West side Maui hotels, in order of my
preference:
Hyatt Regency (808) 661-1234
This is my favorite place to stay and the best hotel on Kaanapali Beach (my
favorite area). The Hyatt Regency Maui has beautifully landscaped grounds.
There’s lots of fabulous art in the lobbies, waterfalls and a waterslide in
the pools, a rope bridge, children’s play pool, great daily buffet breakfast
and more. There are even live flamingos, parrots, crowned cranes, and
penguins (yes, penguins!) on the grounds. Opened in 1980. 815 rooms.
For photos and more information, click on this link:
Hyatt Maui
Westin (808) 667-2525
The Westin is the second-largest hotel on the west side (761 rooms) and is
right in the middle of Kaanapali Beach. It has beautiful landscaping like
the Hyatt and even more elaborate pools. Rooms are smaller than at the
Hyatt or Sheraton. Rooms in the older of the two buildings have no closet
(only an armoire), so ask for a room in the newer building, called the Beach
Tower building. (This was the Maui Surf hotel until it was rebuilt and
reopened and that newer tower added by Westin in 1987.) Note: this is NOT
the same place as the Westin Kaanapali Ocean Resort Villas, which is a new
timeshare at a different Maui location. For photos
and more information, click on this link:
Westin
Maui
Marriott (808) 667-1200
Marriott converted this hotel all into timeshares, and
they are now constructing two more timeshare buildings on the grounds. The
pools are fabulous since their elaborate renovations in 2001. I recommend
AGAINST buying a timeshare, but if you can stay here as a hotel guest it’s a
good location. Opened in 1982. 312 rooms. (Don’t confuse this Kaanapali
Marriott with the Wailea Marriott, formerly the Wailea Outrigger.)
For photos and more information, click on this link:
Marriott's Maui Ocean
Club
Sheraton (808) 661-0031
The newest hotel on Kaanapali Beach, the Sheraton was completely rebuilt in
1996. It has the a great location, right at Black Rock. It’s more quiet
than the other Kaanapali hotels, but has less elaborate pools and so is less
fun for kids than the Hyatt and Westin. The Sheraton also tacks on extra
charges, like a resort fee, more expensive parking than the other Maui
hotels, and a steep charge if you need to add a rollaway bed in your room.
Some of the lanais are very small and don’t have space for more than one
chair. Some of the rooms & bathrooms are small, and some rooms have only an
armoire instead of a closet. 510 rooms. For
photos and more information, click on this link:
Sheraton Maui Resort
Kaanapali Beach Hotel (808) 661-0011
This bargain hotel is in the same great location as the Sheraton, right on
Kaanapali Beach near Black Rock, but about half the price of the Sheraton
because it’s much older (built in 1964). The pools are not big and fancy
like the four hotels listed above, but the Kaanapali Beach Hotel has a
well-deserved reputation for wonderful friendly service. It has the most
Hawaiian atmosphere and décor of any Maui hotel and even puts on a free hula
show every evening. 430 rooms. For photos and
more information, click on this link:
Kaanapali Beach
Hotel
Royal Lahaina (808) 661-3611
Built in 1962, the Royal Lahaina is the oldest
major hotel on this side of Maui. It had gotten
somewhat run down until its recent renovation. All of the rooms in the
12-story main building were completely redone in 2006, and now they are
beautiful.
The other smaller surrounding buildings are still in bad shape, but they
will be completely replaced over the next three years. Extensive new
pools and landscaping will also be built by about 2010. 540 rooms
before remodel, to be less after renovations completed. For photos and
more information, click on this link:
Royal Lahaina Resort
Kaanapali Beach Club (formerly
Embassy Vacation Resort) (808) 661-2000
This was formerly the Embassy Suites, but has converted
to timeshares. It’s a couple miles north of Kaanapali, so not
right in the main resort area, and not as big a beach as the
Hyatt-Marriott-Westin-Sheraton area. Opened in
1988. 413 rooms. For photos and more
information, click on this link:
Kaanapali Beach Club
Ritz Carlton (808) 669-6200
Some people are going to disagree with me putting the Ritz so low on my West
Maui hotels list. It certainly is a quiet, elegant, luxury hotel with
excellent service. But it’s a few miles north of Kaanapali, not on a beach,
and more likely to be cloudy or windy or get some rain. There’s also not
much for children to do in the Kapalua area. Opened in 1992,
extensively remodeled in 2007. 463 rooms.
For photos and more information, click on this link:
Ritz Carlton Kapalua
Kapalua Bay Hotel (808) 669-5656
Closed in April of 2006.
