I’ve put together my own property map of the Honua Kai since I could not find one.  Hope this helps you visualize the resort.

Hokulani Tower

Konea Tower

#11 out of 30 resorts in north Maui.

Out of all the big resorts on Ka’anapali beach the Hyatt is the nicest – for two people.  If you have a family of 4 just forget this resort.  Built in 1980 it doesn’t show its age yet; it’s only 31 years old.

The resort is first class and the rooms are very nice – for a hotel room.  If you stay at the Hyatt don’t bother buying any groceries – there is NO kitchen at all – not even a $75 microwave, not a hot plate, not a refrigerator, not a stove, not a dishwasher, not even plates, knives, forks, and glasses.

The Hyatt rooms average 320 sq ft versus the Honua Kai’s studio of 583 st ft and a 1-bedroom of 700 sq ft.

Rates:

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You might ask why the rates at the Honua Kai are so low compared to smaller hotel rooms – Honua Kai is just 2 years old and at some point Honua Kai will cost more than any other in North Maui.  So enjoy the cheap rates while they last!

Hyatt Maui Regency

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You can’t vacation in Maui without a rental car – period!

When you look up the fantastic Ambassador Club rates for Honua Kai you will see a duplicate quote that includes a rental car.  I’ve subtracted out the rental car cost and compared that rate to the best rate you can find for rental car – that is from Cos*Co – well the Ambassador Club rate is within pennies of that rate – certainly not worth your time messing around with other car rental websites.

You can take SpeediShuttle from the Kahului airport (OGG) and the cost is $69.59 for 2 people round trip to the Honua Kai and $75.67 for 4 people –  but then what?  You will find cabs few and far between on Maui and a few cab rides to restaurants will make just renting a car for a week in Maui enjoyable.  When you end your vacation and must head back to the airport, you don’t want to know what happens if the SpeediShuttle is late delivering you to the airport – talk about scary stuff.

So I recommend that you include your rental car in your Ambassador Club reservation – you need the rental car and you can’t get cheaper rates.

But that’s up to you….

Ranked #21 out of 30 hotels in north Maui; this is in the bottom third of all the hotels in north Maui – you can do better.

380 sq ft versus 583 sq ft for a Honua Kai studio and 700 sq ft for a 1 bedroom.

Built in 1969 this 42 year old 758 room monster is your typical hotel on the beach – the grounds are very nice and the location is close to Whaler’s village but the prices are eye watering for what you get.  This monster was set up for huge conventions – hundreds of folks.  They have a Luau just about every night and you’ll get used to the music and a few hundred more folks flooding in each night.

This place is so huge that they have guided tours for vacationers just to explain what is on the grounds.

Rates:

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The Hokulani Tower (HT) was the first tower built and opened in January of 2009.  It’s the first tower you encounter when you enter the resort.  Although it’s one year older than Konea, the second tower, you won’t see any difference in the condition of the tower or rooms compared to Konea.

Like most things in life there are pluses and minuses to both towers.  I will be honest with you since it’s your vacation.

Pluses

Closest tower to main entrance

Contains the main front desk

Has the Kiki club (kids club)

Aina Gourmet Market in lobby

Dukes 5-star restaurant just steps away

Main swimming pool on property

Honua Kai offices located in tower

Business center

Cons

Mountain views include parking lots

Main fitness center in Konea tower

Recommendations

If you don’t want a mountain view or care about the main fitness center being in another tower then the Hokulani tower is for you.  Be close to all the action, at Honua Kai, by staying in this tower.

Honua Kai Resort & Spa – Hokulani Tower

#16 out of 30 hotels in North Maui; this is the lower half of the resorts of north Maui.

The Sheraton was the first resort in North Maui and was built in 1962 – before disco.  At 50 years old  the resort has seen it’s prime days and no amount of patching and painting is going to make it look modern.  I’m sure it was a fantastic resort years ago but when you read the reviews the phrase “tired” shows up all the time.  The Sheraton just looks tired; both inside and out.

I have seen a typical Sheraton room within the past few months and I concur – the resort has seen better days.

The typical Sheraton room is 340 sq ft – smaller than the size of your garage; the Honua Kai Studio villa is 583 sq ft and the 1-bedroom is 700 sq ft – double the size of the Sheraton.

Trust me, you can do much better for a fraction of their rent.

Rate Chart:

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Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa

Stuff happens all the time – you may have to change your plans to visit Maui and cancel or move your reservation at the Honua Kai.  Luckily Honua Kai has a very liberal cancellation policy; here it is:

2-Day deposit:

At the time of making your reservation, you must pay for two days rent, plus taxes, and the rest is paid when you check-out.  So your credit card is charged for 2 days rent, plus tax, the instant you make the reservation and the remaining days are charged when you check-out.

