Maui Nui Luau

We have been to 3 Luau on the island of Maui, this being the poorest. The host was not funny and the chatter went on far too long, not everyone visiting Maui is American and the God bless America routine became very tiresome. The actual performers were very good and enjoyable to watch but the whole evening was ruined for us by the host.

I tried a few locations for luau and Sheraton has one the best ones. Beautiful sunset and good quality of food. Foods are fresh and nothing has bad smell.
If you want to experience a luau night I recommend this place.

Not great. Seemed to wait forever for show to start. Food was mostly mediocre except for the pork which was flavorful and tender but very simple.

We were visiting Maui, and one of the highlights of our trip was going to be this luau. We both work jobs where we don’t make a lot of money, and we work very hard to save enough for our family, to afford this luau.
We were hoping it’d be worth it but sadly, we were disappointed. The actual luau was pretty decent, but yes overpriced. What was horrible is the fact they have you check in, then keep you waiting in an area with absolutely no shade. Sure it might have been hotter in the day we were there then some days, but I keep hearing people who had similar experiences, who were complaining, and ended up having to find some shade outside of the Luau area, or our case we had to go in the hotel lobby and wait an hour to let it slightly cool down. It was very very uncomfortable, to the point that you’re getting sweaty and sunburn, while sitting around waiting for nothing to happen. Obviously the management knows this is a problem, and they could build some kind of cover, or shade, to take better care of their guests who are paying nearly $ 100 to attend. Or here’s an amazing idea, why don’t you start the luau later, so you don’t have people standing the blazing sun at 5pm with absolutely no relief in sight. We also noticed one of the bartenders wasn’t very friendly, didn’t have any personality whatsoever. But was even stranger was that I was given a plastic cup, with my drink it, and it was leaking. When I went back to mention it he told me that he’s been having problems with many cups leaking. Another person at our table had the same problem. Again you’re charging $ 100, so go buy some new cops. Red Solo cups cups are available at any store. Bottom line is, this is will be a memorable experience, and it’s expensive, so there’s no excuse not to make it a great experience all the way around.

I have been to a few of these in Maui and this one seemed to drag on and on. I will say hat the dancers were incredible! The host of the show did his best to fill-​in the slow patches while the dancers changed, but it was monotonous and got old. They had us sitting in an open area on the hotel grounds without one tree for shade. The sun was quite warm and two hours past before sunset. The buffet was good, but I felt like the ticket prices should be cut in half for kids. This is my short version… just read what Amy L. posted. I agree with everything she said.

We were staying at the Sheraton in late June/​early July and attended the luau on the hotel property. Interesting to read all the mixed reviews below. Look, this is not luxury dining nor is it service or amenities like the Four Seasons. We got pretty much what we expected and we are fine with that. Food was actually pretty decent (for a luau) so no complaints there. The host was awesomely cheesy but if you’re OK with that, it’s a trip. Throwback to Don Ho /​the 70s. Quite a number of performances and the fire-​knife guy was quite good. They do keep you waiting in line *WAY* too long in the hot sun to get in, they really should speed up the photo/​check in process. Is it worth the money? Heck no. But if you know what you’re getting into, we thought it was worth it.

The line to get in bothered many people. It did not bother me. We were greeted with a real lei! It was beautiful. The bar had premade Mai tais and piña coladas so you could grab a drink on the way by. We have been to other luaus where those were the only drinks. this had beer and wine too. The food was delicious! The dancers good, and the commentator ok. They really celebrated newly weds and anniversaries, which was nice. Don’t miss the bread pudding with vanilla bean sauce. We couldn’t believe we were all raving about bread pudding of all things.

The actual luau was okay, but not as good as I’d hoped. The dancers were good, the commentator was okay, & the food was great.
When we paid for our $ 20 picture at the end my sister went to take a picture of it after I paid for it & the lady totally freaked out & messed up the picture. I would have gotten my money back but I paid with a card so they printed me another one but it left us feeling very weird as if we were a bunch of wrong-​doers.
I’ll definitely go to a different one next time.

