Wow, wow, wow. I've been to Hawaii 25+ times in my life and this is by far my favorite trip and place to stay thanks to Katherine and Dean, their beautifully serene/calming/private/lush/tropical property, their incredible hospitality & kindness, their generosity, the location, etc, etc. But I'd like to get specific because I believe it's helpful to others looking to rent:
1. This location is amazing. It's moments from the beach & the bustling town of Kihei. It's on a property many of us can only dream of. It's a private space from the host's main house. I wasn't 100% sure about "no beach view" but I can promise you -- THIS PLACE IS BETTER THAN A BEACH VIEW. This cottage is located on a street with multi-million dollar homes. We also felt very safe here - lots of people out walking and jogging every day (near a massive park).
2. The house has everything you could want and need + more. I'm very picky on where I stay. I like my vacations to feel nicer than my home life and this trip exceeded my expectations. The house has a Hawaii vibe to it, was incredibly clean and has top of the line appliances, dishware, decor, BBQ, coolers, towels, bags, etc. Anything you might possibly need they have there for you. I'll stress the clean part because it actually clean - cleaner than any 5-star hotel I've stayed in. I also want to call out that we took outdoor showers every day (literally no need for the indoor shower) and were able to eat Avocados off their tree as they were ripe. One little thing I particularly loved: Their entire property is landscaped beautifully with native tropical plants - each night from the master bedroom we would leave the shades open and their outdoor lights would come on for a few hours spotlighting everything. We loved it.
3. Hosts: Katherine and Dean are beyond great - We left our trip feeling like we may have made some new friends. They truly live the Aloha spirit and were generous beyond belief. They were also very aware that some people prefer privacy and let us guide the amount of interaction with them. They really know what they're doing and are fantastic..... we should all be so lucky to meet people like them.
4. Extras: Do you want to snorkel, boogie board, use a beach umbrella, beach chairs, or other beach amenities? They have it all for you to use :) They also gave us some of the BEST recommendations for food, activities, beaches, etc. And you have a place to park you car..... this is key as you really need a car in Maui.
5. The Cost: I'm a firm believer in you get what you pay for..... not going to lie the per night price was very reasonable.... so reasonable I was a little worried. Please let me ease anyone else's hesitation on this -- This place is worth $1MM, and while significantly less than the hotels I've stayed in on Maui before, 10x better.
I could go on and on and on about this property + Katherine & Dean...... We had the best trip and it was because we had a home base we loved. We will be coming back again next year. Hopefully the continued amazing reviews don't block us out of booking :) though it wouldn't surprise me.
MAHALO for a fantastic week and hope to see you again next year.