Traveling to Hawaii during COVID, Is it wortht the risk? Advices and guidance before boarding and after landing for a safe and fun trip.
This article is meant to help you figure out What part of Maui to stay in. The Island offers an abundance of activities, vibes and climates.
On the last blog, we spoke about how to pack your luggage for your trip to Hawaii. Of course, we mentioned sunscreen,
remember?! Your skin can be feeling pretty smooth on windy or rainy days, but do not be mistaken. If you do not apply sunscreen, you will end up looking like a lobster! It is important to make sure that you have sunscreen with you for this trip, but not any kind of sunscreen. Use Reef Safe Sunscreen!
Many sunscreens are not only bad for the reef, sea flora and fauna, but if you go jump in the rivers and enjoy the beautiful water falls (which is something you should definitely do! ) not only does that sunscreen end up in the ocean, but it will also pollute the water that local people use at home and even drink.
Hawaiians are extremely welcoming and friendly, but they do not appreciate having their water polluted and intoxicated
by visitors.
To help you have a very pleasant stay on our beautiful island, we would love to explain to you why sunscreens can be very damaging, and recommend certain brands that are safe to use:
Why are certain sunscreens bad?
1) They kill the reef!
Oxybenzone is found in many sunscreens. This ingredient breaks down coral, causing it to lose nutrients, turn ghostly white and often die. We need these coral reefs. They are an important part of the ecosystem for life underwater.
Thousands of species can be found living on one reef. From seaweed, algaes, mollusks, to bigger Kish and turtles, everyone needs the coral. If the coral dies, marine life dies. This does not not just effect the beauty of diving, but also the food source of many local Hawaiians. These corals also protect coastal areas by reducing the power of the waves hitting the coast. If the reef dies, the erosion will progress faster and faster.
2) Makes water undrinkable
Not many locals still use the river of the water as their drinking water, but some still do. It is reassuring and beautiful to know that some places in the world still have rivers pure enough to offer drinkable water. Not to mention,
local families are able to harvest this fresh water for their farms that they grow food and eat from. Let’s not ruin this by
leaking all these harmful chemicals from some sunscreens into these little slices of heaven.
3) Effects your health
Recent studies have shown that several active ingredients of different sunblocks enter the bloodstream at levels way superior of the FDA’s recommended threshold. There are not many studies that demonstrate how bad this can effect your health, but better be safe than sorry by using harmless and organic sunscreen.
Which Reef Safe Sunscreens should we use?
There are many different “Reef Safe” sunscreens out there. However, this term is not regulated, so it is always important
to double check the active ingredients to conKirm that it is not just placed as a marketing technique.
Chemicals you do NOT want in your sunscreen:
- Oxybenzone
- Octinoxate
- Octocrylene
- Homosalate
- 4-methylbenzylidene camphor
- PABA
- Parabens
- Triclosan
- Any nanoparticles or “nano-sized” zinc or titanium
- Any form of microplastic, such as “exfoliating beads”
Now that you know which chemicals to look out for, here is a list of a few of the sunscreen brand options that are safe for you and the environment!
- Raw Elements
- Suntegrity Natural Mineral Sunscreen
- BioClarity
- Sun Bum
- Lahaina Organics Sunscreen ( sold in our shop! )
- Avasol
- Ola Sofia
- Badger Suncreen
- Little Hands Hawaii All natural and organic sunscreen
- Kokua Suncare Hawaiian SPF 50 natural zinc sunscreen
Mahalo from the island of Maui for helping protect our reefs, animals, and the future generations to come!
Check out the ingredients of Belle Surf Cafe’s menu, we serve many different types of superfoods to keep you energized for the day!
I have some helpful tips, tricks and reminders to guideyou in preparation and packing your bags for your dream trip to the Valley Isle.
What is this “Acai bowl” everyone is talking about? Admit it, you asked yourself this question at some point in your life, unless you were born in Brazil! I think it is pretty crazy how everyone will suddenly start speaking about a health food product, and then you start seeing it everywhere. It becomes a trend.
Am I the only one… or does everyone drink sparkling water now? A few years ago you would go visit your friends, and they would offer you a soda or some alcohol, right? Well seltzer is now back in the race against the soda giants! Less sugar, more water! The United States has never consumed this much avocado, until this day.
Chickpeas, cauliflower, kale and many other healthy ailments are also making their way to the top. Samples like this goes on and on, but how are these food trends born? These so called ‘trends’ are inJluenced by a wide range of factors: famous chefs, health studies, diet trends and even fashion. “Healthy Food” is definitely the tendency of this decade.
Consumers are very health-conscious, swinging more towards “real” foods instead of lab-created pseudo foods. The “fast and easy” trend is slowing down and Jinally making room for “organic”, “local”, “no added sugar”, “dairy free”, etc. I have to say… it was about time!
We are finally waking up and realizing that eating bad, can end bad. After all, we are what we eat, right? But do we really know what we eat sometimes? Can you even pronounce all of the names of the ingredients in this bag of chips? Probably not! However… we all know that is not a good sign. I want to live as long as I can, without having to fight cardiac disease or cancer. By consciously putting in the effort to eat as healthy as possible, hopefully the odds will be in my favor. Not only is it excellent for my body long term, but I love how light and energized I feel after eating a delicious avocado toast from Belle Surf Cafe! Can you say the same after eating at a fast-food restaurant?
It is NOT always easy to find yummy healthy food on the go. If you come to Lahaina, you do not need to waste too much time wandering around. We have you covered here at Belle Surf Cafe with plenty of choices made for all diets!
Our menu will satisfy your cravings, all while leaving your tummy full and your mind at ease because you ate something that your body loves. Our customers constantly have questions regarding items on our menu such as ‘Superfoods’.
Hemp seeds, Spirulina, chia seeds, to name a few. If you are curious and would like to learn more on Superfoods, and their benefits, check out our next blog post coming this Thursday! This way, you too can learn how to live a life full of wellness and longevity!
From the months of November to May, between 8,000 to 10,000 Humpback Whales (Kohola in Hawaiian) travel all the way from Alaska to Hawaii.
Every year, the best surfer girls in the world meet in Maui for the last event of the World Surf League Championship Tour, Maui Pro, an event you do not want to miss! Why is that? Watching surIing from your screen can be entertaining and impressive, but wait until you step onto the cliff of a magical place called Honolua Bay.
From this cliff, you can feel the power of the ocean and it is a very humbling experience. Local surfers know the break like the back of their hand, and will put on a quite a show, making the ocean more entertaining to watch. Surfers travel the world in chase of waves that can offer them long rides in glassy conditions, and the ultimate goal is to Iind “barreling waves”. A wave so perfect that you can enter the tube, get surrounded by water for a few seconds until you make it out, or… get crushed on the reef! The Bay of Honolua is a surfer’s paradise, with very long rides and an amazing barrel section! Look at the photos on the right, yes there are two people inside of this barrel! There are few waves in the world that are good enough to allow two people to share this moment together.
When the Professional Women Surfers from all over the world travel to Maui to determine who is the best in the last contest of the year, the pressure is high. These women surf at their top level. This is a spectacle you want to add to your bucket list! Make sure to go there for sunset when the sun rays shine through the waves, creating hues of green and blue. Your chances of seeing a rainbow are pretty high too! 2020 has been a strange year for everyone, the world surf league has been especially affected by the travelling restrictions due to Covid-19.
After canceling all of the events of the year, they managed to gather the staff and surfers for a contest that would determine who is the best female surfer of 2020! How exciting! The Iirst day of the competition was beautiful. The show was ON! Waves were great and the girls were on Iire! Another beautiful day at ‘The Bay’. Despite these pristine conditions, the cursed year of 2020 was not planning to give the World Surf League a break. On the morning of the second day of the contest, the women were practicing in the water and local surfers enjoying their home break.
Unfortunately, a terrible incident occurred in the channel of Honolua Bay. A local and respected surfer of 56 years lost his life after getting bit on his leg by a tiger shark. With such a terrible incident, the WSL and the professionals are not feeling completely safe surIing a place where a 12 foot tiger shark has shown aggressive behavior. Shark incidents happens all around the world and surfers accept to take that risk every time they go into the ocean. There are plenty of measures that can be taken to reduce the risk, and surIing the same spot where a shark attack just happened is not one of them! This year, the Maui Pro Iinals will actually be held on a surf spot on Oahu as a safety measure.
Do not let this incident alarm you! Surfing in Maui is not as dangerous as it seems. This type of tragedy is very rare and something you do not need to be worried about.
On a brighter note, the surf breaks in front of Belle Surf Cafe are very safe! Our favorite spot ‘BreakWall’, offers ideal conditions for every level. The reason that this spot is so safe, is because the water is clear, waves are soft, and it’s shallow. This is not the type of environment where the tiger sharks like to roam.
When you are visiting Maui, make sure to go watch the Maui Pro at Honolua Bay! The contest happens every year at the beginning of December, and if you cannot make it in time, do not worry, the locals surfers are extremely talented and will keep you entertained! After that, if you feel brave enough to confront the waves, come take a surf lesson in Lahaina! We will make you some Bulletproof Coffee to pump you up, and some good brunch to recover. Here are some basic tips & tricks with the ocean to help make your visit to Maui safe:
- Do not swim or surf in murky/brown ocean.
- Avoid swimming far from shore, or in very deep areas.
- Avoid swimming or surfing at dawn or dusk.
- The buddy system! Always be accompanied by a friend or relative when exploring the ocean.
The Bulletproof Coffee phenomenon was born. It has been making a big move in the coffee world lately, but what exactly is it?
In Hawaii you wake up early, 5:30am. The rooster is your alarm clock and it means real life has started, the island life.