Larisa629

Hi Lees, No worries! I am happy to help out You're completely right about Oahu, you dont need a car cause you're right there on the strip. It is so convenient. In Maui, though, your guests will need a car to get to Lahaina from Ka'anapali. It's about a 10-15 minute drive, however, I think that some hotels offer free shuttles and I believe that there are buses in the area that go there. In Maui you sort of need a car because a lot of the beautiful things you would want to see, i.e Road to Hana, IAO needle, Haleakala, are all a drive's away. Ka'anapali is a strip full of all different hotels/condos/villas for all budgets. Through research for our own wedding, I've found that Royal Lahaina Resort and Ka'anapali Beach hotel offer some good deals. However, I'm not sure if they have the amenities you're looking for. I got a travel agent and I do a lot of my own research as well, and it's hit or miss. Sometimes I check travel websites and see that the Westin Maui Resort and Spa (which is really nice) is going for the same price as one of the other hotels that are not as nice. So just look around and do your research. I completely agree with you about Hyatt, it's absolutely gorgeous there BUT most people cant afford their $400/night price tag! If you dont care that you are not directly on the water, but like a 5 minute walk away, then the Outrigger Maui Eldorado resort may be an affordable option. The couple times that I've been to Maui, I've always stayed at the Whaler on Ka'anapali. It's a condo with a full kitchen, which ends up saving me money cause I try and eat breakfast and lunch when I can. That way I can justify staying on vacation for a longer period of time If you want some information about activities, I can send you the link to my website that I'm working on. I posted some of my favorite excursions and I think you'll be really amazed by all the things that Maui has to offer! Although, Maui is definitely different than Oahu, I think that it really has it's advantages. Its not as touristy, no huge buildings or traffic jams, and beaches are a lot less crowded. My wedding planner is AMAZING! Her name is Kara from youralohawedding.com She helps you with EVERYTHING! I mean I probably went through hundreds of emails with her already and I'm not getting married till January!!! My fiance and I are having a very detailed ceremony and are both very particulate about what we want. If you do decide to do Maui, talk to her for sure, cause I initially had a really hard time finding someone that didn't try to offer me all these packages that I didnt want or need, Then I finally found her on theknot.com and everything just clicked. Let me know if you want any more info or if you have any questions. Larisa

Hi Lees!! I just came back from Maui and Oahu and I have to say that Maui is way different than Oahu. It's a lot more chill and not very big into the party scene. However, there is this one place in the Lahaina area called Timba. This is the closest club/lounge place that I have heard about. My wedding coordinator suggested that I do something fun here with my wedding party and I've checked out reviews and photos and it looks great. My fiance and I were actually thinking of renting it out for my wedding but they don't allow any guests at all under 21. In terms of best location to stay, it's kind of hard to say just yet. I'm biased because I've stayed in the Ka'anapali area twice and I love it! However, I'm going out to Maui for my scouting trip at the end of May so I can give you a better update cause I'll be staying in Kihei/Wailea area. Lahaina is fun and full of shops, restaurants, art galleries and the port for many excursions. It's also a better value than Wailea cause it offers different condo's/hotels/resorts in all price ranges. I've heard that the Kihei area is also a good value. Hope this helps a little bit. Let me know if you have any more questions Larisa

Thanks for sending the info!!! I LOVE Mama's Fish House!!! I had my engagement dinner there I like the idea of staying in Wailea but the majority of my guests are looking into condo's and not really hotels. The Grand Wailea does look gorgeous and I will hopefully get a chance to check it out during my site visit in May. Do you know of any condo's in Wailea? Ones that are preferably on the water and close to activities?

My coordinator is Kara from Your Aloha Wedding. http://youralohawedding.com/ In case anyone is still looking for someone, she has been very professional, reliable and easy to talk to. She has worked with us in every single detail and has really gone above and beyond!!!

Oh wow!!!! That's wonderful, I am jealous!!! I wish I lived there!!! I do have a few questions for you. My fiance and I are getting married in Maui next January. We think that we have finally chosen our ceremony and reception sites. We think that we want to have the ceremony at Marriott Wailea and our reception at Mala Wailea. I have been to the Mala in Lahaina but never to the one in Wailea. Have you been there? I am also unsure if I should encourage my guests to stay in Ka'anapali (an area I'm familiar with) or in Wailea (an area I've never been to but where I am having the wedding.) What would you say are the positives and negatives of both? Hope I didn't overwhelm you with questions. Thank you sooo much!

Thanks everyone!!!

I've found photographers to charge around $2800- $3500 for 6-8 hours. I think theknot.com has a good link of photographers you can check out: http://www.theknot.com/Vendors/Hawaii-Photographers/Profiles/PHO/195

Hi!!!!! After months of searching we have finally decided to do our ceremony at Marriott Wailea and our reception at MALA Wailea. Unfortunately, the Marriott only lets you book 6 months in advance so I wont be able to "officially" book it until July. I hate when venues do that. Has anyone actually been in Wailea? I've stayed in Ka'anapali twice but have never actually made it to Wailea. Is it just as nice? similar or different? Thanks and happy planning to you all!

Hi Jen, Congrats on your engagement!! I am also new to the forum and have decided on Maui! I'm not sure if you have a wedding coordinator yet but mine is great if you are looking for someone. I havent found the perfect place for a reception yet but I may be able to answer some of your questions cause I've done tons of research.

Hi everyone!!! I just came across this site and think its fabulous! Me and my fiance recently got engaged and are planning on getting married in Maui next January. I got an awesome wedding planner-Kara from youralohaweddings.com There are three places I'm considering, has anyone heard any positives or negatives about these, Wailea Marriott, Makena Beach and Golf Resort and Honua Kai. Thanks!

Hi everyone. I'm a newbie to this site My name is Larisa and my fiance's name is Jon. We just recently got engaged in Maui and decided that we also want to get married there. We are looking into getting married there next January (the 5th or 8th) and have already contacted a wedding coordinator by the name of Kara, from youralohawedding.com. She's been great but I wanted to get some unbiased advice from you real brides on your experiences and what you would and would not recommend. I am having about 50-70 people fly in for the wedding and I am trying to budget at about $15-20k. The hard part is trying to find a venue to go past 10 p.m. I was originally planning on having it at Timba but apparently they dont allow guests under 21 there, so my nieces wouldnt be able to come My family is very traditional Russian and they like to party and celebrate till 2-3 in the morning! My wedding planner has brought up buying out restaurants but that seems to start at $10,000 alone! I have also been looking into the Marriot in Wailea but I heard that they don't offer open bar packages. Any suggestions? Ideas? Thanks!!!