Skip this mess, it’s not worth the time or the money! This is one of the cheesiest, smarmiest, most mediocre experiences to which I’ve ever been subjected. It was so bad, my husband and I left half-​way through!!!
This luau as of yesterday costs $ 102. Save your money and go elsewhere.
Upon arrival, you’ll wait in line for what seems to be forever in the still-​hot late-​day sun, only to be greeted by a middle-​aged-​white-​male photographer who insists upon taking your picture. In 5 – 10, this 4×6 photo will be available for you to purchase for $ 20, or if you want the digital version, that’s $ 40, and because they apparently live in the last century, they put it on a CD-​ROM for you. Yup, no email technology here!
Then you’re herded over to the entry table, where you’re lucky to get a half-​hearted «Aloha» from one of the three people checking your tickets and exchanging them for meal tickets. Another middle-​aged-​white-​guy directs your seating as though you were being herded into an over-​crowded Denny’s, and you’ll find yourself in a cheap plastic lawn chair at a big, round table with a bunch of strangers. Sigh. It was all downhill from there.
Our «host for this evening» was The World’s Smarmiest, Cheesiest Host. You would’ve thought he’d cut his teeth in Reno at some backwater casino lounge! Whether he was asking us to «give a hand» for practically everyone under the sun, or asking people where they were from, and then making a horrible stereotypical joke about them, it was, in short, painful and awful.
Additional pre-​dinner entertainment included about five minutes of «native Hawaiian games», which were sad and mostly there to keep people’s small children from melting down. Our host also encouraged us to go either get a stamped commemorative bookmark, or visit the «local artisan crafts» table. I opted for the latter, which was mostly the same mediocre crap you could find at any kiosk on the island, nothing particularly unique or beautiful. Out of curiosity I inquired as to the price of a handmade purse. The saleswoman informed me that it was $ 185!!! Considering that the lining wasn’t properly finished and was already fraying, I’d say it most definitely was NOT worth the money!!!
The drinks were the highlight of this atrocity, with the Mai Tai’s actually tasting quite delicious. Credit where credit is due, you know?
The same could not be said for the food, which was seriously mediocre: A boring green salad with three choices of dressing, a non-​Hawaiian potato salad, some pea and nut salad that looked mayonaise-​y and gross, finely chopped lomi-​lomi salad, which wound up being more of a relish than feeling like there were actual pieces of salmon in there, bland «fried» rice (it was not actually fried), cloyingly-​sweet coconut-​flavored purple sweet potatoes, and taro rolls. The proteins were an overcooked-​and-​flavorless mahi mahi, juicy marinated chicken thigh meat, and of course, kalua pork from the pig that was removed from the ground during another intensely cheesy «ceremony» mc’d by the host.
The desserts were a giant step down from even that: bland mango bread pudding, some sort of fruity cake, and the most generic, mass-​produced «chocolate» macadamia nut mousse cake, the flavor of which made me instantly depressed.
I was irritated by the Christian «grace» that the host said as people sat to eat. I didn’t pay to sit through someone else’s religious ritual!
None of the employees of this luau were anything resembling «friendly», most didn’t even acknowledge my existence, a huge departure from my experiences at other luaus… definitely a downer.
After waiting for the actual show to begin, finally, there was drumming, and 7 dancers came to the stage to perform… Hallelujah! Except that they were mediocre, too, just as the host and the fried rice before them. Two of the men were out of shape, and the majority of the female performers were skinny caucasian girls… I don’t understand, wasn’t this supposed to be a fancy show at a fancy resort??? Ahhh, I get it: This is the luau for khaki-​wearing, middle-​aged white people who are both terrified and slightly tittilated by the splash of «exotic» Hawaiian culture… but can’t take too much of it.
After their first dances, suddenly the performers disappeared from the stage and the host started his yapping again! UGH. Please just STOP!!! Then I realized the problem: They only HAD 7 dancers, so needed constant, long costume change breaks! Right about the time that the host invited all the newlywed men from the audience on stage to do the hula for their brides, we’d had enough and left.
Seriously, people, don’t waste your time and money here. Go to Old Lahaina Luau, or somewhere else. Just not here.

