Destinations

I just returned from an event at the Fairmont Kea Lani in Maui. I stayed at the Kea Lani when it was a fairly new hotel - it’s hard to believe they’ve been open for 18 years now.

I stayed in room 610, which was a nice suite on the highest floor in that wing. It directly overlooked the pool area with a wonderful ocean view. All rooms at the Kea Lani are suites, with a minimum of 840 square feet, so they are quite spacious. The rooms are no longer white and cream as when they first opened, but now have a nice amount of color - all of the soft goods have been refurbished. The cabanas are now blue (they used to be white), so the entire hotel has a softer feel than it used to.

The service was next to 100% across the board, except for some minor inefficiencies at the pool bar and a small incident with the concierge. One of the female concierges sent us off to a Korean B-B-Q restaurant when we had clearly asked for Sushi, but it turned out well in the end.

When we pulled up in our rental car on the first day, the bellman knew our names and were waiting to check us in. It was very impressive and was a great start to the week.

In general, it was a great experience. The service was outstanding and the food was excellent, even down to the cappuccinos. I even overheard a conversation the General Manager was having with one of his staff members and learned that they donate the half-used bottles of bath products to a local women’s shelter. They also send their engineer out to the facility once a week to fix anything that might be broken. In addition, all of the edible food is donated to a food bank and inedible food is given to the local pig farm. It felt good to be staying at a resort that took pride and actively participated in their local community.

I would give the Fairmont Kea Lani a 5 out of 5 stars! Have you stayed here? Tell us what you think by leaving a comment.