# Kahana Falls vs Maui Schooner



## Carlsbadguy (Aug 17, 2012)

Have a possibility of a trade into a 1 bedroom at either of these resorts.  Any suggestions as to which resort is better.


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## daventrina (Aug 17, 2012)

Almost apples and oranges.
Depends on many things.
Kahana vs Kihei
Across the street from the water vs on the water
isolated vs centrally located

First trip vs return visit.
For us ... we'd probably pick Kahana Falls...
It's across the street from a nice beach near Lahaina


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## Kona Lovers (Aug 17, 2012)

We own at KF, and prefer the relative isolation out past Lahaina.  Kihei, though, is a happening place that many others prefer.  

As Daventrina said, it's apples and oranges and all in what one wants.

One thing where you can't go wrong either place are the Maui sunsets! (Below is sunset from Kahana Beach) 

Aloha!

Marty


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## Icc5 (Aug 17, 2012)

*Falls*

Haven't stayed at Kahana Falls in aprox. 7 years but when we did we stayed there 2 years in a row and loved it.  Feels much more upscale.  That part of the island itself seems more upscale with higher end restaurants compared to Schooner which is near a lot more affordable places to eat.
I also can't say I cared for the unit we had at the Maui Schooner because it was a two bedroom loft (room to open).
Bart


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## stevelb (Aug 17, 2012)

Would pick KF over MS.  MS not really in a nice area.  KF much better location.  Quality of the resorts about equal.


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## california-bighorn (Aug 17, 2012)

We have stayed at both recently and pretty much agree both resorts are nice and it may come down to what part of the Island you prefer.  One thing you may want to check on is what building the Kahana Falls unit is in.  We were assigned a room in an older building (Hale Kipa?) on the other side of the parking lot and not in the newer main buildings. I believe maximum occupancy was 2 for these 1 bedrooms.  It was fine for us, but we heard others complain about these units.  I'm sure you will be happy with whatever you decide.


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## Ron98GT (Aug 17, 2012)

Icc5 said:


> Haven't stayed at Kahana Falls in aprox. 7 years but when we did we stayed there 2 years in a row and loved it.  Feels much more upscale.  That part of the island itself seems more upscale with higher end restaurants compared to Schooner which is near a lot more affordable places to eat.
> I also can't say I cared for the unit we had at the Maui Schooner because it was a two bedroom loft (room to open).
> Bart



Upscale    Not vs Kaanapali.

Restaurants   What restaurants, McDonald's around the corner.


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## daventrina (Aug 17, 2012)

Kona Lovers said:


> One thing where you can't go wrong either place are the Maui sunsets! ...



But even the sunsets can be very different. In Kihei, you can get these nice red sunsets like this:



IMG_0310 by dntanderson, on Flickr
I think that they are sometimes characteristically different because of the way the winds interact coming through the valley and over the West Maui mountains.

Where in Kahana you get these bright gold sunsets most of the time:



P8120111 by dntanderson, on Flickr



Ron98GT said:


> Restaurants   What restaurants, McDonald's around the corner.



Maui Brewing Company, Outback, Roy's, Maui Tacos, Dollies...
and 2 minutes down the road all of the Ka'anapali restaurants (Hulla Grill, Lelanie's). 5 Minutes down the road all of the Lahaina restaurants.

The big question would be how much driving will you be doing to see South and East Maui. Many of those locations are a few minutes drive from Kihei. From Kahana, you could add 20-30 minutes and sometimes more if there is traffic.

The best option would be to spend a week at MS then a week at KF:whoopie:


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## Carlsbadguy (Aug 17, 2012)

Thanks for the ingo and am leaning to Kahana falls as I like that side of the Island better. Stayed at Sands of Kahana across the street many years ago.  What is the difference in the sleep 2 vs sleep 4 1 bedroom units.


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## slip (Aug 17, 2012)

That's close to what I'm doing. I have a week at Maui Schooner then a week
at Valley Isle. I could have had Kahana Falls instead of the Schooner but if I
was going to move, I thought I may as well get some different scenery.