We went to this luau to celwbrate during lur honeymoon, per a recommendation from Boss Frog’s. Skip it for the Olde Lahaina Luau instead — but book in advance, as we heard it fills up far in advance.
Anyway, Sheraton Luau. Customer service-​wise, I’d give it only one star! We were herded into a line to get in for an hour, only to have our photo taken (mandatory) and herded into yet another long line. Our pre-​booked voucher supposedly to propel us to the front of the line (per the voucher) did nothing. Then we were forced to a table where we faced away from the stage and any view. I asked if we could be seated elsewhere, and despite there being more than 30 empty tables, were told we could only switch if we wanted the overflow table at the back. Really? There weren’t any seating arrangements; merely seaters placing groups as they came in. Lame. We relocated anyway!
They want you to sit down right away, rather than enjoy a cocktail and mill around. Can’t put baby in a corner (ha!), so we walked around to check out the food tables. You could tell they really just wanted us to sit down, being told twice to please sit while the other guests filed in. No thanks.
The open bar left a lot to be desired. Sickeningly sweet pre-​mixed pina coladas and mai tais, and well drinks + basic domestic beers.
The food was pretty good. Not great. They made it seem like you only had one opportunity through the line, as you had to turn in your food pass first time through. So I loaded up first time through, only to find out I could’ve gone back again. It should have been communicated!
But, overall, we were determined to have a good time and we had a great table of fellow guests who made the night enjoyable. We had fun chatting and the luau show wad pretty entertaining. I got up for the hula lessons, which was really fun.
Overall? Did NOT live up to the value, but it was a good show with decent good and free booze, no matter what the selection, can help make any event that much more enjoyable :)

We spent our luau draped in ponchos from an unexpected storm but still had a fun time!
It was set on the lawn right next to the beach. We were greeted with leis for the ladies and wooden necklaces for the men and given punch and had photo ops while we waited. Once seated, the open bar provides premade Mai tais and Pina coladas as well as other mixed drinks and beer. Unfortunately just as the show started, a random heavy storm came on. They quickly passed our ponchos to the crowd and continued as the rain lightened up for awhile.
The food is served buffet style. Everything was delicious! The pork was the star after we watched them pull the roast pig from the ground. There was also fish and chicken as well as numerous sides. We were sat at tables of 8 and had a great time meeting our table mates.
The host was reminiscent of a cheesy game show host but that seems to work for Luaus. The dancers were very talented and put on a great show. Unfortunately our night was cut short when the storm got heavy again so we missed out on the audience participation dancing.
Yes, it may seem like a tourist trap but when you’re in Hawaii, a luau just has to be done:)

First time in Hawaii so had to do a luau. The Old Lahaina one was booked so we gave this one a go. The reviews were mixed but generally good but we didn’t know what to expect.
Fortunately, it was a good time. Yes, its cheesy, yes, they try and nickle and dime you a bit but it was fun. Think, old vegas show with Hawaiian theme.
The food was surprisingly good. (For some reason no restaurants serve pig anymore so this was one of the only spots to get it!)
The open bar serves mostly ‘normal’ drinks except mai tai’s, which wasn’t the worst thing in the world.
The hula dancers and fire dancer were pretty interesting.
Overall, I wouldn’t do the same luau again but I was happy with this one and would recommend it for anybody looking in the area.

The weather was rainy on and off today, so it was inside.
Waited on line about half hour because we got there early. They gave us fruit punch as we waited. (Hubby joke: is this Hawaiian punch? Awful)
They take your pic with the beach in the background, guy was really corny.
Then you get on line, check in, get a ticket for dinner, and are presented with a wooden turtle necklace? Where is our lei? Cheap.
So they seat you in a banquet room. It was nice and cool, but they didn’t fill the room so our table was half full and awkward.
The bar has premade piña coladas and Mai tai. Cheapest alcohol possible. We saw popov vodka. It’s 8 dollars for a giant bottle. (It was a college staple)
So yeah at this point you’re drinking rubbing alcohol waiting for the room to fill up. The band is playing what sounds like the same song over and over. One guy mumbles into the mic once in a while.
Then the «host» comes out. He had a game show voice and explained the history of Maui and hula. A few dances were done and they invited people up to participate.
Then they paraded in the pig. Pretty cool.
You’re called by table to the buffet. Between my husband and myself we tried everything
Rolls were good (when I think the bread was one of the best parts you know it’s gonna be bad). Pork was tender and salty as HELL. Chicken teriyaki, eh. Lomi salmon, where’s the fish? Just tomatoes. Noodle salad was done well and the fried rice was good just bland. Oh and the mahi? No flavor. Like eating mush.
Dessert was terrible. Chocolate macadamia cake and guava cake. No. Not enough cocoa and the guava was like jelly. There was fresh pineapple though.
Now came the real show. Dancers are talented except for the one girl in the beginning who looked lost and almost lost her headpiece. One guy was also pretty confused.
They had all the honeymooning and anniversary husbands dance for their wives. That was awesome as my husband isn’t exactly a smooth dancer.
They involved the crowd a lot and I really only gave it 3 stars for the performance.
At the end are fire dancers! So cool!
Wish we could’ve seen the cliff dive but it is what it is.
Was it worth 108 dollars a piece? No. Was it fun? Yes. Would I come back? Never. Sorry. It’s basically something you «have to do» and the luaus prey on the mainland folk coming and spending their exorbitant prices.

