Maui Revealed - Royal Lahaina Resort

516 rooms, 3 pools, spa, 10 tennis courts (4 lighted) and a stadium court (screaming fans extra), coin-op laundry, PlayStation, 6 conference rooms, 7 shops, hi-speed Internet access, valet parking, room service, lu'au. This 27-acre resort is a moving target. At press time, the Cottages and the Royal Hale Tower were scheduled to be demolished to make way for low-rise luxury condos, a new pool and other facilities, but no schedule was available. Currently, the rooms consist of cottages, an older 3-story Royal Hale "Tower," and the real Tower called the Lahaina Kai. Of the three, you're best off at the Lahaina Kai Tower, which just underwent a $30 million renovation with stunning results. The lobby here is also scheduled to be redone. Royal Hale "Tower" (aka Royal Ocean Hale) has their cheapest rooms, and for good reason. It's drearier, and since it's next to the lu'au grounds, you get to hear it every single night! Of the oceanfront cottages, only Buildings E & F are worth the upgrade price as the others have more blocked views. The cottages are two-story buildings with the upstairs units having almost a complete kitchen. Upstairs units also have a lanai, though you'll almost certainly never sit there. In a bizarre design they face away from the ocean and have a cooped-up feel. For some reason it reminds us of the smoking rooms you walk by at airports. Who would ever want to spend time in one?

You do feel a little nickel and dimed here. For instance, parking is $10 per day, valet parking is $15, local calls and 800 numbers are an extra buck, and room safes are $3.91. You can pay a $16 per day resort fee to absorb these and add $5 more for valet parking. There are two dining choices and an ice cream, sandwich and pizza place with Internet, which has so-so pizzas you can take back to your room (or they'll deliver). Breakfast buffets are at the Royal Ocean Garden. And there's a poolside bar with burgers and such.

The wedding gazebo offers a nice touch. Each couple married there has a tile with their names on it placed around the building. (Divorced couples sometimes write to them and ask them to tear out and break their tile, and the resort happily complies.)

Their spa (Jacuzzi) is oddly located in the back of the property, far from the ocean.

Royal Lahaina is on heavenly Ka'anapali Beach. If you are planning to stay here, you will want to get an update on the construction before you book. Some items we list here may no longer be available due to the construction. The rack rates listed below are useless and shouldn't scare you off. For instance, the oceanfront tower room lists for a laughable $595, but packages will probably bring you the room for $375. And so it is with other rooms here. Rack rates are $375-$595 (375-385 sq. ft.) for the towers, $295-$675 for the cottages (1,360 sq. ft.), suites (760 sq. ft.) are $845-$1,275.