but it’s easy to navigate driving country roads once you get out of the big cities. I really enjoyed driving through fields of olive groves, vineyards, farmlands, and wide-open spaces.
The best is the unexpected, discovering little towns hundreds of years old and villages without tourists (except us!) and mixing it up with the locals. When they would ask us where we were from, they would just roll their eyes and laugh. I love the little cafés and local restaurants and amazing food.
Ok, here is the good news, the dollar exchange is not too bad. Lodging is a great value, and food prices are low for quality goods. And I can’t say enough about so many excellent restaurants we visited, many off the beaten path.
So, my takeaway is to avoid summer and the high-season crowds. It was so mellow if you can plan your trip before the summer rush. There are so many amazing places to discover you can go to the Amalfi Coast and Cinque Terre but now thousands of tourists are all over it as well. For an adventure, try lesser-known areas. But having said that, I did mention we started with Rome, tucking in Pompeii and Athens (mid-way), and ending with Florence. Amazing architecture, and art, what a great way to see layers of history of mankind, great minds, man’s talents, feats, and failures. Our journey (“road”) began to Rome, and you get this feeling if the statues could speak, they would say, “Make wise choices!”
Having so enjoyed our trip. So many amazing places we were able to visit, wonderful people, and excellent food. We are always thankful to return home to Maui refreshed and feeling like we made a wise choice of making Maui our home. I am very thankful for the lifestyle we enjoy in Maui. After getting over the jet lag, I was able to get in a windsurfing session yesterday after working in the Wailea office. This is why Maui is so amazing, you can enjoy the outdoors, surfing, hiking, golfing, and enjoying great beach weather year-round. Having called Maui home for 50 years, raised our kids, now enjoying our grandkids. It always feels so good to feel the jet touch down on the runway at Kahului airport, very thankful to call Maui home. As they say Maui No Ka Oi.
Well back to Maui life, I do love my job selling real estate on Maui. I have had the pleasure of working with some amazing people over the years. So, if you’re thinking about buying or selling real estate on Maui. I work with Hawaii Life Real Estate Brokers. I have been selling real estate in Maui for 29 years, please let me know if there is any way I can help find that perfect home or condo in Maui. I work island-wide so give me a call.
Aloha, Steven
Steven Nickens RS-54097 GRI ABR
Hawaii Life Real Estate Brokers
Offices: The Shops at Wailea, Kihei, and Upcountry Maui
Cell: 808-280-2208
Email: nickensmaui@gmail.com
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