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daredevil · 01-01-2012, 01:57 PM

My wife is a westjetter, so we frequent the Islands.
We have a 5 year old and a 2 year old, so we're in your same boat for travel needs.
First you need to decide if you want to cook your own meals or eat out.
IMO that determines condo vs hotel.

I guess my main advice is this:
We've been to Hawaii about a dozen times with the kids, we've had a great time regardless of the price per night. When we get back we've always thought that spending 300/night doesn't make the trip 2x better than spending 150/night.

We've had great luck doing the name your price priceline thing, but are pretty familliar with the area (and last minute travel) so might be a little more flexible than the average traveller.

As mentioned Honua Kai is a nice property (great walking paths for kids), we stayed there in May for a week. It was supposed to be the be all end all of family properties. It is pricey and is BY FAR the windiest property we have ever stayed in and one of the most expensive. It's on the end of the Island, and there is a different wind that passes through there that you won't find just anywhere (ask the locals).

There is a grocery store close by, but there is also a construction site next door.

What we found is that the kids area at the Maui Kaanapali Hyatt (same trip) was one of the best we've encountered. (pricelined for $127/Night) Plus they have animals (all sorts of birds and penguins on the grounds (even a Macy's in the hotel). Also a great place to walk around.

As you've experienced VRBO is the place to go if you want a condo experience.
We've stayed all over the Island and have never really had a "bad" experience at any condo's, but beware if you get a "non-renovated" room you'll be walking straight back into 80's polynesian theme. The condos/rooms in Kehei tend to be older. There are really great beaches in Kehei like Kama'ole Beach and there is a park there if you want to supervize your toddler. Wailea is more pricey as you know.

You can't go wrong on Ka'anapli side, great beaches. We bought a 7 night stay at Ka'anapali beach club from Ebay for $500. Figured we couldn't lose for the price. (#38 of 50 on tripadvisor, which is lower ranking that we like to try and it was still decent, the Restarant had $2 kids meals).

Our routine is usually, hit Trip advisor read the reviews for the top 15 or so in the area, then cross reference prices on VRBO.

We also tend to focus on reviews from Western Canadians as they tend to have a more familliar "grounded" sense of reality.

Good luck!

01-01-2012, 01:57 PM	#19
daredevil Scoring Winger Join Date: Jul 2002 Exp:	My wife is a westjetter, so we frequent the Islands. We have a 5 year old and a 2 year old, so we're in your same boat for travel needs. First you need to decide if you want to cook your own meals or eat out. IMO that determines condo vs hotel. I guess my main advice is this: We've been to Hawaii about a dozen times with the kids, we've had a great time regardless of the price per night. When we get back we've always thought that spending 300/night doesn't make the trip 2x better than spending 150/night. We've had great luck doing the name your price priceline thing, but are pretty familliar with the area (and last minute travel) so might be a little more flexible than the average traveller. As mentioned Honua Kai is a nice property (great walking paths for kids), we stayed there in May for a week. It was supposed to be the be all end all of family properties. It is pricey and is BY FAR the windiest property we have ever stayed in and one of the most expensive. It's on the end of the Island, and there is a different wind that passes through there that you won't find just anywhere (ask the locals). There is a grocery store close by, but there is also a construction site next door. What we found is that the kids area at the Maui Kaanapali Hyatt (same trip) was one of the best we've encountered. (pricelined for $127/Night) Plus they have animals (all sorts of birds and penguins on the grounds (even a Macy's in the hotel). Also a great place to walk around. As you've experienced VRBO is the place to go if you want a condo experience. We've stayed all over the Island and have never really had a "bad" experience at any condo's, but beware if you get a "non-renovated" room you'll be walking straight back into 80's polynesian theme. The condos/rooms in Kehei tend to be older. There are really great beaches in Kehei like Kama'ole Beach and there is a park there if you want to supervize your toddler. Wailea is more pricey as you know. You can't go wrong on Ka'anapli side, great beaches. We bought a 7 night stay at Ka'anapali beach club from Ebay for $500. Figured we couldn't lose for the price. (#38 of 50 on tripadvisor, which is lower ranking that we like to try and it was still decent, the Restarant had $2 kids meals). Our routine is usually, hit Trip advisor read the reviews for the top 15 or so in the area, then cross reference prices on VRBO. We also tend to focus on reviews from Western Canadians as they tend to have a more familliar "grounded" sense of reality. Good luck!