# Current II inventory on Maui - any experience at these resorts?



## lmkucala (May 9, 2014)

It looks like there must have been a bulk deposit of a bunch of resorts on Maui in early 2015.  I'm seeing a bunch of availability all of a sudden in January, February, and March 2015.  Anyone have experience with any of these?

Kahana Villa Vacation Club
Gardens at West Maui
Maui Beach Vacation Club
Hono Koa Vacation Club

They are not premier resorts (a couple are silver) so I'm sure they are not super luxurious but am curious if there is any reason to stay away from any of them?  They are in Maui after all! 

We're considering Hono Koa or Gardens at West Maui - but really unsure of locations, quality, etc. of these.   We were in Maui earlier this year but stayed in the Wailea area (not in a timeshare).


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## Beefnot (May 9, 2014)

In the II resort directory, Hono Koa is highest rated by II members, followed by Gardens at West Maui. Maui Beach is middling, and Kahana Villa Vacation Club is low enough to pass on.


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## rickandcindy23 (May 10, 2014)

We own Hono Koa, so we like it.  I wanted to go in winter, when it's cold in Colorado.  I also wanted to see whales.  

Kahana Villas is superior to Gardens at West Maui for unit size, and the units are not how people describe them in the TUG reviews.  They are much nicer.  As a matter of fact, our experience with Kahana Villas was very good, and we had a view of the ocean over the top of the very nice houses below us.  Sure, it's not a Marriott, but it's clean, it's large, and it's decorated well and has a great kitchen. Those reviews of KVV are mostly old and totally wrong.  I have a friend who owns six weeks at KVV and she loves it there.  Currently the bathrooms are all getting upgraded.  I would stay there in a heartbeat.

Gardens is a nice place to stay as an owner.  The exchangers are likely to get units next to the house with the crowing roosters.  They are not like on Kauai, where they crow just during the early morning. 

One of the guys Rick works with stayed at Maui Beach and thought it was wonderful.  Some people cannot trade into the Marriott and Westins, and even if you are a Starwood or Marriott owner and enjoy preference, nothing is guaranteed, and certainly not whale season or summer dates.  

So if you think Consolidated/ Soleil resorts are not up to your standards, simply because you stay at 5-star quality resorts on the mainland, you have to consider the sheer numbers of people who want to go to Maui and the competition you have for the dates you want.  Do you want to be on Maui and have an ocean view? You need to buy to get that guarantee.


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## lmkucala (May 10, 2014)

We do not need Marriott, etc. or luxury.  We have been very happy at other timeshares as long as they are clean and comfortable.   I think I was attracted to Gardens because of general location (I think it's closwer to Napili/Kapalua area?) but after your comments and reading some other reviews about the rooster house we won't stay there. 

Cindy your comments are making me rethink Kahana Villas (as maybe a good place to go).  Can you help me understand difference in location between Kahana Villas and Hono Koa?  What beaches and/or snorkelling areas are they closest to?  I don't think either are right on a beach (which is fine) but are they walking distance?

Also Maui Beach in Kihei - is it near a decent beach?  Do you know which one or any other landmarks in Kihei it is by that we might recognize (we were just there in March and spent quite a bit of time in Kihei). 

Thanks - I need to bite the bullet and book one quick before they are gone!


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## SmithOp (May 10, 2014)

lmkucala said:


> Also Maui Beach in Kihei - is it near a decent beach?  Do you know which one or any other landmarks in Kihei it is by that we might recognize (we were just there in March and spent quite a bit of time in Kihei).
> 
> Thanks - I need to bite the bullet and book one quick before they are gone!



Just South of Kihei, Makena State Park.  Take a snorkel boat out to Molikini. Take the Island Tours Shuttle to Hana, ask for Kimo, he's a local from Hana, can tell you all the best places.


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## Beefnot (May 10, 2014)

rickandcindy23 said:


> Kahana Villas is superior to Gardens at West Maui for unit size, and the units are not how people describe them in the TUG reviews.  They are much nicer.  As a matter of fact, our experience with Kahana Villas was very good, and we had a view of the ocean over the top of the very nice houses below us.  Sure, it's not a Marriott, but it's clean, it's large, and it's decorated well and has a great kitchen. Those reviews of KVV are mostly old and totally wrong.  I have a friend who owns six weeks at KVV and she loves it there.  Currently the bathrooms are all getting upgraded.  I would stay there in a heartbeat.



Why do you think the II member rating for Kahana Villas is rather yawnalicious? Guest Services 2.5, Resort & Area 3.0, and Unit Score 3.5, out of 5.  Keep in mind that the II member ratings are average last 12 mos.


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## RSchwartz (May 10, 2014)

Wg are also owners at Hono Koa and always look forward to our stay there.  This 27 unit resort is on the smaller side, and That is how we like it, but the rooms are large and well equipped.  While the resort is located right on the ocean, there is no beach access but during the season, whales are visible along with sea turtles.......also nice view of the sunset.

If you are looking for a 2 BR/2 bath unit and do not need a ton of amentities, stongly consider Hono Koa.


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## DeniseM (May 10, 2014)

TUG Maui Ratings and Reviews:  http://tug2.com/RnR/ResortsGrid.aspx?ResortArea=3&ResortGroup=19

Also - remember that the online inventory is the leftovers - a broad on-going request will snag better resorts.


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## rickandcindy23 (May 10, 2014)

Beefnot said:


> Why do you think the II member rating for Kahana Villas is rather yawnalicious? Guest Services 2.5, Resort & Area 3.0, and Unit Score 3.5, out of 5.  Keep in mind that the II member ratings are average last 12 mos.



I don't know but I used to own there, bought it to go with our annual Hono Koa week, but now we have four annual HK weeks.  The 2 bedroom KVV we had was pretty nice, and I would stay there again. It's the same management company.  

A TUGger rented it from me last year and loved KVV.  It was a 2 bedroom and she had a great view from the Frigate building.   

I love Hono Koa, though, and would stay there too, as long as I wasn't giving up a ~$1,000 MF week exchange to book Hono Koa.  It's not worth that much to me.  But I wouldn't hesitate to stay at Kahana Villa, but again, I wouldn't give up a $1,000 exchange for it either.    

Kahana Villas is across from Kahana Beach and Sands of Kahana.  It's not on the ocean side of the road.  Kahana Beach is one of those great places with most units having ocean views.  I read bad reviews about that place too, but I know what I like, and I like it there. 

I also think Sands of Kahana is nice, but we stayed in the bedroom by the ocean, and our son and daughter-in-law were in the bedroom by the parking garage.  Huge mistake for the kids.  They couldn't sleep all night.  People are rude.  They come in late and holler back and forth to one another and honk their horns to lock their cars.  Noisy place.  I sold that week because I couldn't believe we owned and knew our unit would be oceanfront this year because it was ocean view the last year.  We had such a lousy unit assignment for OF.

One of my personal favorites is always Maui Lea.  It's in Kihei, and I enjoy that location.  Some think Kihei is not as nice as West Maui.  I disagree.  I think Kihei is fun, and it's close to Wailea.


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## barefootnAR (May 10, 2014)

Imkucala,  
Only 1/2 mile between KV & HK. KV has beach assess across the street for a nice sandy swimming beach. Some folks to go down to the south edge near S Turns Park where the turtles feed and snorkel around the rock to see the turtles. 
This site will let you see the beach areas. Timeshares aren't on here.
http://www.hawaiirevealed.com/free-travel-info/maui/maui-resorts
So For the Gardens find Napali Kai, you will across the street just on the south side of the curve. 
KV - across the street from Sands of Kahana.
HK - next door to the Kaleialoha
Maui Beach, is next door to Kihei Holiday in the 500 block. It's across the street from the ocean. there's a reef about 50 yds out that that has some snorkeling.


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## Luanne (May 10, 2014)

We own at Maui Lea in Kihei.  Our favorite beach is the one that is in front of what is now the Makena Golf and Tennis Resort.  It's a bit of a drive, but so worth it.


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## taffy19 (May 10, 2014)

lmkucala said:


> It looks like there must have been a bulk deposit of a bunch of resorts on Maui in early 2015. I'm seeing a bunch of availability all of a sudden in January, February, and March 2015. Anyone have experience with any of these?
> 
> Kahana Villa Vacation Club
> Gardens at West Maui
> ...


We have visited Cindy and Rick at the Hono Koa in late March or early April. We liked the condo as it was light and airy and looked very comfortable too.

 What we really liked was their beautiful view and a wrap-around lanai to sit outside and enjoy that view. We were there during sunset. The view from inside was like you were on a cruise ship but they had an oceanfront unit.

 There is no beach but there is a swim ladder part of the year so you can snorkel and watch the turtles right there.

Maui Beach Vacation Club is across South Kihei Road from a very nice sandy beach in Kihei. We have only seen the resort while driving by or when walking on that beach.

Kihei has three nice public beaches too with a big and paved parking lot and you are not far away from other Kihei beaches and in Wailea or Makena  but parking is often a problem.


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## taffy19 (May 10, 2014)

Luanne said:


> We own at Maui Lea in Kihei. Our favorite beach is the one that is in front of what is now the Makena Golf and Tennis Resort. It's a bit of a drive, but so worth it.


