Legendary Maui resort honors Hawaiian culture and Kapalua’s natural beauty
A $100 million resort-wide overhaul, including new guestrooms, dining options, and public spaces, will be completed by the end of 2022, according to a statement released today by The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua. The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua is a haven for visitors looking for a restorative, opulent vacation, spread across 54 acres of pure, open land with a view of Honokahua Bay.
According to Andrew Rogers, general manager of The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua, “the driving factor behind this initiative is providing our guests with an unmatched experience that can only be found in Kapalua.” Our team of talented Hawai’i-based architects, designers, and builders collaborated closely with our longtime cultural advisor Clifford Naeole to realize our vision for the resort’s future as a luxury destination. “This transformation brings new beauty and new energy to our surrounding environment as the entire resort celebrates our unique sense of place.”
The thorough and meticulous property-wide renovation’s standout features include:
EXPERIENCE AT ARRIVAL
Visitors will be greeted at The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua by vibrant and colorful local flora and fauna that flow onto the brand-new lobby lanai with unhindered views of Honokahua Bay. In addition to being breathtaking, the infinity-edge lanai honors Hawaiian culture and tells the tale of Kapalua. The space’s hand-carved wooden kapa panels represent the six bays that surround the resort and were beloved by the Hawaiian chiefs. The unique lighting fixtures were modeled after vintage fishing gear that was used to capture fish for aristocracy. The lanai offers a lively and welcoming ambience from sunrise to dusk with numerous seating spots that include firepits.
According to Clifford Naeole, Hawaiian cultural advisor at The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua, “The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua is a special site for our guests just as Kapalua once was for the great Hawaiian chiefs.” No matter how large or tiny, every component of Hawaiian culture has a significant value, and we hope that our visitors will appreciate both their beauty and their significance.
CLUB LOUNGE
The resort will launch The Ritz-Carlton Club® Lounge at the Anuenue Room in July, further improving the visitor experience. For visitors with club access, our new Club Lounge offers a private indoor-outdoor weather-protected location where they may enjoy a rainbow and experience the tastes of Maui. In addition to a professional concierge, the location features a comfortable lounge with five daily food and beverage presentations. The menu includes breakfast, small snacks, hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and desserts, many of which are inspired by the cuisine of the Hawaiian Islands. Club Lounge programming will be unique to the location and only available to club members. It will feature cocktail making workshops, cuisine demonstrations, lei creation, and special musical performances by Hawaiian artists.
GUEST ROOMS
The new guest rooms, suites, and residences, all of which have own terraces, embrace Maui’s natural beauty and rich cultural legacy. They include delicate sand tones and handcrafted wood finishes that provide a sense of peace and tranquility. While floor-to-ceiling windows invite the island environment inside, accents in azure blue and deep green evoke the alluring colours of the dazzling ocean and lush flora, giving the space a sense of location that is unmatched anywhere else. The interiors of the rooms combine The Ritz-refinement Carlton’s with a Hawaiian feeling of place thanks to Philpotts & Associates’ design work, which is renowned for its expertise in Hawaiian culture and design. The design is carried into the halls with rich, dark wood finishes and splashes of color from the carpeting with a tropical theme.
The Resort will introduce The Fire Lanai Collection, a new premium accommodation category in November for visitors wishing to enjoy the wonder and beauty of Kapalua in an even more secluded environment. Each room in the Npili Tower’s ground floor will have an extended lanai with a shade trellis, a hammock, a sun deck, and a fire pit, as well as a special menu that allows guests to create their own tropical twist on s’mores. This accommodation encourages visitors to experience Maui indoor-outdoor living at its finest.
POOL EXPERIENCE
The massive 10,000 square foot reinvented pool experience serves as the focal point of the wide open-air resort. The resort’s three zero edge pools create a fleur-de-lis and are surrounded by lush tropical flowers. They were designed to be reminiscent of a famous natural lava rock formation in front of the resort at Makaluapuna Point. The objective of the natural design inspiration is to carry the beach vibe from the coast onto the property. Each unique pool offers in-water loungers, allowing guests to rest while keeping cool in addition to extensive sitting options around each one.
The resort recently unveiled seven specially created luxury cabanas and oasis beds for guests seeking an even more opulent and private experience. The new cabanas, which have seating for up to eight people and come in shades of blue and green, were designed with inspiration from the local flowers and the stunning scenery around the property. A personal cabana attendant looks after the needs of the opulent cabana guests, and they are provided with a variety of luxuries like a fruit platter with homemade banana bread, sunscreen, unlimited water, soft drinks, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth speakers, flat-screen TVs, credenzas with refrigerators, ceiling fans, and robes.
DINING
Banyan Tree restaurant is a unique dining place with panoramic views of Honokahua Bay and walls covered in cascading orchids. The name pays homage to the well-known banyan tree that can be seen all across Hawaii and is popular among families as a meeting spot for meals. Visitors may savor a dynamic, constantly-changing menu inspired by coastal cuisine that takes them on a quest to find the island’s most distinctive and sustainable ingredients from local vendors. Visitors can dine outside or enjoy a specialty drink like the Banyan Tree Mai Tai next to a fire pit on the restaurant’s enchanting terrace.
The resort renovated Ulana Terrace, the breakfast restaurant with views of the gardens, pool, and ocean, as part of the massive renovation. The restaurant, which takes its name from the verb “to weave,” is light and airy with pitched ceilings, woven accents, and warm woods. It serves a hearty breakfast buffet every morning in addition to a wide variety of traditional and regional favorites. The Kapalua loco moco, morning ramen, and banana macadamia nut pancakes are among the highlights.
While savoring the warm Kapalua air and catching a glimpse of a whale dancing in the bay in the morning, visitors can have house-made pastries and a fast snack from Kai Café, the resort’s gourmet coffee shop.
The lobby lanai and Alaloa Lounge come alive with live entertainment, including the traditional Hawaiian sunset ceremony, as the sun sets and firepits are ignited. The lounge is modeled after a Hawaiian voyaging canoe, a sign of welcoming visitors who have journeyed far, and it has high ceilings, dark wood, and rope decorations. Here, visitors can unwind and consider a day spent in paradise while enjoying eye-catching beverages and light meals, including a sushi bar.
The new “Olu Café,” which serves hand-crafted cocktails, pâté, salads, and sandwiches, is the ideal spot for an outdoor lunch just feet from the pools. All orders can be brought directly to a cabana or lounge chair for customers who want to stay by the poolside.
SUSTAINABILITY
The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua is making significant expenditures to lessen its effect and protect Maui’s priceless natural resources for future generations, according to Rogers, with the help of our owner, Blackstone. “New solar canopies in the parking lot, when finished next year, will produce half of our present need for power at the resort.”
Reusable water bottles are given out free of charge to all visitors, new waste diversion efforts are made, filling stations are put in all throughout the site, and all elevators are being replaced with new, more energy-efficient models.
The Pu’u Kukui Watershed, Hawaii’s largest private nature preserve and home to rare and endangered flora and fauna, and Hui O Wa’a Kaulua, Maui’s voyaging canoe society, which supports the practice and education of Hawai’i’s canoe-building, wayfinding, and voyaging arts traditions, are two nonprofit organizations that benefit from the Mauka (mountain) to Makai (ocean) Preservation of Place Project
Only six Ritz-Carlton hotels worldwide provide Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ambassadors of the Environment, and this resort is one of them. The program provides eco-trips for people of all ages to learn about the environment and develop a love and respect for nature, including snorkeling, coastal walks, and electric bicycle excursions. Visitors have the chance to leave Maui a better place by taking part in a weekly Mlama Hawai’i volunteer activity (mlama means “to care for”). These projects include beach cleanups and the eradication of invasive species plants.
PRIVATE EVENTS & MEETING SPACES
One of the few indoor-outdoor event spaces on Maui, the Aloha Garden Pavilion, has been converted by the hotel for visitors wishing to organize a celebration. Key seafaring components, such as the boat’s ribs and gunnels, which are linked together with ropes that symbolize togetherness, are visible. They were designed to depict the soul of a Hawaiian voyaging canoe. The Aloha Garden Pavilion will have two fire pits, a new trellis with glass canopies, furnishings, state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment, and bi-folding glass doors that open onto a garden with terrazzo walkways.
Visit ritzcarlton.com/Maui or call 808-669-6200 to find out more about the resort and its most recent amenities. On Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, you can find The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua.
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