Honeymoon in Maui and Kauai, suggestions?

My fiance and I are hoping to honeymoon in Maui and Kauai mid March of
'05. Each for 4 to 5 days. We're looking to stay in a hotel while on
Maui and a
condo while on Kauai. On Maui we're hoping to have some sort of
civilization where she can browse, shop (a little), but still enjoy
the beaches. In Kauai, we're hoping to bring it down a notch and have
less civilization and just enjoy the beaches and scenery.

What areas would you recommend in Maui and Kauai? I'm concerned about
Lahaina being too much of a tourist trap. Others have recommended
Wailea, or areas north of Lahaina. As for Kauai, we have heard that
Poipu is pretty good. Or is there a better area on Kauai where we can
enjoy stretches of beach? LIkes/Dislikes?

My travel agent seemed to come off a bit snobby and just told me to
goto lahaina and poipu w/out telling me much more. Any other travel
agency suggestions?

We're looking for something nice, but not something that's going to
break the bank. Our focus is to just relax, remember, and enjoy our
honeymoon.

"Dave" <daveyfung@> wrote in message
news:6732ea06.0411101259.20f5c7b2@c om...

> What areas would you recommend in Maui and Kauai? I'm concerned about
> Lahaina being too much of a tourist trap. Others have recommended
> Wailea, or areas north of Lahaina. As for Kauai, we have heard that
> Poipu is pretty good. Or is there a better area on Kauai where we can
> enjoy stretches of beach? LIkes/Dislikes?

Can't help you with Kauai, although was most recently on
Maui around Christmas 2002 and will be back there next month.
Lahaina IS a tourist trap, to some extent, but it's a nice one as
such things go. It's still not overly large, and while parking can
sometimes be a hassle, the crowds (at least while we were there)
were nothing like, say, a Disney resort or some place like that.
The best comparison I can make, if you're familiar with the
place, is to Estes Park, Colorado (although Lahaina isn't even
THAT big). All the time I was walking around Lahaina, I
was thinking "Estes Park on the Pacific" (of course, I live in
Colorado about 30 miles from EP, so that comparison came
more naturally to me than it might to some others! :-)). There's
a reasonable amount of shopping, it's where the whale watch,
etc, tours operate from, and there's a reasonable amount of
pretty acceptable dining in and around that area (and more as
you head a bit north, toward the big resorts in Ka'anapali).

We qualify as Old Married Folks With Kid, so our choice
in lodging is always going to be an oceanfront condo. For a
honeymoon, I'm guessing you'll want something a bit more
upscale with more pampering involved, so you're likely going
to want to look into those same "big resorts" - like the Hyatt,
Westin, etc.. I can't tell you much about those, other than noting
that we've had dinner at the Sheraton once, and so had a chance
to look around the property a bit, and it seemed like a nice
place. They're all RIGHT ON the ocean, so no problems finding
a beach (finding a SPOT on the beach might be a different story,
but you can definitely find the beach itself!), and within a short
drive of Lahaina itself.

There's not really much else in the way of choices on Maui
except for the southwestern coast; Hana is small and
sleepy, and didn't seem like the sort of place I'd choose for
a honeymoon unless you happen to be into rain forests.
The "big city" on Maui (again, as such things go) is
Kahului and the surrounding towns, and while it's definitely
not a tourist trap, it also isn't anything especially remarkable
FOR tourists (at least those who don't just HAVE to be
within a mile or so of a Home Depot and a Wal-Mart).
suggestions?

So the bottom line - stay at whatever suits your tastes
north of Lahaina, plan on spending some time in Lahaina
itself (and definitely plan on the Old Lahaina Luau - well
worth it!), and relax!

Bob M.

daveyfung@ (Dave) wrote in message news:<6732ea06.0411101259.20f5c7b2@ com>...
> My fiance and I are hoping to honeymoon in Maui and Kauai mid March of
> '05. Each for 4 to 5 days. We're looking to stay in a hotel while on
> Maui and a
> condo while on Kauai. On Maui we're hoping to have some sort of
> civilization where she can browse, shop (a little), but still enjoy
> the beaches. In Kauai, we're hoping to bring it down a notch and have
> less civilization and just enjoy the beaches and scenery.
>
> What areas would you recommend in Maui and Kauai? I'm concerned about
> Lahaina being too much of a tourist trap. Others have recommended
> Wailea, or areas north of Lahaina. As for Kauai, we have heard that
> Poipu is pretty good. Or is there a better area on Kauai where we can
> enjoy stretches of beach? LIkes/Dislikes?
>
> My travel agent seemed to come off a bit snobby and just told me to
> goto lahaina and poipu w/out telling me much more. Any other travel
> agency suggestions?
>
> We're looking for something nice, but not something that's going to
> break the bank. Our focus is to just relax, remember, and enjoy our
> honeymoon.

I'd strongly recommend Wailea - the Kea Lani is our favorite as all
beautiful suites with big balconies, a separate adult pool, swim-up
bar, gorgeous beach & not too big & tacky. Kihei is right next door &
although touristy, still a real local town. The Wailea shops offer
great (but expensive like everything here) shopping. I'd avoid
Kaanapali - too many high-rises & other tourists are all you see.
Beautiful drive or bike ride up to Makena Beach & on to the (can't
begin to spell it) National Park through the lava fields. The other
area that's very romantic is Kapalua, with the Kapalua Bay Club or the
Ritz-Carlton (which I don't think is worth the $$, but some do).