Sit on the Left side of the plane for the best views on flights from New York to Kahului. Left side wins both ends of the flight. Over the continent you get the Great Basin, Sierra Nevada range, and California's Central Valley in the middle portion of the flight, all better framed from the left on a westbound track. Left side is the clear choice for the full journey.

During takeoff from John F Kennedy International (JFK), sit on the Left side for the best views. JFK typically departs east on runway 13R/31L or uses the 22L configuration heading southwest. Climbing out to the west or northwest, the left side gets Manhattan's skyline, the Hudson River, and New Jersey. The right side faces the Atlantic Ocean and Jamaica Bay, which is less dramatic. Notable sights include: Manhattan skyline, Hudson River, Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, Jamaica Bay.

When landing at Kahului (OGG), sit on the Left side for the best views. OGG's primary approach is runway 02, arriving from the south heading north, or runway 20 heading south. On the common runway 02 approach from the south, the left side faces east toward Haleakala volcano's massive shield summit rising to 10,023 feet, which dominates the eastern Maui skyline. The right side looks west toward the ocean and the smaller West Maui Mountains. Notable sights include: Haleakala volcano summit, West Maui Mountains, Maui isthmus, Kahului Bay.

The flight from John F Kennedy International (JFK) to Kahului (OGG) takes Approximately 10 to 11 hours.

The flight tracks roughly along 40N then curves southwest toward Hawaii. Notable features include the Appalachian ridgelines over Pennsylvania, the flat Great Plains of Kansas and Nebraska, the Rocky Mountains over Utah and Nevada visible as snow-capped ranges, the Sierra Nevada along the California-Nevada border, then the vast open Pacific Ocean for roughly 2,400 miles with no land until the Hawaiian Islands appear on the horizon.