i almost don't want to tell you how incredible and awesome this place was for fear it'll be booked solid until the end of time. but i will tell you because i feel like this is truly airbnb at its best.
january is a kind, thoughtful, gracious host who was super friendly and knowledgeable about the island (which was really nice for me because i wanted my family to be able to "discover" maui without my unsolicited and constant recommendations). she left fruit for us on the lanai as it ripened, offered up info whenever we had questions and checked-in with us to make sure our stay was going well. january is fantastic and i was really grateful for our interactions.
the house itself is perfect. the construction is dead-on for the environment, with lots of ventilation to keep air flowing throughout each room. it's bright, airy and way more spacious than i expected. the 6 of us had plenty of room to hide out now and then, a necessity on a family vacation. we made great use of all the rooms, cooking at home a lot in the evenings and sitting on the lanai during the hottest parts of the day. i'm pretty sure that everyone is fantasizing about building an outdoor shower like the one at the banana plantation. for being as open as it is, the house is quite private and really quiet (save the planes overhead, which didn't bother us at all, even the non-new yorkers!).
it's just one minute from the door to the beach. most mornings, the only people i ran into down there were my family members who woke up before me. i was so excited to have found an affordable spot in my favorite maui neighborhood, just a short walk from my favorite beach. the setting was ideal. since my family had never been before, a central location was really important so that they could do any day trip with ease. on days that they didn't feel like exploring, they just headed out to kahului bay and relaxed oceanside.
i spent a lot of time trying to find the perfect setting for our first real family vacation (there are some newlyweds in our crew) and this was definitely it. january is a phenomenal host. the house is spot-on and has everything you need. and, as a chemically sensitive person and an dedicated environmentalist, i can't begin to say how much i appreciated the use of natural and organic products in the house. i was able to stay there without worrying that i'd have an allergic reaction. we composted, recycled and cleaned exactly like we do at home and that felt really good to me. i always want to have the lowest environmental impact i can and january made that completely easy to do.
i'm going to have no problem convincing my loved ones to return and i'm even willing to time that with this place's availability.
best. stay. ever.