Kihei or Kahana? Ever heard of these condos?
 

Not sure which area to stay at or what condo complex. Village by the Sea in Kihei or Kahana Reef in Kahana

As per Maui Revealed, Village by the Sea is along a stretch of ocean they mark as "don't swim along here" because of nasty runoff from a discharge ditch that runs through the center of Kalama Park, causing algae blooms and a nasty smell. We stayed at the Kihei Surfside, which is really more like Wailea, at awesome Keawakapu Beach. It was a wonderful condo, on the rocky shore overlooking a huge green lawn and the water, at $125/nt for a very clean and bright one bedroom, and all the units have lanais facing the water. I don't think you could do much better for this area, away from Kihei's strip mall hustle and bustle but without Wailea's prices. Check out my trip report from last July, there's lots of info on the condo and the area... http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34436140

Let me know if you have any questions about the condo or different areas of Maui!

love
roxy

Stayed behind the quiet ocean front Kahana Reef condos in the Kahana Villa condo's in 2001 in a Maui <b>Un</b>Revealed and <b>de</b>Fodorized state. There is not much in the way of sandy beach in the area. We drove north to Kapalua Bay for snorkeling. We now prefer the Wailea area. Only reason I can think of to stay in Kahana Reef is for the whale watching season (Nov.-March):S-

Kahana. Much quieter than Kihei. Kihei has all the McDonalds/Tony Roma's type restaurants. Kehei has The Fish and game/Roy's type restaurants. Kehei has night life (Hapa's) Kahana has self entertainment. Kahana-small beach. Kihei-lots to choose from.

Hope this helps.

Jon

We stayed at Kahana Reef a few years back. It was recommend to me by a client was turned out to be fine. A reasonable property price-wise, centrally located; one bedroom apartment with balconies and views of the sunset. No huge pool, adjacent to a beach. If you're looking for a lively place with lots of hard bodies, this ins't it. They asked to keep the place quiet after about 10pm - a lot of longer term rentals. However, our plan was to just sleep there and have breakfast with a couple of dinners. We had a car and did all the sightseeing, beach hopping, nightlife on Kaanapali that we wanted and then crashed. It was a great place for us. And, at just over $100/night, the price was great. I'm sure its most expensive now, but still a good value. Also stayed a the Prince in Makena - south of Kihei - its also very quiet and a bit farther to either Lahaina or Kaanapali.

We stayed at Village by the Sea last month in a two bedroom unit and loved it. We rented from the owner off vrbo.com and paid $105 per night for this oceanfront unit. The view was amazing and the pool and hot tub were nicely maintained. The ocean in front of the complex doesn't have a sandy beach, but it was just fine for walking and getting your feet wet. We saw lots of whales spouting from our balcony, and thought the complex was pretty central to all we wanted to do. It was about 30 minutes to Lahaina and 10-15 minutes to Wailea. We found lots of great restaurants just down the road in Kalama Village. Have a great time!

sounds like either would work!