Originally Posted by l'etoile

I stayed in mid-December in a fifth-floor (lobby level) Andaz suite with great view (I'll look at my folio and come up with the rm number for you jpdx). I have rebooked an Andaz suite for later this month.

I'm not much of a resort person, and admit I wasn't initially taken by this one. It's very stark with nothing distinctively Hawaiian about it. It felt like a soft opening (several quirks), and there are design flaws (you should be under a covering when pulling up to the hotel to protect in event of rain), the lanai furniture is already well discussed as to its basic lack of functionality, none of the closet or bathroom doors in my suite latched, and it's pretty much impossible to sit in the bathtub without draining the water due to the drain placement. But as the nights went on, I came to mostly appreciate the tranquility and the caring management, an attitude that seemed to be filtering well down to the staff.

Breakfast was good. Once finding out I was vegetarian, a chef came out and said he would make me whatever I wanted. I found more than sufficient foods from what were already offered though. The extra $15 for unlimited mimosas was removed from my bill (diamond member). No idea if this will remain, but I would only use it expecting to pay it. The same restaurant also provided some good veg entrees that I was quite satisfied with. I felt they held up to or surpassed what I get at Hailiimaile or Merriman's. (Guests I met who are not vegetarians told me they preferred it to Morimoto's, FWIW.)

I also had the mosquito problem. I found the room too cool and called engineering. It was explained rooms can't be heated and default is 70F. I was told to open the lanai door if I wanted it warmer. I did that and had about 40 mosquitoes within 30 minutes since there were no screens. Thank goodness those mosquitoes move slowly so as to be killed quickly. Since there's no heating I suggested the hotel use a default of 73F, which would save cooling costs and still allow guests to turn down the temp if they find it too warm.

Quick round up of what you should receive since it's a bit scattered in the thread (hope I didn't miss anything):

-- lei (these were more unusual and attractive than I usually receive, with little blue and lavender flowers)
-- Beach bag with sandals
-- Refillable water bottles
-- Mini iPad in room with some menus (spa and restaurant) on it, sound player and general browsing capabilities
-- Chocolate bar as parting gift on check out.
-- Shuttle service in general area

I chose the champagne for the amenity. Retail on the bottle was $80; in restaurant was $155. Nice amenity. Skip the hummus amenity - very small portion with even smaller serving of crackers (about four). I hear the macaroons are a good choice.

Go to the manager's reception. Exceptionally friendly and attentive management team. Worth meeting them and sharing spiked punch. Managers were very approachable and delightful. Can't say enough good about GM and rooms manager.

The beach here is great - best I've seen at a hotel in Maui. The pool/beach staff and the breakfast staff were exceptionally friendly and attentive.

This hotel has great potential, especially if looking to escape the resorts that cater primarily to families. There are just a few quirks, but I loved the tranquility and look forward to returning in a couple of weeks.