|
 Wailea
Beach Marriott :: By Robin Roy
(Article
exclusive to Maui.US) - My girlfriend put me on notice
about a week into our relationship... she needed romance.
Ordinary
flowers and a generic card were not going to cut it.
There needed to be some thought put into anything I
did.
Not necessarily
money, just thought.
So three
years later, when it was time for me to pop the question,
I knew I had my work cut out for me. I remembered a
conversation long ago when Kate said she had always
wanted to go to Maui.
Bingo.
I had the
romantic location I needed. Now it was time to find
a place to stay.
A generic
hotel it could not be. This was going to be the trip
that would, in part, define the rest of our lives (if
she said yes), so the hotel had to be upscale, with
a great view of the water and access to a beach.
Luckily, I had been to Maui
several years earlier and stayed at the Wailea Beach
Marriott Resort.
It had everything I was looking
for. Elegant rooms, beautiful views of the Pacific and
a private, guests-only beach.
With the hotel in place, my
next task was to plan the night that I hoped my girlfriend
would become my fiancée.
Just a little internet searching,
and I had exactly what I needed to make it a night we
would both never forget.
When we arrived in Maui, we
picked up our open-air Jeep and drove south to Wailea.
The half-hour drive was fantastic, with sun shining
on our faces and a nice breeze blowing through our hair.
The check-in area at the Marriott
was quite luxurious. Just like the Jeep, it's open air.
There are no doors leading from the valet area or heading
out toward the back of the hotel.
All that's there is an uninterrupted
view of gardens and the blue sea below.
Kate's expression was a mix
of relaxation, gratitude and excitement. She still had
no idea what was in store just two days later.
Her expression changed to pure
joy when we checked into our room. The hotel staff,
knowing that this trip was a special occasion for us,
treated us to an exclusive beachfront room, just about
30 feet from the water.
This private section of the
Marriott had its own lounging area for the handful of
beachfront rooms, with cabana chairs, hammocks, pool
and an attendant who saw to our every request.
After enjoying some of Maui's
sights for a couple of days, it was time to reveal just
a portion of my secret.
I told Kate we would be going
to dinner at 6:15 p.m. She assumed we were going to
a restaurant, but I had other plans.
After we got ready to head out,
I told her the setting sun was so beautiful, that we
should go outside and get someone to take a photo of
us standing in front of the sparking ocean.
She agreed, thankfully.
I led her out the door of our
room and we walked along the scenic sidewalk that curves
along the waterfront.
As we approached a small, sandy
cove behind the Marriott, I spotted the place where
we'd be having the most romantic dinner of our lives.
Before we left for Maui, I found
a company that serves private dinners on the beach.
The chef sets up a small table
for two and cooks a meal its clients pre-select from
a gourmet menu.
Two secluded ocean-side seats,
a candlelit table and a beautiful sunset - what else
could anyone else ask for?
As I started to walk off the
sidewalk and onto the sand, moving toward the table,
Kate put her hand to her mouth and said, "Is that for
me?" I'd never seen her smile so wide.
|
