We had such a wonderful stay here - exactly what we were hoping for in a spot in Maui, and more.
The place is located on the top floor (4th floor) of the building and there is an elevator to use if you need it. The building is very quiet and it seems as though many of the apartments are rented out just the same.
The unit itself was spotless. We loved the style, although some have said that it hasn't changed at all over the years, we found it rather charming. We were pleasantly surprised to make use of the cooler, beach towels, and a boogie board - all added perks that didn't have to be there. There were also beach chairs, umbrellas, and snorkeling gear, which all would have been great to use if we had needed them.
The AC was beautiful in the living room and kitchen. We noticed that a lot of other units had their windows open so we were thankful to have it - especially in July. The first few nights we slept on the pull out couch, as the bedroom was way too hot without a unit. The pull out was surprisingly comfy, even though it was smaller than the master bedroom bed. However, after we acclimated and set up the fan to stay in the doorway, we started sleeping in the bedroom. The bed was comfy and the very last night we discovered that the tv was there - lots of great channels and Netflix access if you have an account.
The location is beautiful, about half an hour to 40 minutes from OGG airport, and only 5 minutes from the small Kapalua airport where we could drop off our rental car and travel to our next Hawaiian destination. The beach was stunning, very quiet, and we hardly saw people out there during the day. We had plans to go to many of the surrounding beaches but we loved the private beach here so much that we just stayed. We even swam right beside the sea turtles at times! The water has big waves at times, but it makes for some great excitement when you swim. We loved it.
The view from the lanai was breathtaking. We watched the sunsets almost every night and could not have asked for a better panoramic view. This alone sold the place for me - everything else was just an added bonus.
There was a minor hiccup the very first night we arrived, which we don't think happens too often but I thought it would be best to give the heads up in case you encounter it. We arrived at 10:30PM and found that there was no parking available in our parking lot. We had no idea what to do and it was too late to get in contact with the Maui Paradise Rentals manager, and the building managers' phone wouldn't accept our unit's phone number. We ended up parking the car in the neighbouring parking lot, but that lot was full of assigned spots so we were taking a gamble on guessing who was not there for the night. We put a sign asking to kindly not be towed and by 6am, after not sleeping and worrying about it all night, I found a spot in our lot and moved the car.
The next morning I had a reply from the rentals manager who said that she asked the building manager why there weren't any spots available. She also said that if that ever happened, that we could always put our parking pass (we found it by chance in the drawer by the front door) in our window and park it in the 2 hour spot, so we wouldn't get towed. This would be great to list in the details that are sent out before staying there, so it doesn't happen again. After that, there always seemed to be an ample amount of spots available so it was no longer an issue.
There are lots of busy restaurants around, many varieties for most people, but we are vegetarians and found it difficult to eat out. However, the local market offered up some great fruits and yogurt for our smoothies, and the Safeway 10 minutes away had most of the other food we ate for the time spent there. We were soooo happy to have a blender in the unit and used it every day.
I can't recommend this place enough. I would stay here in a heartbeat if I ever came back to Maui. It's a beautiful place to visit (although very far for us Canadians coming from Toronto), and we felt as though we were at home. We felt safe, relaxed, and rejuvenated after staying here.
Thanks for a beautiful vacation!