The Ritz-Carlton Kapalua in Kapalua, HI

I’ve read a lot of the reviews on this site that caused me to be dubious about coming here, but we had an excellent experience. Here are a few things to set the record straight: -Our room was beautiful and not dated in any way. -The cleaning was impeccable. There was not a stray hair or dust anywhere. -Maid service is performed daily, without requesting it. -Turn down is available upon request. -The bath towels are super plush and absorbent. -The pool lounges are covered with a terry cloth sheet. The pool towels are in fine shape. We chose to use the Club Level. The food was more varied and generous than some other Club Levels I’ve visited on the mainland. The hosts there really make the experience. Leilani watched over us with great care, anticipating our every need. Leena heard every request my husband made, followed up in a timely manner and then checked in the next day to make sure he had received everything he requested. It’s such a gift to have that kind of service these days, and these ladies exhibit the true Ritz motto- Ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen. Well done.

We just completed another fabulous vacation at the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua Maui. The resort and resort grounds are beautiful and serene. The people working there are amazing… friendly and welcoming. Upon arriving we were greeted and given a lei and a beverage by the guest relations team. Check-In was quick and easy with the help of Margie at the Front Desk. Our room (suite) was large and beautiful. The bed was very comfortable and we had very nice ocean front view. Daily housekeeping did a wonderful job. Our package included Club Lounge access. Highly recommend. The Club Lounge is beautiful and the food is excellent, especially breakfast with an omelette chef. The team working there (led by Laura) is amazing… great service, friendly greetings and conversation, and helpful. They treated us royally and we felt spoiled! Lots of activities onsite or close by including golf, hiking, biking, pools, beach, luau, family activities like ukulele lesson, lei making, hula lessons, etc. The resort publishes a daily activity list and/or the on-site concierge can help with reservations and tours. We have attended the on-site luau a couple of times and totally enjoyed it each time. The food is very good and the show is magnificent! We’re looking forward to our next visit to the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua Maui.

The Ritz Carlton Maui is hands down one of the best properties in the world. We have stayed here about 6 times totaling about 60 nights over the last few years including getting married on property here in 2021. The property is fantastic in every way possible. It has a wonderful location in Kapalua, it has access to one of the best beaches, the grounds are gorgeous, rooms are elegantly done, and has one of the best lounges of any Ritz Carlton in the world. What makes this property particularly special though is its people many of which have been with the property for 20 plus years. This includes Margie at the front desk, Elma the best housekeeper ever, and Ms. Fisher in the lounge who is one of our all time favorite people. The management team is top notch led by the new GM Mr. Gersonde and Hotel Manager Ms. Lee. The Director of Rooms Ms. Stancil is excellent. The entire lounge team members led by Bella and Ms. Fisher and including team members Trevor, Leena, now part time Albert are the best lounge associates you can possible have. The food and drinks in the lounge are great. The other restaurants are incredible including Banyan Tree and the lobby lounge. The entire team always makes us feel warmly welcomed in every possible way and treated as though we are family which is sincerely appreciated. They always go above and beyond to take such great care of us ever for the impeccably high Ritz Carlton standards which speaks volumes of the people here. The regional leader for Marriott Mr. Kimball is fantastic too. You would regret not staying at this special property if you visit Hawaii as nothing else compares to the genuine people and the beauty of the property itself!

This hotel was nice in some ways, but in others didn’t live up to the brand. The proximity to the ocean was great, and the beach was lovely. We appreciated that as Bonvoy members (Titanium Elite – we stay in Bonvoy hotels a lot!) we were able to use at no extra charge beach chairs and an umbrella, which staff at the beach helpfully set up. Overall, staff were friendly. It was pleasant to be greeted by nearly every employee with an “aloha.” The beds were very comfortable, and the blackout window coverings were much appreciated. So where did the hotel disappoint? For starters, with the room description. We had booked a “deluxe ocean view” room and discovered the description of “ocean view” was very misleading. It should have said “ocean view balcony,” because that’s where the view was. You had to step onto the balcony and turn to see the ocean (and look down to see the very popular pool area). From the room, one had a view of palm trees and the other side of the hotel – but not the ocean. When we asked about it, we were told “all the rooms, except the ocean front rooms, have a partial ocean view.” Not a great way to start a special visit. On the plus side, Margie at the reception desk was super nice and offered to move us to an ocean front room after our first night when she noticed that the upgrade we’d been offered the day before wasn’t really an upgrade. We accepted and appreciated her offer. She warned us that the room had a connecting door; fortunately, our neighbors quieted down around 11 p.m. each of the nights we were there. We could hear everything from the room next to ours. The connecting door had a huge gap at the top, and wasn’t very well insulated. But we had a full-on ocean view, which made up for it. Some other concerns. The brand promises luxury but a few times it didn’t live up to that promise. For example, there was no turn-down service. There was daily housekeeping, available upon request, however. Our package included breakfast, which, we learned when we arrived at the breakfast restaurant the first morning, was the buffet. The buffet was ok, but didn’t include any items to order other than beverages. (There was an omelet station, however.) We thought we could at least order eggs Benedict, but our server said that would be extra – or, if we chose not to have the buffet, the hotel would apply a $30 per person credit to each person’s breakfast. Eggs Benedict off the menu was $38. Even with the price of eggs (which were available at the omelet station), to charge guests in a luxury hotel for an order of eggs Benedict seems… not at all luxurious. One more disappointment: The décor is tired. The brown and gold brought us back to the 90s, carpeting in the stairway is worn, and wood trim and case goods are badly dinged. The Banyan Tree restaurant is in need of a refresh. A coat of paint and some new chairs would be good. Would we stay here again? Probably not. It was nice enough in some ways but not enough in our opinion to live up to the Ritz brand.

Mixed reviews on this hotel. Biggest issue is the service level is WAY lower than I have come to expect from a Ritz. I don’t normally write long reviews, but I was so disappointed I want to take the time to let people know what’s going on before they book. SERVICE: Brandon at the pool and Alex at breakfast are both exceptional servers who care about customers and their job. Housekeeping was also responsive. Otherwise, often could not get a server to help us without hunting them down. Breakfast buffet food was often empty or low and not refilled. Sat in bar for sushi and drinks and no one came to our table. After 30 min we went to bar to order ourselves. Other than the I’m writing my review right now the buffet not filling the food and not having servers around what are the other service complaint and then having to go to the bar to get a drink cause no one came to us what are the other any other service issues. GROUNDS: beautiful. Great areas to walk and hike nearby. HOTEL ROOM: dated. Crumbs on floor that were not ours. Dust on tables. POOL: not heated, thin and flimsy towels way below any other Ritz I’ve been to. The refillable water bottles and filling stations are great. FOOD: Ordered salads two different days at pool and the lettuce was inedible and brown/black. Rest of the food is give a 7/10.