melibane

Hi ColleenMarie - There's the Ritz Carlton in Half Moon Bay. It's beautiful. Good luck! Melinda

Decisions, decisions, decisions. I can't wait until I actually have made my final decision and booking. This is driving me CRAZY!! Susan - Ka'anapali Beach Resort looks great. I've been to Maui twice, but have always stayed in the Kihei area. I kind of like the quieter atmosphere, but it might be nice to try another area. Was this area terribly crowded? My friends would actually prefer the west side. What site did you book through? Seems as though there are a ton of options that pop up when I Google. Were you bothered much by the time-share people? da.shmoopies - Thanks for the suggestion on Kalaeokai'a. I can't believe I hadn't come across that estate yet in my research. It looks really nice. Great find! I'm acutally going to look into that further. Did you look into holding the reception there as well? Was it terribly expensive to do that? How has your experience been with Merry Maui Weddings? And you're right, what's 45 minutes to us Bay Area folks, piece of cake. Thanks for the great suggestions ladies! Melinda

Very interesting thread. I'm a free-lance court reporter, and I make 6 figures a year. I love my job. I work, on average, three days a week out of the home (traveling to law firms or courthouse to report legal proceedings). This allows me to be home more with my kids; although, it can be tough being self-disciplined finishing the work I need to do at home. It is a full-time job (40+ hours a week), but I like being home more than I would in a typical 9-5 office job. You could easliy make 50K a year working a couple of days a week out of the house in the SF Bay Area (don't know about other areas-business varies by region). I do live in the San Francisco Bay Area, though, so cost of living is quite high .

Thanks Dina! Your detailed Maui reviews were really helpful. I'm just starting to plan my 10/09 Maui wedding, and after reading your write-up and a little further investigation, you've piqued my interest in the Maui Prince. Couple of questions for you: - Maui Prince WC versus outside WC? What would be the difference? Is there any benefit to going with an outside WC? Am I somehow limited by only using the MP WC? - hotel accommodations. Have you stayed or actually seen the rooms? After reading your write-up, I read a lot of reviews on tripadvisor, and it's kind of a mixed bag. I myself like the sound of the "laid-back, old Hawaii" feel some reviewers spoke of, but yet some made it sound like a virtual ghost town that wouldn't be much fun for anyone with a pulse. We'll have a lot of young families with kids from 1-17. Do you think everyone would be entertained? Thanks again for all the great info!

My vote is for #1

Sherry, I was hoping you'd give a review on your experience at Mulligan's. Did you end up going after your reception? I'm planning to get married Oct 2009 - was wondering if you thought it a nice enough place to hold the actual reception. p.s. your pics are Beautiful...looks like you had a wonderful day!

Hi everyone, My name is Melinda, and my fiance and I are planning a destination wedding in Maui Oct 2009. I thought it would be fairly straightforward, but after cruising this site a couple of weeks I see there are SOO MANY choices, now I just can't decide. Resort, private estate, restaurant?? Hmm, decisions, decisions. It should be a blast planning with all my new friends to ask for advice!!