Which is the best hotel in Maui? Wailea Beach Resort Marriott Vs. Andaz Maui Vs Hyatt Regency Maui Resort And Spa? We think the Andaz is the best, followed by the Wailea Marriott Beach Resort as they are both located in exclusive and sunny Wailea. If you are traveling with your family, the Wailea Marriott Beach Resort might be your top pick, as it has an incredible pool and slide area for the kids.
1. Best Beach: Wailea Marriott Beach Resort Vs. Andaz Vs. Hyatt Regency Maui
The Andaz has the best beach! The resort is beachfront and on an exclusive bay in Wailea. The Wailea Beach Resort Marriott shares the same beach as Four Seasons Maui at Wailea. While the beach is the same for the two hotels, the accessibility and setup for the Marriott is less simple.
The Wailea Beach Resort Marriott’s beach is right on the other side of this bay. The ocean in front of the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott is rocky, so if you book an ocean-front room, you will have fabulous views, but if you walk towards the water, you will reach craggy black rocks rather than a beach. This is because the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott is built on a rocky headland, and the beach it shares with the Four Seasons is to the left of the resort when facing out to sea rather than in front of the resort.
Why does the position of the beach matter? Because the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott is an enormous resort built up a steep hill. If you book one of the base rooms by the check-in desk, you are a fairly long walk from the beach, so much so that you may prefer to use the pools over the beach as you might not be bothered to walk the distance to the beach in the heat every time you want a dip.
The beach at the Andaz is great and is right in front of the hotel. Simple and excellent.
The Hyatt Regency Maui Resort And Spa is a beachfront resort, and the beach is easily accessible from all of the rooms. This and the Andaz are your best hotels for easy beach access, although the beach can be busy in front of the Hyatt.
2. Best Pool
At the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott, there is a great children’s pool with multiple long, curvy slides that deliver you into a tropical paradise-themed pool. The slides at the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott are brilliant for children and arguably offer a better children’s pool experience than the pools at Four Seasons, although your kids may hate the lengthy and steep walk from their room to and from the pools and beach. We think this is the best pool area of the three hotels.
At the Andaz, the pools are layered on terraces down to the sea. There are three ocean-facing, cascading infinity pools, a lagoon pool, and an adult tranquility pool for guests 18 and over.
The Hyatt has a busy freeform tropical pool with waterfalls and caves. It’s right on the beachfront, but we prefer the fun at the Marriott in Wailea.
3. Best Style
The Andaz is youthfully and stylish, and we think the best style of these three hotels. The Hyatt feels nice but very Hyatt. The Wailea Beach Marriott is modern but spread out.
4. Best Best Bar
The Andaz has a great youthful bar, and both the Andaz and the Four Seasons offer more stylish bar areas than the Marriott.
The Wailea Beach Resort Marriott does have a bar, which is OK, but wherever you stay, the bar at the Four Seasons is the place to watch the sun go down. You can walk to the Four Seasons from the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott.
The Hyatt has a nice bar, but we prefer the bar at the Andaz or Four Seasons near the Marriott.
5. Best Rooms
This is a tough one. I prefer the style of the rooms at the Andaz and Wailea Beach Resort Marriott, but the Marriott rooms are very spread out, and if you get a room at the back of the resort, everything can be quite a walk downhill and, worse, a walk back from the beach or pool uphill.
At Wailea Beach Resort Marriott, the rooms are layered in mainly two-floor buildings arranged on terraces down to the sea. While the views can be excellent at the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott, you do need to book a decent room to get these views. We recommend the rooms right by the waterfront. The base rooms at the Wailea Beach Resort Marriott are pleasant with traditional balconies, but they are set a long way from the sea and the beach.
The Andaz rooms are stylish, and you can book an ocean view. We like these rooms. At the Hyatt, the rooms are very Hyatt in design, but you can book into the ocean view rooms, which have fantastic views.
6. Club Lounge
Crucially, the Andaz and Marriott do not have a club floor, so if you are looking for an exclusive club lounge experience, the Hyatt is the one to pick.
The Regency Club Lounge at the Hyatt Regency Maui has recently been redesigned and moved to the lobby level of this hotel, which means that it now benefits from a large outdoor terrace with ocean views and the resort’s gardens.
The lounge features over 3,000 ft² of space. Amenities include a continental breakfast every morning, refreshments, and snacks throughout the day, with light hors d’oeuvres and desserts in the evening. Alcoholic beverages are chargeable but discounted.
You must book a Regency Club room to get access to the lounge or be a high tier in their loyalty scheme. Regency Club rooms have better views and are on higher floors of the hotel. We prefer the exclusivity and incredible food offered in the Ritz-Carlton Club Lounge.
7. Location
We prefer sunny Wailea, where the Marriott and Andaz can be found. The Hyatt on Kaanapali offers a great beach, but Kaanapali feels less exclusive than Wailea.
8. Grounds
The Hyatt and the Marriott have extensive grounds. The grounds at the Andaz feel smaller, but it is beachfront, so it is swings and roundabouts.
9. Resort Fee
All three hotels charge a resort fee.
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