I thought that this was one of the nicer hotels I have ever stayed in. I booked a studio that overlooked the ocean and was perfectly happy with all aspects of my stay. The room was nice, the view was amazing, the staff were friendly and there was an Expedia-Local Expert booking agent on the premises for finding activities.

The grounds were pleasant and they loaned you beach towels, snorkles and masks so you could swim right out into the bay and watch fish swimming in the coral.

The resteraunt at the hotel was delicious but a bit pricey, so I just didn't eat there more then once. If you can't find decent food in Maui, then you are not looking.

If you are looking for small, quiet, out-of-the-way resort, Napili Kai is it. No high rise hotels, no big shopping malls, no packed beaches. The resort is sprawled over numerous acres on a beautiful quiet beach. This corner of the island tends to get more clouds, but a quick 5 minute drive south gets you to sunny beachs again. The resort is not "fancy" but it is quite comfortable, and all the amenities are above average (spa, pool, restuarant). The kid's hula show on Tuesday is a MUST see!

We (myself, my husband and our one year old) stayed at Napili Kai for a week in May 2008. We are used to staying in 4-5 star resorts but decided to go with a condo this time since we had the baby with us. We stayed in the Lani II Building on the suggestion of the reservations agent. I specifically stated that I wanted an updated unit and not a dated worn out looking one.

The room was on the second floor of the Lani II building which is the one further back from the ocean. It had a gorgeous view and a lanai that spanned the length of the living room and the bedroom with sliding glass doors in both rooms. The condo seemed fairly updated (though relatively cheaply) and the bathroom was clean though far from luxurious. Also, it was nice to have a second mini bathroom with a separate shower. The cottage cheese ceilings made it look a little dated but I guess that's being a little nit picky.

When we initially checked in I noticed that the railing on the balcony was pretty wide and possibly unsafe for our child. Before we unpacked I called down to the front desk to ask if we could stay in the Lani I building instead which I could see had more secure balconies and I specifically asked for a first floor unit. The person I spoke with seemed so clueless and said she would call me back to let me now about availability. We waited in limbo for about an hour before we realized she was not going to call back. We just stayed super vigilant when our little one was on the balcony and never really got to relax and enjoy the view. If you have a small child, ask for a lower level unit or a unit with glass balcony instead of the metal railings.

Overall the unit was basically clean. (Only found one pincer bug on the toilet and two geckos near the ceiling in the living room. No roaches.) Baby items were provided including a crib with bedding, a diaper pail, and a high chair. When we went down to the pool area, they gave our little one a sand bucket and shovel and an umbrella and the service down there was very nice and friendly. It is a family friendly area and that, along with the location, are the biggest pluses.

Two quick notes:

We both had massages at the "spa." The massages were good but unfortunately it was the massage therapist's last day. There really is no spa to speak of, just a room where you get a massage. No showers, no hot tub, no sauna. I had a scrub and left with grains of sugar all over me because they really are not equipped to do a real scrub like you'd get at a spa. It's ok as long as you know what you're getting (or not getting). The kicker is that they charge just as much as a nice hotel spa. Their prices should be lower to reflect the lack of amenities.

Stay away from the SeaHouse Restaurant unless you are just going for cocktails (the view is great). Ordering anything more there is not a good idea. The first time we went there I ordered chicken tenders for our daughter and as I was cutting them up for her I noticed they were totally raw inside. Thank goodness I hadn't given her any yet. The rest of the food was barely edible and not tasty. We stayed away until the last day when we decided to give it another shot this time for breakfast. I ordered a bowl of fruit for my daughter. I tasted the cantalope and it was totally spoiled and disgusting. I brought it to the waitress's attention. She brought another bowl of fruit saying, "This was made yesterday so it should be better." When was the first bowl made???? In my book, stuff like fruit salad should be made daily. She acknowledged that the first bowl of fruit tasted like it had vinegar in it. Both times, the servers acted really blase about the food being below par - like this was a regular occurrence.

I am not sure we would go back to Napili Kai. If we do, it will be with a lower expectation and it will be strictly for the convenience of staying in a condo and the beauty of the beach.

At $400 a night I expected it to be nicer.

We just returned from a trip to Maui. We have stayed at the Napili Kai, where we have stayed many, many times prior. I don't know if they have new management or what but......... we had ants then large cockroaches!! At almost $400. a night this is awful. It's awful at any price. We complained to the cleaning staff and were told they would look into it. The problem continued, we finally figured out they were coming out of the drains. The day before we left I was packing up a few things and one actually ran up the leg of my shorts... all I could do was scream !!!. When we told the desk they acted like we were making it up....... I guess they wanted us to save the BIG fellows and introduce them. We know it was happening in the room next door as well. The grounds are still beautiful and you can't beat the beach or the view. They need to update the property, the rooms have not changed in 15 years the fabrics are faded and even a kitchen cabinet door fell off in my hands. The only updated building is the Lani building with a kind of view....... I hope a Share holder reads this and passes on the problems as it was a great place to stay...