Fairmont Kea Lani

We stayed here at the Kea Lani for two nights before our stay next door at the Four Seasons. In the past, I had always stayed at the Grand Wailea. Overall I was impressed with the Kea Lani. Check-In was smooth and our room was huge! Definitely the nicest room for the price out of all the resorts I stayed at in Wailea. The adult pool is relaxing and had good service. We also enjoyed our meals at Ko. I always thought Ko was a fancier place but it was very fun for lunch and the flatbread was delicious! It is also a great place for drinks before going out to dinner. We did end up coming back for dinner there one night as well and loved it! Nick's used to be our favorite restaurant on the island but we had a very poor experience this visit. Our server was awkward and we felt guilt tripped into buying the photo from the professional photographer that came around (we would have bought it but the photo was awful of us). They also took off my favorite Mahi Mahi entree :( Lastly, upon checking in I gave the girl my ALL accor number for the points. She entered it in and assured me it was handled. Since then the points weren't credited, so I emailed with ALL many times who then finally put me in touch with the resort. The resort said I can't get the points since it was booked through a 3rd party. Had I known this, I would have booked direct or not wasted my time on all the emails. That experience has left a bad taste in my mouth for return visits. Read less

My husband and I traveled to Maui for our honeymoon, and had saved up our money to be able to stay in a "luxury resort" for the last 3 nights of our trip. Along with our room, we decided to purchase their "romance package" which included daily buffet breakfast, one day cabana rental, and a twilight 4-course dinner by the pool. Upon check-in, we worked with Tara at the front desk. We arrived to the hotel around 11am, and they were able to get us a room which was really nice. However, I was disappointed when she asked us if we wanted to pay to upgrade to an ocean view room due to having a sale. To me, this meant they had plenty open...and after all it was our honeymoon. We did not pay to upgrade, as we had already spent plenty on our room to begin with. We were taken to our room by Danny who was amazing. He was kind, friendly, and helped us get all settled. Our room itself was stunning. All the rooms on this resort are suites, so we definitely had a luxurious feel inside the room. The bed was the most comfortable hotel bed I had ever slept on. We also had a large balcony. However, right outside of our balcony (one floor down) was the kitchen of the KO restaurant as well as a small area where wedding receptions/events were held. It was so loud on our balcony and in our room at night. The first night we could not sleep due to yelling from the wedding that was going on and the clinking of dishes in the kitchen. I don't think they should even have a room at this spot in the hotel. This was really disappointing. The grounds of the hotel were immaculate. The pools were well maintained and we really enjoyed relaxing at the adult pool. The beach area is private which is nice and they put up umbrellas and chairs for no charge. I liked this perk. We had the breakfast buffet every morning as part of our package. I did enjoy the food and thought there was a good spread. If this hadn't been part of our package, I would not have eaten here as I didn't think that the buffet was worth the $120 for two people. As another part of our package, we had a twilight dinner set up by the adult pool, and food from the KO restaurant. This was a wonderful dinner. It was private, quiet, and the food was delicious. The last part of our package was a cabana rental. We enjoyed this as well. They give you a cooler full of drinks and plenty of snacks. They also came around with mochi ice cream which was the best part. Overall, I thought the serve offered at this hotel was great. My only complaint was with check-in services. Everyone else seemed to go above and beyond and that was refreshing. We had bought a Groupon to get a couples massage at the Willow Stream Spa. We had Peter and Patrice and they were both incredible. We enjoyed the facilities and our massages were some of the best we had had. Even with the Groupon deal, the price was steep for a 1 hour massage. The last day of our stay, they did offer us a hospitality suite to shower in change in after we had checked out of our room. I really liked that they offer this to guests. However, i was almost more irritated when we got to this room and it was way better than the room we had stayed in. It was very quiet and peaceful. Overall, we enjoyed the Fairmont, but were disappointed as we expected much more from our stay. For a 5 star-resort, we expected to be better taken care of. Most of the special moments we had were because we paid for them as part of a package, not because the resort was trying to make our honeymoon special. We would look at staying elsewhere for our next trip to Maui, as the value for this resort just didn't hit the mark for us. Read less

