Going To Get Lei-d

[Peeps]

Since others are asking for vacation advice, I thought I'd throw out a similar query. I just got an unbelievable deal on airfare to Maui and I've never been there. I've started looking into hotels and it seems like all the nice chain hotels (Hilton, Westin, etc.) are $300 a night at least which is way out of my price range but I'm afraid if I go with a no name it will be a dumpy little motel or something. Also, when I looked at a map I couldn't believe how big the island is! I had no idea there was a West Shore, North Shore, etc. So any tips from any of you that have been there would be appreciated - places to stay, must see places to visit, etc. Thanks!

[charlie]

Cool! Spent my honeymoon in Hawaii although not on Maui...Anyway, here is a link for you to look at:
http://www.alternative-hawaii.com/accomg.htm

[WeekendCook]

We went to Maui for our honeymoon too and liked it so much that we decided we would go every five years. This is the year! Our fifth anniversary is in October.

Hawaii is quite pricey ($8 for a box of cereal?) but we loved it. You may want to check around. Many of the hotels offer a "fifth night free". We are staying at the Kea Lani resort, and although in the $300/night range, the fifth night is "free" and our stay includes a rental car. We did not rent a car the first time we were there, just relied on cabs. We want to be a little more adventurous this time, so thought the car rental was a decent deal.

[Jewel]

Hi Peeps! I'm getting lei-d myself two weeks from tomorrow! We're using frequent flyer miles to go to Maui, so I guess you could call that a heck of a deal too! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif I looked at hotels myself, and I couldn't believe the prices. I started looking at vacation properties. We're staying in a Studio Condo at the Valley Isle Resorts in Kahana, which is 5 miles north of Lehaina (sp?). Our condo has a Queen size Murphy Bed that comes out of the wall, a kitchen and bath, and a lenai on the 6th floor that looks over the Pacific! Our condo is $79 per night. In fact, here's the link to our actual place!
http://www.musicgrinder.com/pip/

The Valley Isle Resorts is a former hotel built in the 1970's, and they decided to sell the rooms as condos, according to the couple that I'm renting the condo from. We're staying 6 nights for $527 including the 11% resort tax! Here's the link for the Valley Isle:
http://www.valleyisleresort.com/

Each condo is individually owned and rented, so the above site will let you select studio, one bedroom, etc then show you photos of each one and how to get ahold of the owner to inquire about price and availability. I set mine up about 2 months ago, and it's already paid for! The first site is the 'personal' web page for the couple that I'm renting the condo from, the second site is the resort itself. It's old, and it's not swanky, but it's clean, its well-maintained, and it's on a SWIMMABLE beach. Many friends told me to inquire about that, to make sure that the hotel or the condo is on a swimmable beach, not just a beach. Many beaches there are coral right up to the sand and you can't swim there.

One of the things we love about the condo is that we won't have to eat out every single meal. DH and I like bagels for breakfast, and with a kitchen we'll be able to head to the grocery, buy coffee, bagels, lunch stuff, munchies...we'll be able to do a lot of the little meals on our own out on the lenai! Beats eating out 3 meals per day for a week!

When are you going? We're leaving Saturday July 7 and returning on Saturday July 14. Let us know what you find! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif



[This message has been edited by Jewel (edited 06-22-2001).]

[BosunsWife]

Jewel, you might prefer to eat out when you see the price of groceries here LOL! Have a great time everyone.

[Jewel]

Originally posted by BosunsWife:
Jewel, you might prefer to eat out when you see the price of groceries here LOL! Have a great time everyone.

We've heard that already! DH is already packing his cereal (he's a junkie) into zippie bags to take in his carry-on! We're taking our coffee the same way, along with a few other essentials that we know would be pricey there, and that won't be too perishable on the flight over. Good friends of ours spent four years in Honolulu and they already cautioned us on the expense factor!! Thanks for the reminder! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[Gail]

Hi, Peeps!

First off, if you check the archives, you'll find some old information on Maui, so I'm not going to rehash that.

Basically, most folks seem to stay in West Maui and the Kaanapali area and its environs seem to be the most popular (Lahaina, Kahana, Napili, Kapalua) Although I personally found the Kihei area a bit too windy (a bit south) I know a lot of people who are very fond of it. The west side of the island is the hotter, dryer side; the east side the lusher, greener side with places such as Hana giving you more of an "old Hawaii" kind of feel. (It's also a long winding drive from most anyplace.)

Due to the growing population of this island, there are loads of places to stay, both condos and hotels. If the the price tags of the major chains tend to put you off, I have a few suggestions: (1) Whenever inquiring about rates, ask about packages. Often these are available, but the hotels won't tell you about them unless you know to ask. (2) Have a travel agent find you a deal through a wholesaler-- Pleasant Hawaiian Holidays and Hawaii World come to mind, but I know there are many others which offer signifant discounts on the basic room rates, based upon group allotments and volume. Pleasant Hawaiian, by the way, will also book directly with the client-- so you can phone for a brochure (they also have a web site) and do all the booking yourself, if you like. (3) Check with the airlines for packages. You may find some good room rates or car/hotel packages. (or car/condo packages.) (4) Check the web for condos (maybe the site Charlie gave does that.)
(5) Consult a travel agent. A good one should have all sorts of options and information on both condos and hotels.

Good luck!

[funnybone]

We are going to Waikiki in August, but we were in Maui in 1986 for our honeymoon. We stayed at the Aston Kaanapali shores - it's a condo hotel. We even had a washer and dryer in the room! We didn't cook we ate out, but only one place is memorable - and that is Longhi's in Lahaina. Check out their website www.longhi-maui.com (http://www.longhi-maui.com) - it was a great place. I really wanted to go there this time, but with 2 kids, we had to choose one island, and Oahu it is. Enjoy your trip!!!

Note: I made a correction to the website address

[This message has been edited by funnybone (edited 06-22-2001).]

[This message has been edited by funnybone (edited 06-22-2001).]

[Peeps]

Thanks so much for all the advice, this is all helpful stuff. Jewel - you will report back once you return right and let us know how it was?

[Jewel]

Originally posted by Peeps:
Thanks so much for all the advice, this is all helpful stuff. Jewel - you will report back once you return right and let us know how it was?

You betcha! You won't be able to miss me. I'll be the one typing with the tan! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif