Tiff

On my quest to replace our favorite Maui accommodations (Renaissance Wailea) I will give you our wish list and let you assist as much as you can. We have always gone with a resort but I don't know, perhaps a condo may be in order???

(Travel to take place Jan. 2007)

The Wish List:

~Quiet, peaceful, private

~Pool

~Daily maid service (this directed more towards if we go the condo route)

~OceanFRONT

~Clean, well kept

~Under $500 a night if possible (obviously the more we can save here the better)

~Beach chairs provided, the ones that are canopied are even better.

After MUCH reading of posts here, if we go the condo route, Maui Kai sounds the most promising to us, but I could be missing some.

We were looking at Napili Sunset until we read reviews about local teenagers having their 'party spot' nearby keeping guests up every night, yikes.

That has always been one of our concerns about condos, in a hotel you have alot more security and if the 'riff raff' starts up you can call someone and it's handled... has anyone had good luck with condos and security issues.

Regarding hotels, none that I have read about really have rooms that are right by the water like the condos do. Ocean views yes, oceanfront, no.

Any suggestions from anyone?
Heavens at this point I could even be talked into going to another island, as long as it peaceful and relaxing, I can hear the waves now...
Mahalo, Tiff

GoTravel

Tiff, I can't give you specific advice but just wanted to tell you that the trend in hotels these days are Condotels.

They are condo buildings that are run exactly like hotels. Check in and check out at front desk inside the hotel, daily maid service, on site restaurants and even room service.

Don't feel you have to sacrifice service for amenities!

Tiff

Great GoTravel thanks!
I was coming back to add two more things to our wish list and here you posted already, thanks!

~A/C

~a beach vs. hotel/condo high up on a cliff, etc.

GoTravel

Glad I could help.

Basically a devoloper builds a building and individuals buy the condos and agree to only use them privately a certain amount of time a year.

The onsite Property Management Company (Trump's Sonesta Beach Resort in Sunny Isles Miami Beach is a classic example; Sonesta Beach Resort is the Property Management Company) comes in and rents out the individual condos but does it as if they were hotel rooms.

Everyone is a winner. The hotel doesn't foot the bill to build the entire building, the homeowner gets part of the mortgage, all of the taxes, all the upkeep and all utilities covered, and the guest gets the benefits of a full condo in a resort setting with full hotel amenities.

Sorry for highjacking your thread.

Sherri

Makena Surf hits all items on your wish list. Private/gated lowrise condos on a beautiful part of Maui. Quiet and peaceful as well. I like the E or F buildings. The Maui Kai is a bigger complex that doesn't really compare, but this is just my opinion. The price for a one-bedroom may be around $500/night, but well worth it.

cmcfong

Tiff, I was just getting ready to wish you "Ciao" and here you are planning a Maui trip! You sure are the travel queen.
When I was in Maui in May I stayed at Puamana Estates. It is an old plantation estate with a gorgeous clubhouse in the old style as a centerpiece. The units are not high rise, no more than two stories. The grounds are lush and beautiful, lovely mango and frangipani trees everywhere. The grounds are super well maintained. There is no immediate beach access although the property is waterfront. It is simply too rocky. There are three pools, one adult only which is lovely. There is a state park with a splendid beach immediately next to Puamana. On the other side of Puamana is Lahaina, instead of driving into town we just walked. No parking hassles and no problems. Each unit has a carport, all are airconditioned with full kitchens. Ours had a loft with three beds, a large king bedroom, two baths, a patio off both the living room and the king bedroom and a washer dryer. OUr unit was very clean and nicely decorated. Although we were very close to the street side (Puamana is a gated community) we had no noise issues. It was so lovely in the evening to take a bottle of wine and sit watching the sunset over the other islands. It was a very nice place to stay. Quiet, clean, lovely. Our unit was around $200 a day, which left plenty over to splurge on food, etc, etc.

cmcfong

Tiff, a friend of mine gave me a tiny alarm clock (purchased at Sharper Image)which has two leaves. One side is the clock, the ring is a "sound" you choose to record. I picked the sound of one of my dogs barking. On the other side is a photo of said dog. Since you and DH will be traveling so often I thought you might like to take a bit of Sophie with you!

Tiff

Good morning cmcfong ~ Hi doll and thanks for your "Ciao" wishes, hee. I will check out Puamana Estates. (And BTW whenever we can travel in October, we are so excited about The Reefs in Bermuda, ironically it is the sister hotel to Nisbet, which is what we want our next Carib trip to be. So now we have bermuda figured out and the Carib, ha ha.) Yes, we do travel alot. We wish we had a little one to keep us home, hopefully that blessing will come! But if not, there is always travel and we have SO loved your suggestions and advice, we have similar travel tastes I believe.

Hi Sherri ~ I looked at the Makena Surf website, it looks beautiful, very upscale. Wish it wasn't up on the rocks, but it would be a beautiful place to stay. I think ANYONE would be happy there! Thanks for the suggestion.

cmcfong

Good morning, Tiff, I thought it might be about time for your morning tea with Sophie. Nisbet has been on my target list for the longest time. I look forward to your trip report.
I pray in time you and DH will be blessed with all you want.

Sherri

Tiff: Just to clarify, Makena Surf does have a small outcropping of rocks in front of a grassy area, but it has a lovely beach right in front which is used for weddings quite alot (when we were there last summer, we saw 2-3 ceremonies on the beach right below our lanai (the E bldg is our favorite). Also, the MS sits very close to the ocean which is fantastic. The views from this resort are truly beautiful. We like the MS because it sits right on the water, is private and quiet and the condos are really comfortable. Whichever resort that you chose, have a great time. We are returning to MS in July and I can hardly wait!

cmcfong

I must say Makena Surf looks lovely. Looks like Tiff will have an abundance of choices.

Tiff

cmcfong ~ yes, I think you are right, I think we will have some good choices. Honey, you may make to Nisbet before us, LOL, I may be reading YOUR trip report, hee. Nisbet probably won't be until 2008, I am so pathetic with my planning. The way I look at it is know where you would want to go and before you know it, you're there! Every trip I have ever researched, we eventually take, so I am sticking with my plan, HA.
p.s. I LOVE the tiny alarm clock idea, actually for us and as a gift for a friend that I know would love it too, thx! (you must have known I was already missing my Soph and we aren't even in bella Italia yet!)

Sherri ~ Thanks for the clarification on the cliff/beach thing. I am glad you let us know because the picture I saw only appeared to show the cliff, so I appreciate the info! cmcfong is right, it looks like we will have some good choices. Thx again.

Tiff

p.s.s. cmc, thanks for your sweet wishes at the end of your post there.