Wailea Maui gets better and better!

In my early days of travel, I visited Hawaii numerous times. In fact, I thought of it as a home away from home! But having had limited experience with other tropical destinations, what did I know? 

Well, after 30 years of extensive travel, I can tell you that Hawaii is No Ka Oi. (is the best.) 
I constantly hear people say that the long flights discourage them from Hawaii in favor of Florida, Mexico and the Caribbean. But, in my view, some things are well worth the effort - and Hawaii is! 

Except for Waikiki, Hawaii is a relaxed and atmospheric place that is always hard to leave. The Hawaiian people are the most gracious on Earth - and that goes for the "Mainlanders" that now call Hawaii home. From the moment you step off the plane, the aroma of orchids and other tropical flora make it clear that you have just arrived at a very special place! 

On our last visit to Maui, we returned to a Wailea Beach resort where we had stayed over 18 years earlier. It indeed was like coming home. If you are "thinking Hawaii", I would be happy to share our experience and give you some things tips. Email me.

Finally, if you are a golfer, Wailea area courses are spectacular. The picture I use in the "About Me" panel of this blog was taken at the Gold Course at Wailea. 
Happy Landings,

Dick

Tips for a Perfect Maui Vacation

I recently met a guy who had just returned from a 25th Anniversary trip in Hawaii. (Wailea, Maui to be exact.) He and his wife were very disappointed with their gorgeous 5-Star resort. (You may ask how anyone could be "disappointed" with a 5-Star hotel?) The place was beautiful, the service was great… the problem was that it was crawling with families with small children!

Your first thought might be that this mainly impacted their time at the pool or on the beach but it affected the entire experience. They knew immediately that they were in trouble - upon settling into their room and changing into tropical clothing they went to the lobby bar for an "Aloha Cocktail". There were a number of preschool-age kids running around the lobby area just 30 feet from them. One was yelling at a sibling; the sibling was crying. How's that for romantic?

My 'new' friend related that the restaurants were very nice and the food was excellent but, again, they were far from relaxing or romantic. He added that the menus reflected the nature of their clientele.

As it happens, there is another 5-Star resort hotel right next door and I have stayed at both over the years. The ambiance of the two could not possibly be more opposite. Years ago, both were elegant... now one remains so with an adult clientele while the other began marketing itself to family vacations a few years earlier.

If you look at the websites of both, you will not be able to distinguish between them. Both look fabulously classy with pictures that could possibly be interchanged. The only hint, if you have a trained eye, is the water slide in the distant background of one pool picture. A good travel consultant (like any of mine at Gateway Express/Acendas Vacations) would have known the difference and saved this fellow's trip!

Cheers,

Dick

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Hawaii: No Ka Oi

No Ka Oi means "Is the Best". And it remains so. In my 35 years in travel, I've constantly seen the trending go from one pace to another. But, in the long view, all roads lead back to the "Islands of Aloha". The reasons are many...

1. First and foremost, it's the people! No people on Earth are as friendly and accommodating as the Hawaiian people.  But, it goes beyond "friendly"... the Hawaiian people (including those "mainlanders" who now make their homes in the Islands) are impeccably trained in hospitality. They know what you expect in terms of service efficiency - and they deliver!
2. Then, it's the climate!  Unlike most other tropical sun destinations where summer weather is unbearable, Hawaii enjoys temperatures in the 80's with Trade Winds year-around.
3. Hawaii smells great!  When you get off the plane, the aroma of Orchids and other flora treat your senses like few other places in the world. You know you have arrived in paradise!
4. The poverty and squalor found in most sun destinations is totally absent in Hawaii. you won't see junked out cars along the side of the road (the same burned out car you saw there on your last visit 3 years prior).
5. You won't get hustled by time-share sellers at the airport or by beach vendors. You don't need to haggle in the shops.
6. No passports, no currency exchange, no language barriers and no concerns over where it's safe to eat or what to drink.
7. Hawaii is a Golf Mecca. A round of golf on a world-class course is half the price of other sunbelt destinations. I can give you some specifics if you contact me.

As you can see, I'm passionate about Hawaii. At my travel agency, we are constantly sending clients off to Hawaii - while I get to sit here in snowy Minnesota. I am tormented!!!!

Aloha!

Dick

Booking Your Vacation On-Line

Here's some free advice for those who enjoy combing the websites for their vacation package...

There are many perils to on-line booking unless you absolutely know the destination and the resort from from personal RECENT experience. So, if you are going to shop for yourself, here are some things be mindful of:

First, do you know WHERE you want to go? We've seen so many instances of people going to an absolutely wrong destination for their personal interests and lifestyle.

Second, (assuming you have chosen the right destination) different resorts (or cruise lines) may "look" similar on the websites but there are distinct differences in their ambiance, their quality and their clientele. These can make or break your vacation experience!

Third, trusting the pictures and information found on web sites can be a fatal mistake. Photoshopped pictures, very old pictures, bogus testimonials on Trip Advisor and other such sites and deceptive pricing are the major areas of concern.

