We spent six days in Maui at the end of June 2023, staying at three different resorts, checking out a few others and doing a bunch of random island activities with the kids. The next month, the devastating fire in Lahaina upended the entire island, leaving so many families and individuals without homes.
As the entire island continues to recover, we feel the next best way we can offer support to Maui, after donations to the relief efforts, is to highlight a few of the hotels and places that make this island one of our favorites to visit. So this is what this Maui Strong series is about. If you’re interested in visiting Maui and need help planning your trip, let us know.
Several years ago, we stayed at the GRAND WAILEA RESORT & SPA, a Waldorf Astoria Resort with all three kids and it remained one of the older kids’ most memorable hotel stays (largely because it involved a scheme by my oldest daughter to get a bracelet for the big water slide and her little sister trying to thwart her from getting it.)
So when we headed back to Maui this past summer, the kids were absolutely dying to stay at Grand Wailea for the pool scene. But we found a few other new things to love about the resort this time around.
Inside Connecting Rooms at Napua Tower
The Napua Tower is an exclusive hotel-within-a hotel at the Grand Wailea, occupying floors 6-9. The biggest draw of this tower is that it has its own Napua Tower Lounge where guests can hang out when not in their rooms. The lounge serves as a private check-in area and also where guests can grab small bites and snacks throughout the day. These aren’t necessarily hearty enough or filling enough but should tide you over in between meals and activities.
We stayed in a connecting Napua Tower room with two queen beds connecting to a king room bed with a pull-out couch. Perfect for a family of five or six!
Overall, we loved the rooms but it is a little further from the pool scene so if that’s your number one priority book a room near the lagoon side of the hotel.
Where to Eat
There are many new things at Grand Wailea, largely with the dining scene. First up, there’s the new Olivine restaurant, right off the pool. The Italian restaurant is open for lunch and dinner, and for an “intermezzo” time from 3-5pm, but is far more upscale than the usual poolside fare, serving oysters, wood-oven pizza and delicious pastas.
Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa, the resort’s delightful dinner restaurant, is also about to reopen this month (December 2023) after a major refurbishment. For your one night out at dinner at the resort, this is the place to be. It sits in the middle of the resort’s famous lagoon and now, it has an all-new menu.
Right near the beach is a new food truck style concept called Aloha Trick Pony serving tacos, nachos and other ono-licious pool bite. We also love the Botero Lounge in the Grand Wailea’s beautiful lobby where you can indulge in super fresh sushi amidst incredible Fernando Botero sculptures.
Lastly, you’re gonna want to stop in at the Loulou market, not just because they have amazing smoothies and meals but because this is also the only outpost in Hawaii of the social-media famous all-natural, organic grocer, Erewhon . See our TikTok below.
What to Do
The main attraction of this property—-the water features—-are as popular as ever, including the lazy river, Tarzan rope swing, several waterslides, a special wading area just for babies and a swim-up grotto for adults. Just note: you will need to get a wristband every day for pool access so we suggest making that your first order of business as soon as the pool opens.
There’s also an adults-only pool but as per usual on this trip, we didn’t get to check it out so we settled for having a drink at the swim-up bar while the kids swam nearby.
Surrounding the beach and pool area are several games for kids and adults to play such as oversized chess and corn hole.
And of course, there’s the beach itself. You’ll have access to beach chairs and towels and you can sign up for additional activities such as paddle-boarding or Outrigger Canoe Tours.
One very cool thing about Grand Wailea is that you can also take complimentary dive classes here as they reserve a section of their pool just for this. It’s actually the only scuba training pool located at a resort in all of Hawaii and it’s run by Dive Wailea. You have to be 12 and older to partake in the lessons so it’s a great option for older kids.
READ MORE ABOUT THE GRAND WAILEA POOL SCENE HERE
What to Know
One big change that will affect families is the discontinuation of the kids club. That’s currently being reworked but if you’re looking to go in between now and December, there won’t be a place to drop the kids off for a day or a morning. Instead the property is running weekly cultural activities for which kids can participate in as well as offering their “Grand Passport”, an activity booklet of things to do and see around the property.
Even though the beach and pool scene at Grand Wailea can get jam-packed the property is massive, meaning you’ll be able to find places to chill out and relax throughout. But this is why spending a little more for The Napua Tower was worth it as it gave us this dreamy spot, pictured above, to spend the morning, practically alone.
DID YOU KNOW? The Grand Wailea Resort in Maui is part of Virtuoso which means guests who book through a Virtuoso travel advisor like myself will receive added amenities during their stay such as daily breakfast, $100 resort credit, welcome amenity, room upgrade and more. Please email me when you’d like to go! Aloha!
Need help planning a trip to Maui? I helped write the Condé Nast Traveler guide on Maui and would love to plan a trip for you to my favorite isle. Start filling out your trip wish list here and I’ll be in touch!
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