I had occasion to stay at a few hotels and condos in Maui before I found a cottage (ohana) to stay on Mahinahina Street in western Maui. It’s funny, but the best hotels in Maui are condos, not hotels at all.

There are a couple beautiful hotels at the far southern end of Kihei that were gorgeous, and I never stayed there but did meet up with some friends there once. One of them I liked a lot – was the Four Seasons Maui at Wailea. Another awesome hotel was the Renaissance Wailea Beach Resort.

Personally my favorite places to stay in Maui were not hotels at all -they were condominiums managed by a property management firm.

Classic Resorts is one such management firm that runs the “Ka’anapali Ali’i” on the western side of the island at Kaanapali beach (Ka’anapali is the accepted spelling). I really enjoyed the few nights I stayed at the Ali’i and, though the beach was virtually gone because of some bad waves that side of the island took that year. There is a large swimming area that is free of coral that is perfect for families with children. The beach wasn’t a factor so much because we were only in the water for a short time – preferring to spend our time out and about, eating at great restaurants, and shopping at the small complex in Ka’anapali.