Story by Kyle Ellison
931
That’s how many days had passed since my wife and I had a night to ourselves, away from our two young children.
Were we nervous? Scared? Hesitant? Doubtful? Afraid we might miss them too much?
Ha! We couldn’t drive fast enough—cue the champagne!
That’s exactly what was waiting for us at the front desk when we checked in at Hotel Wailea: two glasses of bubbly the staff offered us before we’d even received our keys.
Freed from the shackles of strollers, diaper bags, car seats, bottles, and cribs, I smiled when the bell staff asked for our luggage.
“Thanks, but this one bag is it.”
Set on a sloping Wailea hillside away from the oceanfront crowds, this is Maui’s sole adults-only hotel. It’s a fifteen-acre, romantic enclave of boutique luxury—the only Hawai‘i hotel invited into Relais & Châteaux, a prestigious association of landmark hotels around the globe. (Intimidated? Who, us?)
The seventy-two one-bedroom suites have the feel of exclusive, ocean-view homes, with lānais overlooking Molokini Crater and the sunset. It’s the feeling of lounging in slippers and robes while sipping a morning coffee, and stretching out on a comfortable couch that’s meant for a really good book. It’s strolling together, hand in hand, past waterfalls, gazebos, and fruit trees, and cuddling by a poolside firepit while scanning for shooting stars.
