Jimsinger

Would appreciate input from experienced Fodorites with regard to preferred accomodations for a 30th anniversay in Feb 04. Looking at Four Seasons and Ritz. Understand that FS location may have better weather; yet others say that Kannapali Beach is the best which I beleive is where Ritz is located. Insights would be appreciated. Also reco for best restaurant for a 30th anniversay dinner. Thanks.

srj9920

Let me begin by saying that I have not stayed at either of these hotels. However, I am just back from a stay at the Kea Lani, which is next to the Four Seasons. In my opinion the Four Seasons is a better location because it is more centrally located, i.e. very short walk to Shops at Wailea, closer to Haleakala, Hana, airport, etc. Plus, the southern location does supposedly get less rain. We walked by this property many times and it looked great.

The Ritz is not on Kaanapali beach. It is farther north in Kapalua. I would have felt more isolated here, but if that's what you want, it looks like a great hotel.

As for recommendations for a great restaurant, my suggestion would be Sarento's on the Beach in Kihei (just north of Wailea). My husband and I ate there on the last night of our trip and it was incredible. The food was great, as was the service. Plus, the restaurant is right on the water, so there are great views. Have a great time!

travleis

The Ritz is not on Kaanapali Beach.
The beach at the Ritz is small and not too swim-friendly.

beachgirl

When we were in Maui, my husband and I visited all of the big hotels: the Four Seasons, the Ritz and the Grand Wailea. We stayed in Kaanapali, though, and although the Kapalua and Wailea areas are nice, we preferred Kaanapali and definitely felt that it had the best beach, even if it didn't have the best resorts. There are some very nice hotels on Kaanapali, although not on that scale. We prefer a nicer beach, so we were glad that we ended up choosing the Kaanapali area. Kaanapali is also just a livelier area, too, which we liked. For the dinner, I would suggest Roy's.

flowergirl

My husband and I just returned in May from 7 nite stay at Four Seasons for our 10th anniversary. We are 46 yrs old,love to explore,relax, 5-star service,food,accommodations, etc. We loved the 4-S hotel. We always stay at Four Seasons on the mainland (they take pets) and we both agreed that this property was our favorite, for all the amenities, restaurant choices, pool, beach, beach walk-way,even, shopping! I had the concierge book us at all of our restaurant choices ahead of time, after reading comments from this travel site! We ate at Four S. Pacific Grill, Spago's and Ferraro's...all outstanding. We saved Ferraro's for last nite there:they seat you practically on the beach (but not really)so the view and sunset was unforgettable. The sky changed colors so fast, it was incredible. We ate at Roy's..but it was the least "special" because the ambiance is very casual, dinner is hurried,and building is in the corning of a mall parking lot.Not plush inside AT ALL.We have visited 2 other Roy's locations (Pebble Beach and Dallas)and both were beautiful, as well as great food. So, food was good, but I felt like I was in a diner. Our favorite "piece de resistance" was: Mama's Fish House near Paia. We ate lunch there twice and dinner once. This restaurant has it all: a quintessentially Hawaiian menu, service, decor, ambiance, drinks and the LOCATION! It is on a private cove of pristine white sand, blue water, white waves, windsurfers, palm trees. It is a 25 min drive from Wailea, but no problem. Worth it. We let Spago's be our "anniversary night". It was great but Mama's has the best food, bar none, in our opinion. We also ate at Nick's Fish House at Kea Lani next door. It was fine, but we would not go back.
Hope this helps. Congratulations on 30 years!

randy38943

DEAR JIMSINGER , CONGRATS ON YOUR ANNIVERSARY . WHEN ME AND MY GIRLFRIEND WENT TO MAUI WE GOT SOME INCREDIBLE DEALS ON FOOD AND LODGING . WE MET A VAGRANT AT THE AIRPORT NAMED ,... IPOOPONYOU AND HE LET US STAY IN HIS VAN FOR 10 DOLLARS FOR THE ENTIRE WEEK ( WHAT A BARGAIN ) . WE ALSO FOUND TWO BARELY EATEN SANDWICHES , WHICH MADE THE TRIP EVEN MORE OF A STEAL . WE FOUND THE PEOPLE OF HAWAII TO BE SO FRIENDLY , BUT I MUST WARN YOU, THEY DON'T TAKE WARMLY TO PUBLIC URINATION , ESPECIALLY ON PLANTS, WILDLIFE, IN POOLS, THE OCEAN, VOLCANOES OR *** ESPECIALLY ON LOCALS***. SO BE CAREFULL . I WOULD RECOMMEND RENTING A CAR . WE ATTEMPTED TO TRAVEL THE ISLAND BY UNICYCLE AND FOUND IT QUITE DIFFICULT . AS FAR AS ENTERTAINMENT, WE MET A GROUP OF ELDERLY PEOPLE WHO WERE WONDERFUL DANCERS ( NOT TOPLESS THOUGH ) WHO KEPT US BUSY ON THOSE WARM HAWIIAN NIGHTS . I HOPE OUR TIPS WILL BE HELPFUL AND WE WISH YOU ALL THE BEST...RANDY.