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## Luanne (Aug 17, 2012)

While I like the Lahaina/Kaanapali/Kahana end of the island we've found the traffic up that way has gotten worse and worse over the years.  We own in Kihei and prefer it down there.  It's great that not everyone likes the same area.


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## barefootnAR (Aug 17, 2012)

As a Schooner owner, I love our location and airy openness of the buildings, the green park between the buildings and the ocean. We are in an update at the resort. New sofas a couple of years ago. All new beds last year and work has started on replacing cabinets and counter tops. Plus more. 
I had a gift exchanged and could only get into the Kahana Falls 18 months ago. I stayed as an exchange in a 2 BR. It was a fun week being close to the wonderful snorkeling spots on the West side without having to drive. Every now and then we like to snorkel west(southside does have great snorkel spots also).  The pool area is very nice. However, the rooms had no cross breeze and were musty. The sofa, very musty and very worn. It was time to replace the mattresses The unit could have used a "spring" cleaning, deep clean.
I did have a slight sliver of an ocean view between two building across the street.
I get a closed in feeling in that area. 
The Schooner has spoiled us for cleanliness. We have travel with RCI friends and stayed in many resorts which gives us a comparison.
So my choice would be the Schooner. 
I know some folks don't like the loft rooms but as an owner we choose a loft 2 br, when we can't get in A building, instead of the regular 2 br in the B building..


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## Kona Lovers (Aug 17, 2012)

california-bighorn said:


> We have stayed at both recently and pretty much agree both resorts are nice and it may come down to what part of the Island you prefer.  One thing you may want to check on is what building the Kahana Falls unit is in.  We were assigned a room in an older building (Hale Kipa?) on the other side of the parking lot and not in the newer main buildings. I believe maximum occupancy was 2 for these 1 bedrooms.  It was fine for us, but we heard others complain about these units.  I'm sure you will be happy with whatever you decide.



Very good point about the Hale Kipa units.  We've owned the 1br2ba and now the 2br2ba which are both in the main towers.  The Hale Kipa units are in a row on the back of the property and to be truthful, I don't even think of them when I think of KF.  Anyway, those units, I was told, were first constructed as basic housing for the work crew that built the rest of the resort, hence the Motel 6 look.  When construction was done, they converted what are basically hotel sized units into ts units, and their mfs are much less than the other units at the resort, as they should be, and are not really the desirable units.  I would definitely second the suggestion to call the resort and find out exactly which units are being assigned, and if it's Hale Kipa, I suggest to ditch and run as fast at you can to the Maui Schooner, if the choice is between those two.  FWIW

Aloha,

Marty


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## Ron98GT (Aug 17, 2012)

daventrina said:


> Maui Brewing Company, Outback, Roy's, Maui Tacos, Dollies...
> and 2 minutes down the road all of the Ka'anapali restaurants (Hulla Grill, Lelanie's). 5 Minutes down the road all of the Lahaina restaurants.



Maui Brewing Company, which is around the corner from McDonald's, has bar-food:

http://www.mauibrewingco.com/menus/MBC-Menu-2011.pdf

Neither Roy's or the Outback is in Kahana. 

Now I can't dispute that there are a number of good/great restaurants NEAR Kahana, in Lahaina and Kaanapali.  But, my contention is/was that Kahana only has fast-food and bar-food.  

Kahana does have a great fish market though, where you can purchase fresh fish to cook on the gas grills at Kahana Falls, which you won't find in Kihei.  

http://www.fishmarketmaui.com/

Speaking of Kaanapali, don't forget about the restaurants at Whalers Village, one of my favorite places to go to for food and drink, i.e Hula Grill.

http://www.whalersvillage.com/restaurants.htm

So, if I couldn't get a TS on Kaanapali Beach (Marriott, Westin, or The Whaler) and the chose was between Kihei and Kahana, I would take Kahana, just so I can be close to Kaanapali.


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## Kona Lovers (Aug 17, 2012)

Ron98GT said:


> Maui Brewing Company, which is around the corner from McDonald's, has bar-food:
> 
> http://www.mauibrewingco.com/menus/MBC-Menu-2011.pdf
> 
> ...



This is what we do as well, going to Kaanapali and Lahaina for eating.  Kahana's just resorts and residential basically.

Marty


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## MOXJO7282 (Aug 18, 2012)

Ron98GT said:


> Speaking of Kaanapali, don't forget about the restaurants at Whalers Village, one of my favorite places to go to for food and drink, i.e Hula Grill.
> 
> http://www.whalersvillage.com/restaurants.htm
> 
> So, if I couldn't get a TS on Kaanapali Beach (Marriott, Westin, or The Whaler) and the chose was between Kihei and Kahana, I would take Kahana, just so I can be close to Kaanapali.


This is my thoughts as well. Kaanapali has everything for us. We've stayed in Wailea severals times which is near Kihei and of course is very nice but still Lahaina/Kaanapali is where it is at for us.

What is interesting though is we've been to Maui 6 times and never went north of Kaanapali but in Feb we discovered how very nice that area up through Kapalua is. We really enjoyed the pizza and pork quesidillas at Dollie's in Kahana and there is a really nice market that makes great Boar's Head hoagie's called the Napili Market so we would definitely being staying in Kahana.


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## daventrina (Aug 18, 2012)

Ron98GT said:


> Neither Roy's or the Outback is in Kahana.


Oops ... they both moved. Been away too long ... 58 days and counting down:whoopie:


Ron98GT said:


> Now I can't dispute that there are a number of good/great restaurants NEAR Kahana, in Lahaina and Ka'anapali.  But, my contention is/was that Kahana only has fast-food and bar-food.


True ... but by comparison NEAR the Schooner there is only Sansei, Five Palms Beach Grill, and Sarento's unless you go to Wailea.


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## Ron98GT (Aug 18, 2012)

MOXJO7282 said:


> This is my thoughts as well. Kaanapali has everything for us. We've stayed in Wailea severals times which is near Kihei and of course is very nice but still Lahaina/Kaanapali is where it is at for us.
> 
> What is interesting though is we've been to Maui 6 times and never went north of Kaanapali but in Feb we discovered how very nice that area up through Kapalua is. We really enjoyed the pizza and pork quesidillas at Dollie's in Kahana and there is a really nice market that makes great Boar's Head hoagie's called the Napili Market so we would definitely being staying in Kahana.



Every time we go, I like to take the northern route, Hwy 30, from Kapaulua/Kahana to Wailuku/Kahului, thru Honolua and Kahakuloa. Similar to the road to Hana.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attracti...h_Loop_Coastline_Road_Hwy_30-Maui_Hawaii.html

Speaking of Wailuku, don't miss Lao Valley State Park, if you haven't been there.  Interesting park to visit and interesting history.

http://www.hawaiiweb.com/maui/iao-valley-needle.html


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## Passepartout (Aug 18, 2012)

Fwiw, I think all you nice folks should stay in Kihei. That leaves much more availability for me at Kahana. I happen to like the residential feel, the low-rise buildings, the Mom & Pop feel of the place. Last time there, we could easily lob a stone or seashell off our lanai into the surf. Turtles frolicked and fed at a reef just offshore, and whales were almost constantly in view. To us, that's vastly superior to any up-scale high rise with people jockeying for the 'best' place for a sun-lounge and have to tip to have someone bring a mai-tai. 

But to each their own.

Jim


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## Cathyb (Aug 18, 2012)

*Barefoot-a question*



barefootnAR said:


> As a Schooner owner, I love our location and airy openness of the buildings, the green park between the buildings and the ocean. We are in an update at the resort. New sofas a couple of years ago. All new beds last year and work has started on replacing cabinets and counter tops. Plus more.
> I had a gift exchanged and could only get into the Kahana Falls 18 months ago. I stayed as an exchange in a 2 BR. It was a fun week being close to the wonderful snorkeling spots on the West side without having to drive. Every now and then we like to snorkel west(southside does have great snorkel spots also).  The pool area is very nice. However, the rooms had no cross breeze and were musty. The sofa, very musty and very worn. It was time to replace the mattresses The unit could have used a "spring" cleaning, deep clean.
> I did have a slight sliver of an ocean view between two building across the street.
> I get a closed in feeling in that area.
> ...



Staying in Schooner for first time.  What restaurants are within 1/2 mile as we might not have a car.  How about your favorite restaurants in the Kihei area?  If we choose to take a tour,is there a concierge onsite? Thanks!


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## Luanne (Aug 18, 2012)

Cathyb said:


> Staying in Schooner for first time.  What restaurants are within 1/2 mile as we might not have a car.  How about your favorite restaurants in the Kihei area?  If we choose to take a tour,is there a concierge onsite? Thanks!



Closest restaurants would be those in the Azeka Center which is .6 mile from the Maui Schooner.  Azeka Mauka and Azeka Makai are two Azeka shopping centers across South Kihei Road from each other.  They are at 1279 South Kihei Road, at the corner of Piikea.

Restaurants in Azeka Mauka are Coconuts Fish Cafe, Jawz Fish Tacos, Peggy Sue's 50's diner, Stella Blues Cafe, Panda Express, and The Coffee Store.  

Restaurants in Azeka Makai are Ono Gelato, Vietnamese Cuisine, Izakaya Matsu, Royal Thai Cuisine, Home Maid Cafe, and Taco  Bell.

Of these the only ones we've been to have been Stella Blues Cafe, The Coffee Store and Ono Gelato.  Give a huge thumbs up to Ono Gelato. Stella Blues was okay.

Our favorites in Kihei are Cafe O'Lei and Bistro 808.

There are some very good restaurants in Wailea as well:  Merriman's Monkeypod, Gannon's .

It's really hard to see much of the area without a car.


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## Luanne (Aug 18, 2012)

Passepartout said:


> Fwiw, I think all you nice folks should stay in Kihei. That leaves much more availability for me at Kahana. I happen to like the residential feel, the low-rise buildings, the Mom & Pop feel of the place. Last time there, we could easily lob a stone or seashell off our lanai into the surf. Turtles frolicked and fed at a reef just offshore, and whales were almost constantly in view. To us, that's vastly superior to any up-scale high rise with people jockeying for the 'best' place for a sun-lounge and have to tip to have someone bring a mai-tai.
> 
> But to each their own.
> 
> Jim



What up sclae high rise are you talking about in Kihei?  Have you gotten your locations mixed up? :hysterical:


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## daventrina (Aug 19, 2012)

Luanne said:


> What up sclae high rise are you talking about in Kihei?


Maybe the ones in Wailea? It's right next door...


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## Cathyb (Aug 19, 2012)

*Luanne -- yumyum*



Luanne said:


> Closest restaurants would be those in the Azeka Center which is .6 mile from the Maui Schooner.  Azeka Mauka and Azeka Makai are two Azeka shopping centers across South Kihei Road from each other.  They are at 1279 South Kihei Road, at the corner of Piikea.
> 
> Restaurants in Azeka Mauka are Coconuts Fish Cafe, Jawz Fish Tacos, Peggy Sue's 50's diner, Stella Blues Cafe, Panda Express, and The Coffee Store.
> 
> ...



Thank you!!! You made my day -- love Vietnamese and Thai food. Looks like we won't 'starve' if I decide not to cook while there . My DH has dementia so it depends on how 'bad' he is next June whether we get a car there.  I don't drive much at home, sooo....


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## Luanne (Aug 19, 2012)

daventrina said:


> Maybe the ones in Wailea? It's right next door...



But there are no timrshares in Wailea.

I've seen far more highrises in Kaanapali and Kahana.


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## Kona Lovers (Aug 19, 2012)

Ladies and gentlemen!  We have a real heavyweight bout going on here!  

In the east corner we have Kihei, with it's beautiful sunsets and hopping activity with close access to Molokini and Haleakala!  

In the west corner, we have Kahana, with easy access to Lahaina, Kaanapali, and Kapalua and all that West Maui has to offer, including equally beautiful sunsets and fine dining!  

.....and it seems we have a split decision!  ALL of Maui is good and there's enough for everybody!  No losers!!!!! 

