Luxury Hotels Atlas / Places / United States / Kapalua / The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua
The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua
Kapalua, Hawaii, United States · Ritz-Carlton · High Luxury
In 1987, excavation for the hotel unearthed more than 900 ancient Hawaiian burials. Protests halted construction, the entire building was redesigned and moved inland, and the 1989 settlement directly inspired Hawaii's 1990 burial-protection law. The resort has hosted the PGA Tour's season-opening tournament at the Plantation Course every January since 1999.
- 468 rooms
- Opened 1992
- Neighborhood: Lahaina
About The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua
- The 13.6-acre Honokahua burial site between the hotel and the beach remains off-limits to visitors today, accessible only for Hawaiian ceremony and protocol.
- Every employee at the resort is trained in malama ka aina, caring for the land, and a full-time cultural advisor holds executive authority over decisions touching the burial site.
History
The sand dunes of Honokahua Bay on Maui's northwest coast had been a resting place for the Hawaiian dead for more than a thousand years. Beginning around 850 C.E. and continuing through the early 1800s, approximately 2,000 Hawaiian kupuna — ancestors — were interred in the dune system between Honokahua Bay and the upland of Kapalua, carbon-dated remains covering nearly ten centuries of pre-contact and early contact Hawaiian civilization. The dunes preserved what would become one of the most significant archaeological sites in the Hawaiian Islands.
In 1987, excavation began on a planned oceanfront Ritz-Carlton resort at Honokahua. Initial grading uncovered human remains, and archaeological work confirmed the scale of the burial site. The excavations ultimately disinterred more than 900 individual sets of remains before community protests — led by Native Hawaiian cultural leaders, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, and groups including Hui Alanui O Makena — halted construction and forced a renegotiation of the entire project. Governor John Waihee convened a task force, the state paid six million dollars for a perpetual preservation easement over the burial site, and Kapalua Land Company agreed to a complete redesign of the resort, moving the entire building inland and up the bluff, away from the beach. The 1989 settlement was direct evidence for Hawaii's 1990 burial protection law, which gives unmarked burial sites the same legal status as modern cemeteries and established the template for all subsequent burial protection legislation in the state.
The redesigned resort opened in 1992 on its present site, set back from the beach and oriented to capture ocean views over the now-protected Honokahua Preservation Site, a 13.6-acre parcel between the hotel and the bay that remains off-limits to visitors and is accessible only for Hawaiian ceremony and protocol. The hotel completed a $100 million renovation in 2022 and has hosted the PGA Tour's Sentry Tournament of Champions on the Plantation Course since 1999. Every employee is trained in the hotel's commitment to malama ka aina — caring for the land — and a full-time cultural advisor holds executive authority over any decisions touching the Honokahua site. The hotel's founding story is not background; it is the reason the building stands where it does.
The setting
Located at 1 Ritz-Carlton Drive within the 22,000-acre Kapalua Resort on Maui's northwest side, 10 miles north of Lahaina and 26 miles from Kahului Airport, overlooking Kapalua Bay and the Pacific Ocean.
Restaurants and bars
- Banyan Tree — Restaurant · Chef Glenn Thompson
Experiences
- Jean-Michel Cousteau's Ambassadors of the Environment — Eco-tours from snorkeling to coastal walks and electric bicycle tours, with conservation efforts such as rainforest restoration. One of only six Ritz-Carlton hotels offering it.
- Impact Experiences — On-property social and environmental impact activities, including preparing donated meals and assembling school supply backpacks, plus off-site volunteer options.
- Mālama Hawai‘i volunteer project — A weekly volunteer project offered to guests, either a beach cleanup or invasive species plant removal.
- Traditional luau and Hawaiian cultural performance — A traditional luau and Hawaiian cultural performance held in the reimagined Aloha Garden Pavilion.
Amenities
- Full-service luxury spa (2022 renovation)
- Anuenue Room Club Lounge (new post-2022)
- 3 outdoor pools (newly renovated)
- Sauna
- Hot tub
- Fitness center
- Tennis
- Water sports
Awards
- AAA Four Diamond (2026)
- Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star (2026)
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