Prevue September-October 2017 - 68

Left: Humuhumunukunukapua'a, Grand Wailea
Below: Fresh ti leaf-wrapped fish at KÕ restaurant, Fairmont Kea Lani

sf Haleakala ballroom and 22 other meeting rooms and six outside
function facilities. The layout of the resort allows for groups to have
privacy away from leisure guests that are in-house, says Brian Lynx,
director of sales and marketing.
"We live to create extraordinary lifetime memories. The only
thing that matters to us is that you feel our aloha." As a guest of
the resort, I understood what Brian meant.
The resort team provides service with passion and they were
responsive to our group and individual needs. Another venue,
which also speaks to the culinary excellence of this resort and the
Hawaiian farm-to-fork movement, is their signature restaurant,
Humuhumunukunukapua'a. This restaurant is perfect for a buyout
of up to 150 with lagoons and ocean views in a Polynesian-style
setting, sunset included. Local farmers and fisherman contribute
to the menu and we loved the fresh and palate-pleasing dishes-
from their local opakapaka fish, with ginger rice, dark soya and
scallion vinaigrette to crispy mahi mahi, served with forbidden rice
and baby bok choy and their Maui cattle butchers steak, with red
miso and charred scallions.

FAIRMOUNT KEA LANI
This resort offers 413 suites (including 37 villas) and is the only
all-suite luxury product in the area. The Fairmont was the host of
the IRF auction and the lavish dinner that followed. The signature
restaurant, KÕ is also available for groups to buyout. The awardwinning restaurant tells the story of the local culture not only
through its name, but the design of the restaurant, along with
its cuisine, which gets its inspiration from the vast collection of
ethnicities brought together during Maui's sugarcane plantation
era. We found the culinary experience at KÕ exceptional and
loved the "wellness offerings" on the menu. KÕ offers special
dishes as part of its "Inspire Your Energy" program, which
provides groups "an integrated approach to wellness by
connecting fitness, nutrition and personal passions while enjoying
the tropical outdoor surroundings of Wailea," according to the
menu. We delighted in the Maui kale salad, which featured their
local curly kale and a ti leaf-wrapped island fresh catch (this time it
was monchong, a mild white fish), steamed with coconut, mango
salsa and served with molokai sweet potato and asparagus.
"We are very proud of the culinary excellence at our resort,"
says Shannah Milstead, director of sales and marketing for the
resort. "We find that groups enjoy experiences that enhance their
connection with the water, land, culture and themselves and we
incorporate those elements throughout our resort programming."

TEAM BUILDING & REWARDING ACTIVITIES
Groups in Maui have numerous choices for unforgettable
destination experiences-from rappelling down waterfalls,
upcountry horseback riding and zip lining, to golf, snorkeling,
sailing, and local culture and culinary tours. For example, groups
can visit the Surfing Goat Dairy for a private tour of the facility,
meet and feed the goats and then collect the milk that it is used

"The aloha spirit is part of
collaboration, teamwork and
creativity, all making for a successful
meeting and incentive event."
in creating artisanal cheeses. Then there is the cheese tasting
experience! There are also similar experiences at Maui Wine,
where local estate wines are made, and at Hawaii Sea Spirits
Organic Farm and Distillery, where groups can see the process
of sustainable cane farming and the production of the local Ocean
Vodka and Deep Wave Rum. Another amazing culinary tour is at
O'o Farm in upcountry Maui. They offer customized events for up
to 100 that feature tours and wine, and dinners with foods that are
harvested right on their farm.
Planners will have no problem curating an experience of a
lifetime for their groups in Maui, with aloha spirit, amazing resort
choices, culinary excellence and destination experiences that all
come together in harmony.
meethawaii.com; grandwailea.com; fairmont.com; theirf.org

prevuemeetings.com | 67

http://www.meethawaii.com http://www.grandwailea.com http://www.fairmont.com http://www.theirf.org http://www.prevuemeetings.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Prevue September-October 2017