Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea is a resort in Wailea, on the island of Maui in Hawaii. It is part of the Four Seasons luxury hotels chain. It is the only resort on Maui to receive both the AAA Five Diamond Award and the Forbes (formerly Mobil) Five-Star Award.[1][2] Room rates range from $845 to $25,000 per night.[3] It has four restaurants and bars, including one of Wolfgang Puck's Spago chain.[4]
| Four Seasons Maui | |
|---|---|
 A panoramic of the view of Wailea and Makena from the road to Kula | |
 | |
| Hotel chain | Four Seasons Hotels |
| General information | |
| Status | Operating |
| Type | Hotel |
| Address | 3900 Wailea Alanui Dr, Kihei, Hawaii 96753, U.S. |
| Coordinates | 20°40′49″N 156°26′30″W / 20.68028°N 156.44167°W |
| Opening | February 9, 1990 |
| Renovated | 2007 2014-2016 |
| Owner | Michael Dell |
| Design and construction | |
| Developer | Christopher Hemmeter Takeshi Sekiguchi |
| Other information | |
| Number of rooms | 383 |
| Number of restaurants | 4 |
History
editThe hotel is the smaller of two major hotels built on a large parcel of Wailea coast real estate under development by Hawaiian developer Christopher Hemmeter together with his Japanese partner, Takeshi Sekiguchi. The Four Seasons hotel was developed by Four Seasons in collaboration with Sekiguchi's TSA International and Shimizu Corporation, with a construction cost of approximately $180 million. It was the first Four Seasons project in Hawaii and, when it opened, was Four Seasons' third resort property. Located on 15 acres, adjacent to the larger, Sekiguchi-developed Grand Wailea resort, the Four Seasons Maui opened on February 9, 1990.[5][6]
In 2000, Shimizu, the owner of the property, tried unsuccessfully to sell it. In 2004, MSD Capital, an investment company controlled by billionaire Michael Dell, bought the resort[7][8] for $280 million. After running into cash-flow difficulties and defaulting on its loan payments in 2010, MSD successfully refinanced the property in 2011.[9][10][11]
In 2007 the Four Seasons underwent a $50 million renovation of its 380 guest rooms and suites, also adding technology for guestrooms, a new restaurant, and an art museum.[5]
Beginning in late 2014, the resort underwent a two-year renovation project where the 383 rooms and suites were updated, a new art collection was installed, the resort grounds were revamped, and new event spaces were added.[12]
The penultimate episode of the first season of Modern Family, Hawaii, took place at the resort in 2010.
The White Lotus was filmed at the resort in 2020.[13]
Amenities
editThe resort has three par-72 championship golf courses, one of which hosted the ConAgra LPGA Skins Game in 2003. The Spago restaurant, was awarded a Four-Star ranking by Mobil Travel. The resort offers two more restaurants, including DUO Steak and Seafood.[14] Some other amenities include spa services, four pools, and fitness facilities.
References
edit
- ^ AAA/CAA Five Diamond Hotels January 31, 2019
- ^ "Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts Receives Record Number of Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Awards for the Fifth Year Running". fourseasons.com. Feb 12, 2020.
- ^ Kitty Bean Yancy, "More five-star hotels in Mobil/Forbes firmament", USA Today, November 12, 2009.
- ^ Mobil Four-Star, Mobiltravelguide.com Archived
- ^ a b Allison Schaefers, "Four Seasons Maui completes upgrade", Honolulu Star-Bulletin, July 10, 2007.
- ^ Isadore Sharp, Four Seasons: The Story of a Business Philosophy (Penguin Books, 2009), ISBN 978-1101046234, ch. 21. Excerpts available at Google Books.
- ^ Andrew Gomes, "Hotel market's outlook 'euphoric'", The Honolulu Advertiser, January 29, 2004.
- ^ "Four Seasons on Maui sold to Dell firm: The investment company of billionaire Michael Dell is buying the luxury hotel." Honolulu Star-Bulletin, April 21, 2004.
- ^ Kris Hudson, "Four Seasons Maui Delinquent on Mortgage: Dell Family Investment Firm Skips Mortgage Payment, Seeks Debt Restructuring", The Wall Street Journal, March 22, 2010.
- ^ Kris Hudson, "Mogul Digs Hotels Out of Debt, Disaster. Market Crashed, Then the Tsunami; Now, Michael Dell's MSD Puts Empire Back in Order—Paying Bills, Thatching Huts." The Wall Street Journal, June 29, 2011.
- ^ Nadja Brant, " Dell’s Hawaii Resort Nears Loan Workout as Demand Climbs", Bloomberg.com, January 22, 2013.
- ^ "Four Seasons Maui gets a facelift". www.travelweekly.com. Retrieved 2021-10-01.
- ^ Fry, Naomi (2021-07-21). "The Brilliant, Biting Social Satire of "The White Lotus"". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2021-10-03.
- ^ "Celebrated Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea Completes Extensive $50 Million Renovation". Prnewswire.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2021-02-10.