We stayed in a one bedroom oceanfront on the eight floor. We rented from the owner directly the week of January 4-11 2008. We decided to stay here because we had previously toured the hotel and we were shown a one bedroom apartment which we liked. The apartment we were shown was newly renovated, but the one we were given upon check in was not - there was no flat screen tv or new furniture. You may want to ask at check in if they can give you a renovated unit. The pull-out sofa is not exactly comfy to sleep on.

Overall I was disappointed with a few things - one, the pool is in deep need of maintenance, there are cracks on the bottom and sides; two, there was a heavy smell as soon as you headed on the beach to the left to walk, I believe there is some water maintenance or some sort of similar facility close by where the smell comes from. The balcony is so small you can barely sit there on a chair, you get light headed since you are so close to the edge. Location is not great either - there are two-three hotels close to each other in this area, and there are some stores right across, but this area is nothing like the nice stretch of beach and nightlife at Kaanapali Beach (where the Westin, Marriott Ocean Club and Hyatt Regency are).

On a positive note, the grounds on the property are well kept, and the units are in decent condition. The hotel prices for food are typical for Hawaii - overpriced, mediocre food, expensive cocktail drinks in plastic glasses. The new covers on the pool chairs (they are naturally pink to match the horrible color of the hotel) are very comfy - they did not have them when we were there in May 2007 - but they are soaking wet in the morning - and it takes a while before they dry. Finding dry chairs at 7 am was always a challenge.

Overall, I would not stay here again. It is ok but nothing spectacular, especially for the price. We will stay at the Marriott Maui Ocean Club in December 2008, see how that compares.

Having stayed at the former Embassy/Sunterra version in Poipu, we were expecting comparable things from the Maui property. We were quite disappointed; our kids, ages 13, 15, and 17, said that they wouldn't go back. Our room, 603, was terrible - no tub, cheap shower curtain, broken telephone-style nozzle with clogged holes, minimal water pressure. Access to the bathroom was only through the bedroom. During the timeshare presentation on day 5, we realized that we were in a handicapped room that hadn't yet been renovated - our bad luck. The standard rooms are really quite lovely, not that we got to try one out. Hotel has a policy regarding towels, each of which requires a $50 deposit. Two days into our visit, my sons put their towels on a pool chair and went for a swim. Thirty minutes later, the sacred towels were gone, along with a room card. The concierge was unsympathetic, so there we were, down $100 already. Timeshare salespeople were fierce. After 3 hours, the saleswoman went into the lobby and tried to sell to my kids. I still can't believe it!

Our family of 3 stayed here as part of their mini-vacation promotion that they use to get you to attend a timeshare presentation. We ended up buying but we had been considering a timeshare before we stayed here anyways. The presentation was not at all pressuring. That aside, we absolutely loved our stay here. I've read other reviews that complained about birds in the restaurant, long waits for elevators, inadequate beach, etc. We did not have these types of issues. While the elevators in some of the towers are closed for repairs, we never waited too long for the lobby elevators. There were always things to see during our short waits anyways. The beach was fabulous and even though it was spring break week, there was plenty of room to play in the pool or relax at poolside. Our stay included breakfast each morning in the hotel restaurant and it was better than most complimentary breakfasts we have had at other resorts/hotels. Of course there are birds flying around but it is an open air restaurant on the beach! Many of the local places are the same and we never had a bird land on our table. Our little boy loved watching them. Our room was huge, and included a very large master bedroom, gorgeous bathroom and equally spacious living/dining/kitchen area and it was spotless to boot. Daily housekeeping was fabulous and they even ran our dishwasher for our dirty dishes everyday. There is not an oven or stove but the front desk sent me up an electric skillet when I requested it. I had booked a scenic view and they upgraded us upon our arrival to a corner oceanview room. Our little boy loved playing mini-golf on the property and going to the pool and beach. There are also several large exotic talking birds in the lobby that he couldn't wait to visit everyday. The valet staff were always friendly and quick to retrieve our vehicle and their services were included in our package as well. Our rental car was also free in our package through the hotel. Our only complaint was that during our stay, the resort instituted a new policy requiring a $50 deposit for each hotel beach towel. We did get that deposit back once the towels were returned. I understand a deposit since many people were leaving their towels on the beach and taking them off property but I thought $50 was too steep. Some people started using the room towels once they instituted that policy. That aside, the hotel exceeded our expectations and we are looking forward to returning!

The Beach Club rooms and facilities are nice. However- When booking a Ocean View room, keep in mind that the Beach Club's defination of Ocean View room is any room that you can see the ocean from the lanai. That includes a view of the ocean over the top of the roof of the condos next door! I booked 2 Ocean View rooms and one was surpurb and the other had an over the rooftop ocean view.
Also, the front desk staff is totally inept at their jobs. They do not understand that the customer standing in front of them is providing them a job and an income. At every visit to the front desk, I learned not to interupt any conversations between employees (which are always happening) or any of their personel phone calls. If you happen to be rude enough to do so and ask for some service- you will recieve total rudeness in return, so be sure to wait till they are done!