For more detail, here is a paper I wrote on this subject.

Go ahead and have fun searching... but then, why not enlist a travel professional to review your selection before you hit the "Buy" button. 99% of the time, they will be able to book the very same vacation for you at the same price - and no additional charges. Some agencies now provide a "Trip Validation Service". For a nominal Advisory Fee (my agency charges $75), they will "validate" that you have made a correct choice - and that the price shown is valid (no tricks or hidden charges). With a professional opinion supporting your selection, you can go ahead and "Buy" with confidence.

Cheers,

Dick

On-Line Travel Booking is FUN!

A speaker at an annual Travel Industry Conference in Las Vegas asked the room full of agency owners and managers why people book their trips on-line. We came up with several theories which all seemed to point back to a common theme: Because they think it's cheaper. We were all "close, but no cigar". At least according to this market research analyst.

He said their findings conclude that they do so because it's fun! Well, you could have heard a pin drop in the room! To travel professionals who spend 40 to 50 hours a week doing this for a living, it is anything but fun. I started to think through some of our experiences...

A close relative who buys everything on-line including meat and tropical fish called me a year ago as he was researching a cruise vacation for 2 couples. They settled upon a great deal on a given Princess sailing. We checked into it and found a price that was $172 per person lower for the very same cabins! In addition, through our affiliation with Vacation.com, each couple got a complimentary bottle of wine and two plush robes to take home.

Last week he emailed me again... this time because he had just discovered that airfares have risen considerably. Best he could find to Fort Myers or Tampa for a week at their timeshare in December was $537 per person. We found and booked them on an air & car package for $496 per person including a luxury class car for the week!

Maybe you can buy commodities such as tropical fish or DVD's cheaper online but travel is NOT cheaper on the net. The net is great for "kicking tires"... we all look around online. But, our mantra is "Look, but Don't Book"!!!!!!

Cheers,

Dick

Don't Make a Vacation Decision based on Web Pictures!

I played golf yesterday with a guy who had just returned from a 25th Anniversary trip in Hawaii. (Wailea, Maui to be exact.) He and his wife were very disappointed with their gorgeous 5-Star resort hotel. (You may ask how anyone could be "disappointed" with a 5-Star hotel?) The place was beautiful, the service was great... and it was crawling with families with small children!

Your first thought might be that this mainly impacted their time at the pool or on the beach but it affected the entire experience. They knew immediately that they were in trouble - upon settling into their room and changing into tropical clothing they went to the lobby bar for an "Aloha Cocktail". There were a number of preschool-age kids running around the lobby area just 30 feet from them. One was yelling at a sibling; the sibling was crying. How's that for romantic?

This fellow, whom I had just met on the first tee, related that the restaurants were very nice and the food was excellent but, again, they were far from relaxing or romantic. He added that the menus reflected the nature of their clientele.

As it happens, there is another 5-Star resort hotel right next door and I have stayed at both over the years. The ambiance of the two could not possibly be more opposite. Years ago, both were elegant... now one remains so with an adult clientele while the other began marketing to family vacations a few years ago.

If you look at the websites of both, you will not be able to distinguish between them. Both look fabulously classy with pictures that could possibly be interchanged. The only hint, if you have a trained eye, is a water slide in the distant background of one pool picture. A good travel consultant (like my agency - Gateway Express Travel) would have known the difference and saved this fellow's trip!

Cheers,

Dick

To comment, please click the "comments" link below, type in your comments then, under “Choose an Identity”, select “Nickname" if you want to leave a name (your name or a ‘blog handle’) or just leave it blank. OR, you can select ‘Anonymous’. I would love to hear from you!

Maui Vacations...
The Grand Wailea Maui might surprise you!
As I shared in my last post, my wife and I absolutely adore Hawaii and get a chance to visit every few years - not nearly enough! But with the distractions of running our business and managing two teenagers and a puppy, that's all we have seemed to manage in recent years. Having stayed at the Grand Hyatt Wailea in it's first year of existence 14 years earlier, we were looking forward to a "return engagement". It indeed was a little like coming home. Although it is longer affiliated with Hyatt we found it to be everything we remembered... and more. Among the "more" were some things that were not to our liking. Among the things we expected was the cordial service, the fabulous Spa and the gorgeous grounds. And in those areas we were not disappointed. But there were a few things that surprised us as well. Unbeknown to us, this resort has heavily marketed itself to families with young children. Because of the many water slides throughout the pool areas the place was crawling with kids! Along with that shift in focus, we discovered that fine dining was no longer a part of the Grand Wailea Resort. For instance, the main restaurant overlooking the grounds from just off the lobby area - one that we fondly remembered - no longer is open for dinner. Thankfully, the Four Seasons Resort just next door and the Fairmont Kea Lani just down the beach provided us numerous options for fine dining with an adult atmosphere!
Despite all this the Grand Wailea is still a wonderful place although it is definitely showing its age. I would recommend it heartily - to families with young children!!!