7-Days before check-in:

This is the last day you can cancel your reservation and get back ALL your money you put up – those 2 days you paid for.  If you need to cancel your reservation 7 or fewer days before check-in or you just don’t show up, you lose the 2-day deposit.  Remember this fact!

Most of the big travel agents use Honua Kai’s cancellation policy as their own.  Orbitz, however, is totally insane and offers NO refund if you need to cancel your reservation – they charge 100% up front at the time you make the reservation and that money is theirs no matter what happens in your life.  Who the heck uses these clowns?

Cancellation policy at the Honua Kai Resort & Spa

The Whaler is #18 out of 30 hotels/condos in North Maui.

The Whaler’s 360 condos, were built in 1976 at the start of the crazy building spree on Maui.  Each condo is individually owned or is owned by one of several timeshare organizations that bought up condos when the building boom of the mid 70′s died out.  Each owner can remodel their condo anyway they want and when you rent a Whaler you get pot luck as to how old the furnishings are and how good the taste of the owner is.

The ONLY things going for the Whaler are cheap prices and being next door to Whaler’s Village – beyond that this tired old condo complex looks sad and the pool area is a practical joke.  There are many old-timers, especially folks from Canada, that love this resort and come back year after year – well until they stumble on the Honua Kai and then they happily abandon the old place.

I found a bunch of pictures of the resort and inside that follow – you compare what you see to the #1 resort on Maui, The Honua Kai, and see if the small amount of money you save at The Whaler is really worth it.

Current Prices:

(There is renovation taking place at The Whaler – construction crews busy renovating so prices are lower than ever)

The following price quotes contain EVERYTHING – resort fees and all taxes except Transient Accommodations Tax which you pay as you check out – applies only to timeshares.

1 Bedroom with either 1 or two bathrooms:

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The Whaler on Ka’anapali Beach

#9 out of 30 hotels in Ka’anapali

The Westin Villas is a timeshare complex right next to the Honua Kai.  Many timeshare owners rent at the Honua Kai when they need to add days/week(s) before or after their timeshare week(s).  Additionally, many family and friends want to travel with the timeshare owners and rent at Honua Kai.

The resort is fantastic and the buildings look similar to Honua Kai.  Inside they are just as nice as Honua Kai.  Some of the buildings were constructed in 2003 but they have been kept up very well.

The problem is availability – in order to rent at the Westin Villas a timeshare owner must turn in their week to be rented and 85% of the owner at the timeshare complex come back year after year – this makes rental inventory very scarce.

A few years ago Westin was selling New Years week (Week 52) for $150,000 and you had to buy it with another week.  They had a combo package for Christmas and New Years for about $250,000 – just to own those two weeks!  The maintenance fees are astronomical in Maui for timeshare owners since Maui socks it to them since they are land owners but hardly ever there to vote against the insane taxes imposed on timeshares.

Rates:

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Westin Ka’anapali Ocean Resort Villas

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Honua Kai charges a $25 resort fee per day per villa – period!

No matter what you read or whoever tells you, the Honua Kai resort fee is just $25/day per villa.  I know you will read otherwise but that’s the current policy.  Originally it was way more complex and Honua Kai just made it very simple – $25/day/villa.

Here’s what you get for $25/day/villa:

• Underground parking which costs $10/day/car for renters
• Daily Tidy-maid service
• Wi-Fi around the resort – even at the pool
• Pool towels

EVERY resort in Maui charges a resort fee now – everyone of them; they are ALL $25/day.

Who likes to pay additional fees?  Not me; but someone has to and the resorts, around the country, have decided to break out the hidden fees, from the daily rental rates, and make it just one fee – the daily Resort Fee.

You have to be VERY careful when you compare and compute rental rates to include this into the daily rate – many rental agencies never bring up the topic and add it secretly at the end.

I can tell you that lots of folks get this wrong, so I wanted you to know the truth.

Tidy Maid Service

Included in the Resort Fee is a daily tidy maid service – just what is it?  Well, the maids come in your villa once a day, for about 5-minutes, and do the following:

• Exchange towels that you leave on the bathroom floor or in the tub for new ones
• Empty the trash
• Make the bed(s) – no new linens just make the bed

That’s it folks – nothing more or less – takes them just 5 minutes.

They don’t vacuum the rugs or load the dishwasher or do the laundry or change the bedsheets or sweep the lanai or clean the mirrors or clean the stove – just the items listed above.

If you want more maid service you can call the front desk and they will quote you rates for more service.

Honua Kai is a condo-hotel and most of them don’t have heavy duty daily maid service – the villa is just too large to do any kind of cleaning in 5 minutes.

Honua Kai Resort & Spa Resort Fees