A couple of years ago I took a cruise around the Hawaiian islands. We stopped in Lahaina, Maui and I vowed to go back and stay at the Pioneer Inn. We did just that this year and it couldn't have been better! This hotel isn't a fancy resort, but the location can't be beat! It is right by the banyan tree, shops, and dining establishments.

The room was just right for one or two people. I had a room with a queen bed. There was a ceiling fan and air conditioning unit, which kept the room cool on hot days. The balcony was huge! I had a room facing Banyan Tree Park. To my left were the West Maui Mountains. To the right was the ocean. Just perfect!

The only downfalls to this place was that the pool was small (didn't go in and didn't see anyone else go in either), there is no elevator and all rooms are upstairs, so that was a little bit of a pain when bringing luggage up to the room, and parking can be a problem, since there is not much parking around the hotel. There is a parking lot for the hotel a couple of blocks away.

My stay was so relaxing, that I am planning on visiting as much as I can afford to and am planning a stay for next year already!

Lahaina is my favorite town in Hawaii and Maui is my favorite island. By the way, you can't beat the price of this hotel either for Hawaii!!!

I would recommend staying here to just about anyone, except those that cannot walk upstairs well.

I have been to Maui 4 times now and I've stayed at the Westin Ka'anapali, the Embassy Suites (back when it was a hotel), and the Grand Wailea previously. Since I was going to Maui on my latest trip alone I decided to be a bit more economical and stayed at the Pioneer Inn. I'd noticed it on previous visits and a co-worker who had stayed here recommended it. The rates are comparatively very good and the location is great since I'm a big fan of Lahaina. I stayed here for 5 nights in Sept. '06 when I was on Maui for the marathon weekend races. The race starts were just a short drive up the coast...maybe 10 mins. tops which wasn't a problem at all. Not having a beach right outside my door wasn't a problem either in my case especially since I love putting the windows down on my rental car and turning up some local tunes on the radio and enjoying the drive. I went to several different spectacular beaches all up and down the coast which I think is the best way to see Maui anyway. I'd do this even if I were at one of the higher end resorts.

While at the Pioneer Inn I really enjoyed getting up for sunrise in the mornings and sitting on the seawall which was right outside my door and watching Lanai light up as the sun hit it. I also enjoyed watching the local kids surfing right in front of the hotel before they went off to school in the mornings and again in the evenings. I liked the idea that the locals seemed to congregate at a small park right outside the hotel by the seawall. This spot is one of the most relaxing I have ever experienced. I enjoyed walking the streets of Lahaina in the evenings also and meeting some of the local characters...and they have their share...and you will meet them unless you make an effort not to. All of this was right there surrounding the hotel, so I loved it.

As for the hotel itself, being a history fan, I enjoyed the character of the place and the old feel of it. My room was fairly large and clean if not overly plush. It's not the Westin or the Grand Wailea, but it is perfectly functional and I didn't spend much time there anyway other than to sleep. The balcony was a bit public, but that was charming to me. My room overlooked the banyan tree and I actually enjoyed hearing the birds when I sat outside. I wasn't bothered by them at all when the door was closed and I was sleeping. The a/c in my room was fine and not loud at all as a previous reviewer noted. I liked the interior window shutters that actually worked rather than being for decoration. They do help keep out the noise and light also.

The hotel staff was very friendly and accomodating. I had breakfast twice in the hotel restaurant and it was very good. I recommend it. Sitting out on the lanai watching the town come alive in the morning was very nice.

Parking was a couple of blocks away which you may want to know ahead of time, but it was free and walking through the streets of Lahaina is fun anyway.

Had a great visit and plan to return this September. I'd recommend it to anyone not determined to stay at a luxurious resort on a beach. Those places are great too, but for a relaxed low key vacation this place is it.

Historic Hotel in the centre of Lahaina with very attractive external appearance.

The rooms were designed for a very different and older era and are dark and appear small and fairly cramped. The historic design of the balconies incorporated no privacy screening and so were effectively shared in common. Better, of course, than nothing at all.

The common areas were not kept clean. Dirt (e.g. old corn plasters, refuse, etc.) was left on the stairs throughout the stay and there was no evidence that any cleaning of the common areas took place at all, which detracted from the expectation of a memorable stay due to the prime location. Similarly the pool area in the courtyard needed a good brush out although the water appeared clear, but the overall ambience was not inviting and it was notable that no other guests were seen to use it either.

We stayed at the Pioneer Inn for a week in April/May 2006 during a three week trip to Maui and the Big Island. We knew there was no beach nearby but chose to base ourselves here for the night life – accepting that it would be quite a long drive to our favourite beach.

We stayed in a Queen room (46) overlooking the plantation style courtyard. The room was small, but we expected that in an historic inn. It was furnished in a style suited to the age of the building and unlike a recent reviewer we had no complaints about cleanliness. Our only regret was that we had not paid extra to have a room with a refrigerator, but there was an ice machine just down the hall.

As the room faced the courtyard it was very quiet, the only time we were disturbed was when a fellow guest spent an age loudly trying to book a Lu’au on his cell phone on an adjoining balcony.

One of the nicest aspects of this hotel is if you eat breakfast (15% reduction for residents) in the hotel restaurant you are only a few feet from where the passengers from the cruise ships disembark for excursions – a great place to people watch! It did however strike us as rather sad that some people coming ashore to an island with as much to see as Maui seem to choose just to spend their day playing golf.

We were impressed by the standard of the food in the restaurant for breakfast but with there being so many places to eat in Lahaina we did not eat there in the evening. The food was reasonably priced, with a varied selection.

We didn’t have a problem with the fact that parking was a short walk away, other than you had to remember to pick up a new parking permit each day. You could drop and pick up luggage at the hotel, even when a cruise ship was in port and the area in front of the hotel was partly cordoned off.

We found all the staff to be really friendly and helpful, even the handyman who had to fix the air conditioning in out room (turned out he only needed to replace the batteries in the remote).

It was our fourth trip to Lahaina, previously staying at Lahaina Shores and the Plantation Inn. We took quite a long time deciding where to stay this time. We have stayed at the Plantation Inn twice (for two nights each time) and adore that hotel, but for a longer stay the rooms are just too small unless you are prepared to upgrade to one of the suites. We were also more than happy with Lahaina Shores (we stayed for 10 nights) which despite its historic facade has all the amenities of a modern condominium but it is quite a dark walk back at night from the main attractions in Front Street. On balance we felt we made the right decision this time and will stay here again on our next trip to Maui. It’s the perfect place to stay if you really want to soak up the unique atmosphere of Lahaina.