Recent stay here. Chose it because it was slightly less than the Four Seasons and Andaz, our other choices. Pros: great location, beautiful resort, easy to find. Has free parking for guest close to the hotel itself. We were upgraded to a mountainview room on the 6th floor through our Amex Plat benefits. Room was big with a private balcony and living room area. Big pro points for having a water station at the entrance. We used this every opportunity we could during our visit and I can't imagine the amount of plastic the hotel would save if they had these throughout the hotel. It would be a great free marketing throughout the island to give your guest Fairmont reusable water bottles to use and take instead of wasteful plastic bottles of water. LOVED that it had a designated adults only pool. Cons: Disappointed that there were no room slippers, especially for a high end resort. Who wants to walk on their bare feet on that carpet!?! We've stayed at other Fairmont that did provide slippers. The first night turndown service, no ice was provided. Service and food was just okay. Lacking in selection at the breakfast buffet. We actually ate at the Andaz two of our nights because the food options there was better. Tried Nick's Fishmarket and was surprised that for a seafood restaurant, it lacked variety in Hawaiian specialty fish options. Hubby had the picatta fresh catch and I did the mahi mahi and the dishes itself were tasty. Service was on the very slow side. Ko was a little better service wise but part of my Opa fish dish was over salted and inedible. The service was the best here. We also partook in the spa services. Found a Groupon for 60 min massage and facial to use during our visit. Hubby did the massage and said it was okay. The masseuse wouldn't apply pressure unless he paid for a better massage. WTF? My facial was very good. I'm pretty good of taking care of my skin so my aesthetician was good at explaining to me the products she used and each of their benefits, which I greatly appreciated. I felt my facial was worth it. Read less

Love this location! Our second visit to this pretty resort. Comfortable room over looking Molokini Island. I was able to watch every day the whales from our room balcony. During the weekend they had local vendors by the lobby area. Every afternoon they will have the sunset celebration with the lightning of the property torches. Really cute thing to witness during our stay, specially kids loved been part of the ceremony. I have tried all the restaurants in the property, they were nice, but expensive of course. I believe the breakfast/ buffet are overly price. Sunsets at the lobby bar are great and the cocktails are nice. Nicks restaurant and Ko restaurant has good food and service. For quick food and snacks the cafe in front of Ko restaurant is great. I really enjoy every morning going to the Wailea path right by our hotel. Beach area is well maintained and great for snorkeling by the rocks. Pools were nice, 2kids allowed pools and 1 adult pool. Cons: Jacuzzis were always full of unattended kids and No available jacuzzi for only adults. No much to do in the property after sun down, Had to go to other properties to find some entertainment at night. Recommendation:Removed the fire pit from the adult area pool and install a jacuzzi for only adults. Need more resort entertainment beside lobby bar music player.( some days of the week) Loved the hotel shuttle service to other Wailea hotel properties. They were always fast and friendly. The hotel staff is amazing, super knowledgeable and willing to make your stay a happy one. Mahalo! Read less

My husband and I have been coming to Maui for the past few years and we usually stay in Kaanapali or Kapalua. This year we chose to stay in Wailea at the Fairmont Kea Lani. It is a wonderful hotel with fabulous staff. First of all, for people who complain about the prices of food, etc. Hawaii is expensive so prices are going to be high. You need to pay to have lots of things (food, paper goods, etc.) shipped to the islands as well as pay employees, so it will be more costly. We've come to expect that. If you want cheap, go on vacation elsewhere or rent a condo. Now, I understand about the resort fees. This is not unique to the Fairmont or to hotels in Hawaii. I don't agree with the practice - include the resort fee in the price of a room - but hotels do it. With respect to the Fairmont itself, the hotel is beautiful. I've stayed at other properties in Hawaii and some five-star hotels are starting to show their age - and the chain does not upkeep the property. The Fairmont Kea Lani looks like it is well maintained. Our room was beautiful and very clean. The amenities were wonderful. I am one who enjoys working out very early in the morning, so the 24/7 fitness center was a plus for me. Pools were very nice, but for such a large resort, the pools were a bit small (minor complaint). The Willow Spa was awesome (great massage). We only ate at Nick's Fishmarket - but that was a great experience. The staff at the Fairmont Kea Lani is really what shines to me. You go to a nice hotel for great service. The staff here did not disappoint. From check in, to housekeeping, to bell desk - everyone was super helpful and friendly. Other high end chains could learn a thing or two. In fact, my husband went scuba diving with a local company and his dive guide said the Fairmont is one of the best at customer service. I agree. Lastly, this is a complaint but certainly not for the Fairmont. I would just like to say, what really bugs me when I go on vacation are the guests. Why is it that when someone goes on vacation, they feel as if they are entitled to everything and can be absolute jerks about it. Going on vacation does not mean you get to treat the property and the staff (and other guests) like trash. When we went to the pool, some lady did not want me to sit next to her so she said, "My daughter is sitting there." An hour later - no daughter - she just wanted to hog a chair. Really? Or the people who are letting their children run around like monsters and disturb guests. Really, the world is not your babysitter?! I would ask people to behave like civilized human beings - don't ruin vacations for others. Rant over. Like I said, I thoroughly enjoyed my stay at the Fairmont and look forward to a return trip! Read less