The sunset itself was nice and the fire dancer was pretty good, but otherwise this was a pretty lack luster luau, and for the price, I deffinately was expecting more. The food was mediocre and the drinks seemed watered down, however you could order well drinks that were complimentary in addition to mai tais. But the rest of the dancers, not including the fire dancer, appeared to be running through their routines with as much energy as state workers on a monday morning. Need I say more. Oh and the MC left a lot to be desired. His voice was annoying and it seemed like he was doing the same presentation as hosts from the 1960’s and 70’s.

What a MAJOR DISAPPOINTMENT!!! Don’t waste your money on this ridiculous event.
1) We arrived on time and were told they were out of leis. The «manager» said he would go get us some; however, we did not see him the rest of the evening.
2) They did not take a picture of our family.
3) We paid for preferred seating for 8 adults and 4 kids; however, they said they «overbooked» and tried to seat us in the non-​preferred section.
4) They said they would try to make it up to us by getting our grandkids on stage during the show. They never made any attempt to get our kids on stage.
5) The «show» ended at 7:15PM. We were in our car at 7:25PM.
6) The staff was rude, inconsiderate, disinterested, condescending, and disingenuous.
7) I would give this minus five stars if possible.
8) Use your money to go some other place!

We came into the luau and they ran out of leis!!! How do they run out of leis at a luau!!! They knew how many people were coming and how many people to seat… so how do you not have enough leis?!! That’s the whole point of a luau! So disappointed right off the bat. We even paid for preferred seating and still nothing special.
We got our seats and got up to get our food. I did not enjoy the food. Ended up ring two plates of yams and salad. My husband thought it was okay but only the meats.
The show was good and entertaining! They made up for it here.
P. S. this was my first time in Hawaii or at a luau so next time start the experience right

For our very first luau, my wife and I didn’t know what to expect. We just prepared to eat a lot of good food, so we just snacked the entire day before we got to the luau.
We were a little late when we checked in, and one of the ushers led us to one of the tables in the back row. Right before he seated us, he told us to hang on because of a vacancy in one of the preferred tables. We were cool with the seat, getting acquainted with the other people at our table. Before the actual dinner, few of the performers were showing demonstrations on how to make coconut milk, how to wear a sarong, and how to dance and twirl poi balls. Good way to keep the audience busy before serving the food. When we got back to our seats, that same usher moved us to one of preferred seats, right in line with the center of the stage!
The food was amazing! Drinks need to have a little more alcohol.
Grilled Teriyaki Steak (Off the grill)
Kalua Pork
–they do a demonstration on how its prepared and cooked
Sautéed Mahi Mahi with Macadamia Nuts & Capers
Steamed Sweet Potatoes
Poi
Potato Macaroni Salad
Pasta Salad
Fried Rice
Assorted desserts
I thought the Mahi Mahi and the Teriyaki Steak were the best part of the meal. My wife thought the kalua pork was really good. The show was amazing, especially the Fire Dancer. They had a variety of styles of dancing. I thought the host was hilarious, just because he broke out singing every time he hit the stage! Classy! Only complaints, I wanted to get more of the food during the show, but they took the food away really early, and didn’t have time to get another plate. Also the desserts were so-​so.