We love that beach too but parking was such a hassle. Our favorite always was Ulua Beach but parking was impossible. That really has changed as the parking lot is paved now and there was space available. We normally went early in the morning but went late this afternoon so this may have been why. We came back from Peruse Bay as we love driving that road to the end. It reminds us always of the Big Island and the lava flows.


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## Luanne (May 10, 2014)

iconnections said:


> We love that beach too but parking was such a hassle. Our favorite always was Ulua Beach but parking was impossible. That really has changed as the parking lot is paved now and there was space available. We normally went early in the morning but went late this afternoon so this may have been why. We came back from Peruse Bay as we love driving that road to the end. It reminds us always of the Big Island and the lava flows.



Emmy we've never had a problem parking, but we get there early in the morning.  At that time there is always space in the parking lot across from the church.  When we first starting going to that beach there was no hotel, no parking lot, no bathroom.  Just street parking.


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## taffy19 (May 10, 2014)

Then I am confused with another little beach. We have parked near that church too and I remember a white hotel but don't know the name.

The parking lot I am thinking of must be another beach again. It was paved and very tiny but had handicapped parking so that gave us a space the last time we were there.

There are so many nice beaches in Kihei and Wailea too and even the beaches along the road, when you drive from Ka'anapali to Kihei, are very nice but could be dangerous to stop at and turn around again. We always love driving this old road along the ocean and not the newer highway.


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## Luanne (May 10, 2014)

iconnections said:


> Then I am confused with another little beach. We have parked near that church too and I remember a white hotel but don't know the name.
> 
> The parking lot I am thinking of must be another beach again. It was paved and very tiny but had handicapped parking so that gave us a space the last time we were there.
> 
> There are so many nice beaches in Kihei and Wailea too and even the beaches along the road, when you drive from Ka'anapali to Kihei, are very nice but could be dangerous to stop at and turn around again. We always love driving this old road along the ocean and not the newer highway.



Emmy the hotel used to be the Maui Prince.  It went under and was reopened as the Makena Beach and Golf Resort (I think I gave the wrong name in my earlier post).  It is right down from the Keawalai Congregational Church, one of the oldest churches on the islands.  The name of the beach is Maluaka.


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## taffy19 (May 10, 2014)

That is one of the nicest beaches and there is a point high up where you can see all the turtles right from where you are standing. You really have a choice of beaches to visit every day when you are staying in Kihei.

 Kihei is more of a local place where people live and not a very nice manicured place where people like to vacation. We like both and that is all what counts. I will try to post some real nice pictures that I took near the Maui Sunset and Maui Schooner. Some came out really well because everything looked so nice and green this year. It will take me a little bit to upload these photos.


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## barefootnAR (May 10, 2014)

Thee are two parking places for Maluaka Beach. One is across from the old historic church. The other is on the other side of the resort. Drive past the resort about 1/4-1/2 mile, turn onto the south end of Makena Rd. Makena road dead ends into the resort on both the north and south ends.


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## daventrina (May 13, 2014)

barefootnAR said:


> Thee are two parking places for Maluaka Beach. One is across from the old historic church. The other is on the other side of the resort. Drive past the resort about 1/4-1/2 mile, turn onto the south end of Makena Rd. Makena road dead ends into the resort on both the north and south ends.


You can still see parts of the old road that used to run by in front of the resort until some idiot decided to close it and make everyone drive around and restrict access to the beach fronting the resort 

We'd pick:
Hono Koa Vacation Club
It's in Kahana... On the water ... but no beach.

Maui Beach Vacation Club
Across the street from the water in a central location...
But WINDY

Kahana Villa Vacation Club
Nice clean resort across the street from Kahana beach. 
We've stayed here twice and the only downside was that it wasn't on the water.

We'd skip Gardens at West Maui if the others were available
Just don't like the location.


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## lmkucala (May 13, 2014)

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.  A 1 BR unit at Kahana Beach popped up (not one of the ones I originally listed but rated higher and right on the beach - originally they only had studios available).  We booked that for end of January along with a studio for my daughter and her husband - we're so excited! 

We bought ePlus with II so if something better comes along during that timeframe we will have the options to rebook or get a 2BR or 3BR somewhere and only have to use one of our units for this trip.


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## rickandcindy23 (May 13, 2014)

Kahana Beach gets great ratings because it's one of those places that has mostly oceanfront units.  Wise choice.  I would stick with it, unless you have a Marriott or Starwood priority and can book something with preference.


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## daventrina (May 14, 2014)

rickandcindy23 said:


> Wise choice.  I would stick with it, unless you have a Marriott or Starwood priority and can book something with preference.


Us too... The 1BRs sit on the corner


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