Kamaole Nalu Oceanfront Resort — Hotel in Maui

We stayed at Kamaole Nalu #501 for two weeks in January 2022. The building is privately owned condos which have managed vacation rentals from various agents. We booked through Maui Roost, a local property management company on Maui. Maui Roost was a pleasure to deal with and everything was up front and well-explained. They seem to take a personal interest in the properties they represent, and we met Julie, the owner of Maui Roost the day we checked in. She was dropping some things off at the unit and thought we’d be checking in later, so it was just coincidence.||The building: this property is older and while it is kept up, it’s clear that they have not updated certain things and those things are probably regulated by the HOA to keep the outward appearance uniform, so individual owners cannot make upgrades if they want (just a guess). The biggest example are the windows. They are old glass flapper-slat type windows with beaten-up screens that fit poorly and look old. All units appear to have these so I’m sure it’s not something that can be fixed unless they replace them all in the entire building. As advertised, there is no “built-in” A/C allowed in the building, so our condo had a portable standing floor unit, which we never used anyway as we enjoy open windows and fresh air. In January this isn’t a problem because it’s cool enough at night to sleep comfortably.||Our unit was nice enough for us, but it hasn’t been updated like some of the others in the building. I thought the price was very fair given the lack of updates, but if you’re picky about newer appliances and fixtures etc., you’re going to have to pay more to find those. There were ample kitchen/dining items such as pots, pans, utensils, etc., and even some consumables like plastic bags, foil, dish & dishwasher soap, and even some cooking staples like olive oil, etc.||Our unit, #501, was the rearmost unit (closest to street) as are all the x01 units. The x06 units are the end units closest to the ocean. Even being at the “back”, 501 has a great view of the ocean and we watched whale activity easily every day from our balcony. The only drawback to being further back is the noise from the main road. During the day and evening it’s loud, but by 9PM or so it starts to quiet down, and we slept with the windows open every night, and but for the occasional loud car there was no noise except the waves crashing onto Kamaole II beach! You can only hear the ocean from the “master” on the south side of the unit; the other room only experiences road noise, and this will be the case in every unit in this building due to its layout and construction. Parking issues have been noted in other reviews, and the spots are narrow but we had no problem with a 4-door Jeep Wrangler. A full-size SUV would be difficult to park here.||The sunset can be seen from the balcony, and during winter months it's not at the edge of your viewing angles. I suspect that in summer when the sun sets further to the NW, it may be at the edge of what you can see, or not be viewable from the balcony. The sunsets from the common grassy area oceanfront are unbeatable! We’ve been to the 4 main Hawaiian islands and stayed on Maui 3 times; 2 in Ka’anapali, and this stay in Kihei. I fly for an airline and have stayed in Kihei many times on layovers. I can attest that the sunsets in Kihei are some of the best in all of Hawaii! They are unobstructed by Lanai like they are on the west side of Maui! On our trip we saw FIVE green flashes from our condo’s grassy area next to the ocean! There are very few places in Kihei that are right on the ocean, most are across the main road. The location of this property in Kihei is also one of the best (at least for us, YMMV) in terms of convenience. Walking distance to tons of restaurants and stores, a big ABC store across the street, and groceries nearby by car. And the beaches! Located between Kamaole I and Kamaole II and you can walk to either along the shore across the neighboring condos property (a legal public right-of-way access). Kamaole I is huge and you can always find a place to spend the day without being on top of other beachgoers. Kamaole II is a bit closer walk, and is narrower, but even less people.||Rooms: Master is on the south side. Lots of sun exposure during the day so it can get warm. Shower and toilet in a “water closet” with a door for privacy, adequate sized but not huge. Queen bed. One dresser and two nightstands, could really use a bigger dresser, though. Large closet. Sink area is along entrance to room and open to room. Second BR is on north side of unit. Noisy from street during the day. One double bed and one twin; poor arrangement for two couple traveling together but I understand why most, if not all units in this building, do this, for families with multiple kids who need more beds. Same shower/toilet arrangement as master, but very small space. Same sink arrangement as master. One larger dresser and one nightstand between the beds. Same closet as master.||Miscellaneous: There were 3 sets of snorkel gear which we didn’t use as we don’t snorkel well! There were several boogie boards. There were 4 very nice Tommy Bahama beach chairs and another just so-so chair. The beach umbrella was a bit small, and I’d recommend renting one of the nice big 8-foot Tommy Bahama ones from the guy in the kiosk in front of Moose McGillicuddy’s down the street ($6/day or $27/week!). The unit had a Roku TV with cable, and good internet with wi-fi.||All in all, we really liked Kamaole Nalu #501 and would stay again. Maui Roost was great to deal with and I wouldn’t hesitate to do business with them again! The unit is a bit dated as are some aspects of the entire building, but for what you get for the cost it’s a great deal IMO and nothing was a deal-breaker...

You can not have a better location for your stay in Kihei.

However since the units are individually owned it is the owner's responsibility to update and provide the necessary fixtures there is no guarantee on what you will find. They issues with our unit #606, several of the screens on the windows weren't fixed properly and were held in with duct tape; most of the unit was beyond just needing to have its paint touched up but rather to be repainted; the mirrors on the walls were so old the reflective stuff behind was corroding away; all of the knives were so dull there was basically no point in using them.

There were good things though, the bathrooms were in good shape, the linens provided (towels, sheets etc.), were nice, the cleaning company did a resasonable job preparing for our arrival and there was plenty of plates, bowls etc.

The property manager for the building during our stay was unfortunately not much better. When we arrived Sunday night there was a note on the elevator that "it isn't happy and you'll just need to push the door a bit to open it. The elevator company will be here tomorrow to fix. Mahalo." Tomorrow turned came no repairs and the note was updated but said the same thing but with that days date. This happened once more then the note just stopped being put up and the elevator was never fixed before we left seven days later. Really they didn't seem to care much about it either.

The grounds and pool are maintained well (Patrick was the maintenance guys name, super nice guy).

Unfortunately this building is in probably the best location in Kihei so people (probably us too) will continue to stay and pay so there is little business incentive for them to change their ways and fix these issues.

This my family's attempt to start a movement of change at Kamaole Nalu as we would hate to see it become an old has been of a...

We stayed for one week at Kamaole Nalu 603. The highlights were: the beachfront location, hearing the waves crashing 24-7, nice pool, the adjacent swimming beach where we saw turtles every day, and easy access to shops, restaurants, other beach parks, etc. Beds were very comfortable, towels were nice and there was room to put our things. If you are looking for a place to crash and spend a lot of time exploring the island, this could be your place.||Cons: If you are seeking privacy, this is not the place to stay. All lanais have a great view of the ocean. However, many lanais are in full view of each other and they are situated right next to the bedroom of the unit next door. Since there is no AC, everyone had heir windows open in order for the breeze to cool their units. We could see into the unit next door and could hear voices and life noises late at night and early in the morning. (Nobody was being rude, just enjoying their vacations.) With windows open, the area around the elevator was especially noisy, with people using their outside voices.The unit is showing its age and could use a deep cleaning. The kitchen is poorly equipped with barely room for one person to move around. If you plan to cook, bring your own spices, etc. There was salt, pepper, and Johnny's. The preparation for our arrival seemed incomplete. For example, the dishwasher from the previous guests had not been emptied and some dishes were still dirty. ||We chose to go with a local management company vs. an internet service this time. We have stayed at four other rentals in the Kihei area and Kamaole Nalu was by far the most expensive. We do understand that the pandemic has caused inflation, etc. but comparing apples to apples, this was not...