Status of Construction

Fellow Marriott Maui Travellers:

We will be staying at the Marriott Maui Ocean Club in a few weeks; from January 23 through January 31st. Does anyone know the status of the construction?

Also, any advice on whether we should make advance reservations for any events at the resort?

Thanks!

Today I received the annual General Mgr's letter. It says the Napili Villas are opening on schedule Jan 30 so I suspect any ongoing work will be interior finish and detail so no noticeable noise.

Letter also says there will be new flat panel TVs in the "original tower"; which tower is this ? Lanai ?

Hello Mary,

I hope you have a great time on the the rock. Please when you return I would like to hear about your trip. Also how the entire resort looks, since it's finally done. I would really like to hear your opinionsof it (pros/cons). Check out the Napali pool, i heard it's small but real nice for adults. Anyway, Have a great time.....ENJOY.

Dan

Dear Paul:

Thank you for your response. I'm not sure, as yet, which unit or building we will be in. This is my first time using a time share rental.

Can't wait!!!!!!

Mary

Dan:

I will happily let you know all about the trip when we return.

Aloha.

Mary

Noted that you were going to be on Maui during the last week in January. We have a unit on "hold" at the same resort for the last week in February. The web site is still projecting construction activities (as of today 2/7). Will greatly appreciate your advice as to what, if any, problems you ran into....and how your vacation went there. I'm supposed to let them know this afternoon whether to "lock in" the unit.

Thanks in advance..................Don R. (Maryland)

Aloha:

We were there from January 24th through January 31st. The new building was scheduled to open on the 31st and it did!

Although they said there would be construction while we were there, we did not notice ANY construction.

The resort was wonderful! We had no trouble getting lounge chairs at the pool. Everything was clean and beautifully maintined and the people working at the resort were exceedingly nice and helpful.

We took a tour of the new units and they are spectacular! There is a new pool (smallish, but pretty) by the new building, but we did not get to use it as it opened on the day we were leaving. Also, a new pool bar.

GO...to my mind it was flawless!

Mary

Mary -- Thanks so much for the quick response to my query regarding any construction "distractions" at the Marriott Maui. Great answer -- Thanks !!

Mary: Started this a few minutes ago and it seemed to "disappear"....anyway, I am just writing to thank you for the quick response to my question regarding construction at the Maui Marriott. Great answer!!

Glad your vacation went so well. I'm sure we'll have the same experience.

Thanks again -------- Don R. (in Maryland)

Hello Mary,

I am so glad you had a great time. Do you have any pictues of the new building or pool you can share with us. i will be there during the month of August 2009, staying 4 weeks this year. BTW how much was gas? it was 4.80 last summer during the oil scare. Anyway, glad you had a safe trip..

Dan

Hi Dan:

I didn't take any pictures of the new building or pool, but the pictures presented by the Marriott are pretty accurate.

The new building is set much further back from the beach than the existing, so there is a large rolling, open lawn from the building to the beach and walkway. With your back to the beach, facing the building, the pool is to the right (well back from the beach) and is hardly visible. As I mentioned, it is small.

One thing I noticed is that the residents in the new building will be using the main entrance and check in. Not sure if this will create a crowding situation...it might.

The gas was $2.85 in Paia, where we refueled (went to Mama's Fish House").

I truly envy you! You really need more than a week to see the sites. For what it's worth, we had a great time at "Cheeseburger In Paradise" - upstairs at the small bar. The bartender Chris was the best - we went there a few times - and the cheeseburgers were the best I have ever had! Maybe it was the Maui air and sunset!

Have a great time!

Mary

Mary,

One week is not enough, we owned 2 weeks and we got 2 more weeks from owners that we met last year. I got lucky I paid the maint fee for them for the rental. 2.85 a gallon, great price. If you are flying over the pacific pond, 1 week flies by. you lose a day going and lose a day coming home. 14 days is the min. for us.

Mama fish is the best, however for a great hamburger go to Johnny's place, it's across the street from Ka'anpali Golf course. It's below the italian restuarant. Did you have breakfast at the gazebo? great breakfast and you can see the whales from your seats.

Did you go on a timeshare presentation, if so what are the units going for now. Was the resort packed with people? I heard the resort is 50% full. i am glad you had a great safe trip. coming home is ok, but i want to live over there.

Dan

Dan:

I want to live there, as well!

As I recall, the new units are going for about 50K for annual; 26K for every other year. They are 2 bedroom/2 bath. They are unbelievably beautiful. The decor is perfect...very glamorous and tasteful. (I find that often the decor is outdated and kind of ugly.)

I heard that they were 30% sold. While I was there, there was an article in the local paper about how the Hawaii tourism income plumetted in the latter half of 2008; it was record breaking in early 2008. So the entire year held firm, but only because of the first half of the year. However, the article said that timeshares were holding steady.

I'm watching the prices! Times are tough, though.

The resort was not packed while we were there, however, at the change of guests (Fri-Sat) it seemed there were more people checking in than had been there while we were there.

It is an amazing place.

Mary

Mary,

Thanks for the update or should I say "Mahalo"

Dan

"I heard that they were 30% sold. "

Surely more than that, I seem to remember getting a "close out" email from Marriott a while back.

Of course there's an awful lot of resales too at present, good time to buy.

I've heard that the main pool is going to be renovated from April 10 through June. Does this mean that the main pool will be completely closed during this period?

Answer to your question, YES. the entire main pool will be closed however i was told that the priate ship will be open. go to the maui marriott web site and they have all of the info you need. Have a great time in Hawai'i.

Dan

I only see mention of the pool work on the owners' website, here's what it says:

The Super Pool (main pool) will be closed for refurbishment between April 20, 2009 and June 20, 2009. During this time the Lahaina and Napili Pools, as well as the jumping castle and water slide, will be open and available for guests. We thank you for your understanding and sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

I was just there last week and the main/kids pool is closed. When you look at it, a good portion of the resort is fensed off and can't be used. The two small pools are VERY crowded and you have to get down there early to get a seat - like 6:00 a.m. If you can, I'd skip the construction time as it's not a lot of fun when a most of the fun parts are closed down.

THANKS for the update on the pool problem :( we are going on the 23 of may for a week and arent looking forward to the mess marriott has made of the summer time share vacations, made our reservation a year ago and there was no warning of this until about 3 months ago and than it was to late to change times or planes. Would like to hear from others that have been there the last month to hear there stories. and if they are trying to ease the mess they have created......