Most of us have made New Year’s resolutions by now, so I’m doing my part to help prompt dreams to come true, not lie fallow.
Our learnings from the pandemic prove that life is way too short. Color that another prompt.
That’s why I’m now reflecting on a recent trip to Hawaii, which many claim with good reason to be the nation’s golf capital.
Yet this report doesn’t focus on hitting a little white ball into a little white hole. It’s an associated departure that outlines the importance of staying at awesome resorts for 20 hours daily when not swinging a club.
Our family first set foot on the expansive Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa property with great delight. The hospitality at check-in was next level and remained equally attentive over six days there. Champagne and customary Kukui Nut leis upon arrival undeniably set a tone of positivity with a keepsake to boot.
Ah, the spirit of aloha.
The Hyatt Regency Maui doesn’t feel as big as its roughly 810 rooms may posit. It’s spread across more than 40 oceanfront acres, so far and wide that you can go hours without spotting a modicum of a crowd. The ponds, penguins and ducks are cool not only at initial sight, but the umpteenth time you pass their calming innocence. Pools are large yet not overly congested because there are six free-form watery respites traversing the oceanfront property.
Watching gigantic turtles deliberately surface from water to the beach at sundown is a wow moment. Whalers Village is a short walk from Hyatt Regency Maui and is a shopping haven with authentic Hawaiian boutiques to, dare I say, Lululemon and Tommy Bahama stores. It was off-season for whale watching – heaven forbid, we’ll have to return.
What arguably stole the show for the Katz Clan is Japengo, serving a delightful fusion of Asian and island-inspired cuisine amid spacious outdoor dining ideally situated along the resort coastline. Two of countless standouts:
- A 6:30 p.m. reservation is mandatory to take advantage of some of the most powerful sunsets on earth – the true definition of awe and a photographer’s ultimate lens moment.
- The restaurant’s signature edamame pods tossed in a savory, spicy sauce blending garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil and Togarashi (Japanese chili). Zesty is an understatement, so much so we ordered two portions as an appetizer, another mid-entrée and yet another two for dessert. Yes, you read that correctly. In hindsight, we regrettably stopped short at getting more to go. I need to look into whether Japengo ships to the mainland.
Off-site, we took a guided Cacao Farm Tour, learning all about the making of chocolate grown and formulated on Maui. Along with close friend Melissa Dupuis and her daughter Aiko, we reveled in the obligatory taste test of nine different flavors – life is rough. Needless to say, we spent our allowances in the farm’s shop on gifts for those facing cold temperatures back home.
Back to golf because I can’t help myself: visit Kaanapali Golf Courses within proverbial crawling distance from Hyatt Maui. GM Karl Ruel and team run a terrific ship with its 36 holes in immaculate condition.
Then it was off to the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, a roughly 30-minue flight from Maui and 25 minutes from Lihue Airport. At first eyeshot, the outdoor lobby is a haven of beauty. Opulent yet not ostentatious. Classy yet comfortable. Picturesque extraordinaire yet not contrived.
As such, I basically reserved a lobby chair that would house this fanny for at least two hours daily overseeing the most majestic panorama of resort amenities and Pacific Ocean views imaginable. Lost in lust and therapeutic are the best emotional descriptions.
If you think that was pampering, you’re correct, only to be intensified by treatments at the 45,000-square-foot Anara Spa. It blends ancient healing traditions with island-fresh botanical essences to inspire balance and harmony. My wife and adult kids reveled in time spent at the 24-hour fitness center, open-air yoga studio, dry and steam sauna, and, naturally, tropical relaxation rooms.
Returning to our accommodations, spacious, first-level rooms opened to private patios looking onto verdant gardens with views of the white sand beach, lush mountains and ocean representing another, ultimate postcard moment.
Tidepools is the signature, on-property restaurant squarely suited for romantic types to enjoy modern island cuisine inspired by local ingredients and rich traditions of Hawaii. Dine in thatched-roof bungalow floating above a koi-filled lagoon at the base of a waterfall. The freshest fish and steak prepared with island flair never tasted so delectable.
And so be it, unavoidable golf recommendations on The Garden Isle: there’s Poipu Bay Golf Club adjacent to the Grand Hyatt Kauai that for years hosted the PGA Grand Slam of Golf. And don’t miss the well-worth-it, 20-minute drive to the Ocean Course at Hokuala where the state’s most celebrated golf instructor, Kellie Hines, is based. If you know, you know.
We are rejuvenated. That should last a few months before invariably hitting United Airlines’ website for another soothing trip to luxe experiences extraordinaire at the twin Hyatt properties.
By the way, did I mention the edamame?