Yeah, the one by the airport isn't as bad as the one in Kihei... but I wouldn't call it good either, I guess it's pretty much average in my book. If I need a meal in Kahului and it's lunch time I'd head to the food trucks... if it's dinner I'd probably drive a little out of my way (2-3 miles) to hit a spot in Wailuku.

A specific spot?

Not spending much time in Kahului/Wailuku (other than the periodic OGG and/or Costco run), I don't have names memorized.


In Wailuku there's a good Thai place and a nice Japanese takeout type place (lunch only I believe) by a government building. Anytime I pass through Waikapu from Wailuku I always stop at the plate lunch place on Hwy 30 that overlooks the fields to the east.

I realize that this wasn't aimed at me, but I go to Maui for the weather, the beach, and because I love the HR Maui. I tolerate the food (actually, mostly I just eat bar food at the HR, which is pretty good for bar food, and is fine as far as diet goes for a couple of days)

Honolulu is the opposite. Waikiki is crowded, the Hyatts are not great, but the food is amazing. Great Japanese food everywhere, and good local food too.

I like Kauai too but getting there always seems to be expensive and a hassle compared to HNL and OGG. I will try to go back soon, though... it's been a few years.

The food is definitely better on Oahu. But that makes sense: more people, more locals. The food is also better value on the Big Island and Kauai (although my extensive Kauai experience is getting dated).

As far as weather goes, I had bad weather luck in January and February in Maui. Like I barely got to snorkel, and lots of rain. I assume it would have been the same elsewhere in Hawaii. I know people go to Hawaii to escape bad weather elsewhere in those months, but if it's a "once in a lifetime experience," I would avoid Maui in January and February. The weather is a bit risky. In contrast, I've had great weather luck over the years in March and April.

In general, bad weather can happen with a higher probability in November-March. It doesn't mean those are bad months, but May-September has higher probability of drier weather. Now, if one looks at a graph of historical rainfall by month, it really doesn't change much from Sept-Oct-Nov... or from Feb-Mar-Apr...



I always go in the Fall (work schedule allows, better prices, smaller crowds at airports and on island, etc.), and I've seen storms and power losses in October and a week of rain in March - it's weather and it's hit and miss like anywhere.


That said, the Wailea location of the Andaz does typically have drier weather (and no fog type overcast) than the West side especially Kapalua-north (and I'm always looking to hit Slaughterhouse-Honolua every chance I can).

Mini Review -Andaz Maui 3 nights in April
 

Booking
We used 25k WoH points per night. A friend was kind enough to book for us as a globalist, so we received guest of honor benefits. The property never mentioned “points” or “guest of honor” once. They gave us:

- upgrade to ocean view room
- waived resort and parking fees
- a coupon for 2 drinks and 1 dessert upon checkin (worth ~$50)
- Free breakfast for two each day
- A bottle of champagne in our room

Pros
The property is new and beautiful. Wonderful location. Everything feels new and stylish. The beach villas look absolutely stunning. Service was good but not great. WoH recognition was superb. Access to snorkels, bikes, etc. was great.

Cons
- Rooms are small
- Drinks are expensive ($20)
- The courtesy car is far less useful than we anticipated. It turns out it won’t go beyond wailea (about a 1 mile radius). We called to get picked up in keihi about 3 miles away and were told no. So that was a tad surprising.
- Service was good and we had no issues whatsoever. Everyone was friendly and efficient. *BUT* a definite step down from Park Hyatt/Aman. For example they don’t proactively have water at the beach chairs, bring you towels, etc. a bit more “DIY” than the ultra premium resorts.

——-

Overall a wonderful stay, and a huge thank you to our Globalist friend!

The property is not new.

Honestly curious...which properties in Maui (or kauai for personal preference) are newer than this 5.5 year old property? I've seen nothing but much much older properties in Wailea and Poipu. While the Andaz doesn't have that new car smell, it certainly has struck me as relatively quite new.

Didn't it used to be a Westin?

Actually, the Residence Inn by Marriott near the Andaz was built in 2016.

I think it was a Stouffer at one point, when those existed.

Andaz Maui is within the past decade new
New enough Google Maps shows the initial construction still

Less old.