Napili Kai Beach Resort (tel. 800/367-5030 or 808/669-6271; www.napilikai.com): Nestled in its own private white-sand cove, this property gives you a chance to experience what Maui was like 30 years ago. Composed of a range of units (from hotel rooms to 2-bedroom suites), Napili Kai has all the comforts of home (including full kitchens), plus a restaurant on the property, and it's within walking distance to Kapalua's top restaurants, shops, golf, and tennis. Prices start at $190.
Kahana Sunset (tel. 800/669-1488 or 808/669-8011; www.kahanasunset.com): This is a great choice for families, featuring a series of wooden condo units stair-stepping down the side of a hill to a postcard-perfect white-sand beach. The units feature full kitchens, washers/dryers, large lanais with terrific views, and sleeper sofas (starting at $130 for 4).
Lahaina Inn (tel. 800/669-3444 or 808/661-0577; www.lahainainn.com): If the romance of historic Lahaina catches your fancy, a stay here will really complete the experience. Built in 1938 as a general store, it has been restored as a charming, Victorian antique-filled inn right in the heart of town, with rooms as low as $119. Downstairs you'll find one of Hawaii's most popular storefront bistros, David Paul's Lahaina Grill.
Plantation Inn (tel. 800/433-6815 or 808/667-9225; www.theplantationinn.com): Attention romantic couples: You need look no further. This charming Lahaina hotel looks like it's been here 100 years or more, but looks can be deceiving. The Victorian-style inn is actually of 1990s vintage -- an artful deception. The rooms are romantic to the max, tastefully done with period furniture, hardwood floors, stained glass, ceiling fans, and four-poster canopy beds. The rooms wrap around the large pool and deck; also on-site are a spa and an elegant pavilion lounge, where breakfast is served, all starting at $157 double.
Maui Coast Hotel (tel. 800/895-MAUI or 808/874-6284; www.mauicoasthotel.com): This off-beach mid-rise is one of the only moderately priced hotels in Kihei (though the Kihei area has lots of affordable condo complexes). One chief advantage of this hotel is its location: It's about a block from Kamaole Beach Park I, with plenty of bars, restaurants, and shopping within walking distance (Jamison's Grill & Bar is next door). A $2.5 million renovation of all the furniture and soft goods in the rooms plus the remodeled public areas (lobby, pool, restaurant, bar) have made this moderate hotel into a luxury resort with a reasonable price tag (starting at $165).
Punahoa Beach Apartments (tel. 800/564-4380 or 808/879-2720; www.punahoa.com): This small ocean-side Kihei condo complex is hidden on a quiet side street; the grassy lawn out front rolls about 50 feet down to the beach. You'll find great snorkeling just offshore and a popular surfing spot next door, with shopping and restaurants all within walking distance. Every well-decorated unit features a lanai with fabulous ocean views, from $94.
Paniolo Hale (Molokai; tel. 800/367-2984 or 808/552-2731; www.paniolohaleresort.com): This is far and away Molokai's most charming lodging, and probably its best value. The two-story Old Hawaii ranch-house design is airy and homey, with oak floors and walls of folding-glass doors that open to huge screened verandas. The whole place overlooks the Kaluakoi Golf Course, a green barrier that separates these condos (which start at $95 for two) from the rest of Kaluakoi Resort.
Hotel Lanai (Lanai; tel. 800/795-7211 or 808/565-7211; www.hotellanai.com): Lanai's only budget lodging is a simple, down-home, plantation-era relic that has recently been Laura Ashley-ized. The Hotel Lanai is homey, funky, and fun -- and, best of all, a real bargain (starting at $105 for two) compared to its ritzy neighbors.
Book together and save $228 on average
The Health Centre at the Four Seasons Resort Maui (tel. 800/334-MAUI [6284] or 808/874-8000; www.fshr.com): Imagine the sounds of the waves rolling on Wailea Beach as you are soothingly massaged in the privacy of your cabana, tucked into the beachside foliage. This is the place to come to be absolutely spoiled. Yes, there's an excellent workout area and tons of great classes, but their specialty is hedonistic indulgence.
Spa Grande at the Grand Wailea Resort (tel. 800/888-6100 or 808/875-1234; www.grandwailea.com): This is Hawaii's biggest spa, at 50,000 square feet, with 40 treatment rooms. The spa incorporates the best of the Old World (romantic ceiling murals, larger-than-life Roman-style sculptures, mammoth Greek columns, huge European tubs), the finest Eastern traditions (a full Japanese-style traditional bath and various exotic treatments from India), and the lure of the islands (tropical foliage, ancient Hawaiian treatments, and island products). This spa has everything from a top fitness center to a menu of classes and is constantly on the cutting edge of the latest trends.
Spa Kea Lani at The Fairmont Kea Lani Maui (tel. 800/659-4100 or 808/875-4100; www.kealani.com): This intimate, Art Deco boutique spa (just a little over 5,000 sq. ft., with nine treatment rooms), which opened in 1999, is the place for personal and private attention. The fitness center next door is open 24 hours (a rarity in Hawaiian resorts) with a personal trainer on duty some 14 hours a day.
Spa Moana at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa (tel. 800/233-1234 or 808/661-1234; www.maui.hyatt.com): The island's first oceanfront spa, a 9,000-square-foot facility, opened recently with a $3.5 million price tag. The new spa offers an open-air exercise lanai, wet treatment rooms, massage rooms, a relaxation lounge, sauna and steam rooms, a Roman pool illuminated by overhead skylights, and a duet treatment suite for couples.
Spa at Ritz-Carlton Kapalua (tel. 800/262-8440 or 808/669-6200; www.ritzcarlton.com): Book a massage on the beach. The spa itself is welcoming and wonderful, but there is nothing like smelling the salt in the air and feeling the gentle caressing of the wind in your hair while experiencing a true Hawaiian massage.
Pampering in Paradise
Hawaii's spas have raised the art of relaxation and healing to a new level. The traditional Greco-Roman-style spas, with lots of marble and big tubs in closed rooms, have evolved into airy, open facilities that embrace the tropics. Spa goers in Hawaii are looking for a sense of place, seeped in the culture. They want to hear the sound of the ocean, smell the salt air, and feel the caress of the warm breeze. They want to experience Hawaiian products and traditional treatments they can get only in the islands.
The spas of Hawaii, once nearly exclusively patronized by women, are now attracting more male clients. There are special massages for children and pregnant women, and some spas have created programs to nurture and relax brides on their big day.
Today's spas offer a wide diversity of treatments. There is no longer plain, ordinary massage, but Hawaiian lomilomi, Swedish, aromatherapy (with sweet-smelling oils), craniosacral (massaging the head), shiatsu (no oil, just deep thumb pressure on acupuncture points), Thai (another oilless massage involving stretching), and hot stone (with heated, and sometimes cold, rocks). There are even side-by-side massages for couples. The truly decadent might even try a duo massage -- not one, but two massage therapists working on you at once.
Massages are just the beginning. Body treatments, for the entire body or for just the face, involve a variety of herbal wraps, masks, or scrubs using a range of ingredients from seaweed to salt to mud, with or without accompanying aromatherapy, lights, and music.
After you have been rubbed and scrubbed, most spas offer an array of water treatments -- a sort of hydromassage in a tub with jets and an assortment of colored crystals, oils, and scents.
Those are just the traditional treatments. Most spas also offer a range of alternative healthcare like acupuncture, chiropractic, and other exotic treatments like ayurvedic and siddha from India or reiki from Japan. Many places offer specialized, cutting-edge treatments, like the Grand Wailea Resort's full-spectrum color-light therapy pod (based on NASA's work with astronauts).
Once your body has been pampered, spas also offer a range of fitness facilities (weight-training equipment, racquetball, tennis, golf, and so on) and classes (yoga, aerobics, step, spinning, stretch, tai chi, kickboxing, aquacize, and so on). Several even offer adventure fitness packages (from bicycling to snorkeling). For the nonadventurous, most spas have salons dedicated to hair and nail care and makeup.
If all this sounds a bit overwhelming, not to worry; all the spas in Hawaii have individual consultants who will help you design an appropriate treatment program to fit your individual needs.
Of course, all this pampering doesn't come cheap. Massages are generally $95 to $130 for 50 minutes and $145 to $180 for 80 minutes; body treatments are in the $120 to $165 range; and alternative healthcare treatments can be as high as $150 to $220. But you may think it's worth the expense to banish your tension and stress.