Let me start by saying I have only ever been to a couple of Luaus… This one beat the one we went to at the Hyatt Regency hands down.
We were greated by beautiful people with wonderful festive attitudes and fresh flower leis! Very fragrant, we scored big karma points after the Luau by passing them along to some very happy kids in the hotel lobby that were just arriving at the hotel.
The setting couldn’t be any more beautiful… of all the Kaanapali hotels, the Sheraton has the best view by far being that it is the end of the beach at black rock.
It was my wife’s birthday and I think that is why they seated us up front, close to the stage where we were near the front of the food line as well. She also got a nice shout out and we received a lot of special attention! It made her very happy. If you are a newlywed or have an anniversary you will get special treatment… be warned you might get to go up on stage and do a dance with the beautiful dancers.
I guess all of the Luaus have unlimited free drinks and more food than you would ever want to eat! I skipped the Mai Tai (I make them better than the bars anyway) and went for a mixed drink. No line, great service. My wife had the red wine and it was much better than the reds we were served at the expensive wine restaurant a few nights before. I am sure it wasn’t an expensive bottle but it was well selected by someone that knows what a red wine should taste like.
Of the food, I really thought that they did a great job making a tasty meal for a couple hundred people. Can’t be easy keeping that much food ready at the same time. The pork was perfect and moist, I liked the teriaki flavor of the steak as well. A few salads to choose from and some Mahi Mahi. We asked the rest of the table how they ejoyed it all and everyone had nice things to say. I was the only person who didn’t try the poi. Lol
The show was very good five women and three male dancers. Excellent, Excellent dancers. The band was wonderful and the host reminded me of a 1970’s variety show. A little campy but at least he had some appeal to people of all ages. Kind of reminded me of a Wayne Newton with his hair.
I would recommend this without hesitation.

After much disappointment for not booking the ‘Old Lahaina Luau’ in advanced, I had to go to Unilocal for help to find an alternative. The Sunset Luau at the Sheraton Resort appeared to be the next best option and had availability for the day I wanted to attend. It was a birthday gift for my bf so it really meant a lot to me that everything worked out well; especially no rain since it is held outdoors. The evening turned out wonderful and we were able to see the sunset while enjoying the dinner show. While waiting in line to check in, they served us fruit punch and mai-​tais. Then we all got ‘lei’d’ (ha ha ha).
Anyway, if you get preferred seating, you get a better looking lei with actual flowers but for general seating, you get a shell lei, which I have never seen before. I just bought general seating because there is really no difference. We were lucky that we got seated near the front of the stage because we were one of the first few tables who got up to the buffet line (woohoo!). The buffet consisted of the following:
Main Courses:
–green salad
–pasta and potato salad
–poi (If you have never tried, you should try but do not expect anything out of the ordinary)
–khalua pork (you also get to the witness the roasting ceremony in the pit)
–teriyaki beef (thought this was rather random)
–mahi mahi
Dessert:
–Raspberry sponge cake
–Coconut pudding
–Coffee and Tea
The pork and potato salads were my favorite. The poi was interesting and as I found out later, it’s made from taro and it doesn’t have much flavor to it.
They also have an open bar but don’t forget to tip. (If you drove here, then that’s just too bad. J/​k.) Right before the start of the buffet, they have a few demonstrations by the production team. One guy was showing how to make coconut milk and another lady was demonstrating different ways to wrap the sarongs and make it into different styles. It was a nice little distraction before the main event started. Like all luaus, the main attraction is to see the hula dancers. In my opinion, the dancing was a bit longer than I expected but still quite entertaining. Our host was very amusing and graceful at the same time. There were a few breaks where he invited the audience (mostly the newly weds) on the stage to dance with the hula dancers or do silly things to embarrass their significant others. Overall, my bf and I had a great time and would definitely consider coming back again one day.

best kahlua pork I’ve ever had. Delicious. For those of the reviewers below that complained that they «waited» forever, it’s because you guys are poor and cheap to not buy tickets that puts you in front of the crowd. Can’t really complain if you didn’t pay the same price as other people. I did not see any issues with the set being «cheap» or the costumes being «cheap» either. I thoroughly enjoyed the luau and thought the dancers were very professional and looked very happy doing it!
The only negative though, the host is extremely cheesy. T_​T what do you expect? It’s hawaii!
To see the videos of the luau that I recorded, check it out here: