The Rainbow's End Surf Hostel

Hotel/Resort

It's No Pot of Gold at the Rainbow's End

by Tara Miller

August 2006

Finding affordable lodging on the island of Maui presents a challenge. Expansive luxury hotels line the beaches in Wailea, Lahaina, and Kanapali charg The patio of the Rainbow's End Surf hostel provided one place to hang out. ing rates that dwarf your mortgage. But in the small, North Shore town of Paia you can find relief from the sticker shock of the large hotel chains.

Rainbow’s End Surf Hostel, located walking distance from the quaint town of Paia and the North Shore’s biggest waves, offers dorm rooms and private doubles for a reasonable price ($25 - $55 a night with lower rates for longer stays). The hostel is well maintained and fairly clean. Guests share a living room, two kitchens and three bathrooms. The showers are HOT and the kitchens are spotless. The hostel provides linens which are included in your room and board. Refrigerators with assigned shelves located in each kitchen allow guests to store food and beverages which helps save on dining costs.

The management at Rainbow’s End Surf Hostel was nice, but disorganized. Our reservation was mixed up with another couple’s reservation, a mistake that was caught half way through our stay causing us to change rooms. The hostel did not provide any information about the area’s attractions or things to do. It appeared that two people co-managed the hostel, one living below the hostel and the other in one of the bunk rooms. However, neither was readily accessible to answer questions.

The environment at Rainbow’s End lacks the camaraderie characteristic of European hostels. Without a bar, the TV room provides the only real common area for guests to mingle. Because so many of the tenants stay for a month or longer with no travel plans or time pressures, couch potatoes tend to laze around doing nothing but taking up space. We missed the story telling commonly found in the European hostels. We missed making friends and bonding with fellow travelers.

Overall Rainbow’s End Surf Hostel is a nice place. The rooms are clean and the showers are hot. If you are looking for a cheap place to stay in a neat little town where the surf is always up, then you found it…just remember you’ll have to walk down to the local watering hole to brag about that huge wave.