Aloha,

Marty


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## Luanne (Aug 19, 2012)

Kona Lovers said:


> Ladies and gentlemen!  We have a real heavyweight bout going on here!
> 
> In the east corner we have Kihei, with it's beautiful sunsets and hopping activity with close access to Molokini and Haleakala!
> 
> ...



Totally agree!  

As I've said before, it's a good thing we don't all like the same area.


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## rickandcindy23 (Aug 19, 2012)

Maui Lea is very close to Wailea, literally less than a mile, so if you want the upscale area for a bargain price, get an exchange through TPMaui.com.  

Maui Lea is going to be a future trip during off season for two weeks for us.  We love the area for different reasons.   I still prefer the Lahaina/ Ka'anapali/ Kahana area.  I personally adore Honokowai.


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## barefootnAR (Aug 19, 2012)

@Cathyb
Luanne gave you a good list. On her list we love the food at Coconuts. There are several fruit stands in this area. Long's and Times Grocery are in this area. I think it's 1 mile to Times. they have a good deli for take out.
No there is no concierge but we do have an activities director, Judy. She can arrange any tour you would like. You can even call her before you arrive to schedule a tour. I think Thursday is her day off.
 You can rent a local car from Kihei Car Rentals if you want something to just drive along pokey ole Kihei Road at 35 -20 MPH for a few days.
Cathyb, you could walk down to Azeka Place, eat at the Vietnamese place, or across the street at Coconuts for great fish (very casual) then grocery shop  at Times Market and grab a cab back to the Schooner.


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## Cathyb (Aug 20, 2012)

*barefoot*



barefootnAR said:


> @Cathyb
> Luanne gave you a good list. On her list we love the food at Coconuts. There are several fruit stands in this area. Long's and Times Grocery are in this area. I think it's 1 mile to Times. they have a good deli for take out.
> No there is no concierge but we do have an activities director, Judy. She can arrange any tour you would like. You can even call her before you arrive to schedule a tour. I think Thursday is her day off.
> You can rent a local car from Kihei Car Rentals if you want something to just drive along pokey ole Kihei Road at 35 -20 MPH for a few days.
> Cathyb, you could walk down to Azeka Place, eat at the Vietnamese place, or across the street at Coconuts for great fish (very casual) then grocery shop  at Times Market and grab a cab back to the Schooner.



Hey, I like your ideas, thank you.  I guess I would call a cab from my cellphone.  Do you know its name and/or phone no. ?  I'll look it up.


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## barefootnAR (Aug 20, 2012)

Cathyb, the front desk gals at the Schooner can help you with that. They will know which taxi company is in that area. Just ask them when you arrive.
There are shuttles that you can take from the airport to the Schooner. Check Spedi shuttle  http://www.speedishuttle.com/ and Executive shuttle http://www.mauishuttle.com/ either would be cheaper than a taxi from the airport. Taxis are expensive on Maui.
Kihei Rental car will also pick you up in a van at the airport and take you to Kihei to their car rental if you want an older car for a few days and don't want to drive from the airport, or wait until mid trip and they will pick you up at the Schooner if you decide to rent.
Hope this helps.


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## Kauai Kid (Aug 20, 2012)

Cathyb said:


> Staying in Schooner for first time.  What restaurants are within 1/2 mile as we might not have a car.  How about your favorite restaurants in the Kihei area?  If we choose to take a tour,is there a concierge onsite? Thanks!



Even if you don't have a car, treat yourself to a meal. any meal, at Bev Gannon's Restaurant in Wailea.

Incredible food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Have you checked Discount Hawaii Car Rental for prices?  I don't think you will do any better.

Even if you are up in the Lahina end of the island, give Bev Gannon's restaurant a shot early in your trip.  Guaranteed to get you back at least a second time.

If the mountain by the tunnel and wind turbines is on fire, like it was one time when we visited, you'll be glad you are in Kihei (The Lahina folks (and aircraft crews) couldn't get to the airport. 

You'll have a great time where ever you are on Maui. 

Aloha,  Sterling (Maui Schooner Owner)

ps:  Be sure and try Bev Gannon's REstaurant


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## Kona Lovers (Aug 20, 2012)

Sterling,

I was wondering when you would post on this thread.   

Aloha,

Marty


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