Outstanding sale for accomodations in beautiful Maui this fall ...

Always dreamed of those soft, warm nights under a palm tree with a mai tai and Hawaiian music playing in the background? A fan of great golf courses and endless, safe beaches and spectacular seafood and whale-watching and long, oceanfront drives?

You're in luck. My favourite island in the world, Maui, has  just released its quarterly “Special Values E-Alert,” listing the latest bargains offered for fall and winter by 53 Maui hotels, condos, villas, cottages, and b&bs. Go to mauiaccommodations.com and click on Special Offers for some truly terrific deals.

Lots of folks love Wailea and Kihei. Wailea is generally on the pricey side but usually has the best weather on the island. Kihei isn't as beautiful but has nice beaches and good weather, although it's often windy in the afternoon.

Me? I grew up going to West Maui, in particularly the Lahaina-Ka'anapali-Napili area, which includes legendary Kapalua and its amazing golf courses and also the affordable Kahana region, where there are tons of decent if not spectacular beaches and reasonably priced condos.

A couple of the deals that struck me on the Maui accomodations site this morning were a $99 package for the Napili Village condo. I've never stayed at Napili Village (see photo at left) but I've been through the property a gazillion times on my way to the little Napili Village store. The pool is small but the property is all of 25 feet from the beach. You might not get an ocean view, but it's all of 30 seconds away, and Napili Beach is for my money the best beach on the planet.

There's excellent snorkeling and swimming at Napili, and also bodysurfing when the surf is up. You can rent paddleboards or just go for a nice walk along a crescent beach where no building is more than two stories high.

The cute and highly recommended Mauian is right next door, with rooms on offer for $180/night. Or you can splurge a bit on a package at the fabulous Napili Kai Beach Resort and stay seven nights while paying for five.

Elsewhere on the island, I spotted rooms at the terrific Ka'anapali Beach Hotel for $166 and up. It's a perfectly located spot right in the heart of miles-long Ka'anapali Beach, which offers not only outstanding water activities but also great shopping at Whalers' Village (see photo at right) and tons of beachfront restaurants, including Hula Grill and Leilani's, which makes the best fish taco you'll ever try.

I saw rooms near Maalea harbor for $120 and up. Lots of folks like it down that way but I personally find it a touch sterile and far too windy. Better, I think, to go further down the coast into Kihei or, if you can afford, it Wailea. The Kihei Beach Resort, which I don't know, has rooms for $130/night. Several Wailea properties had deals, too, such as 25 per cent off or even 30 per cent off condo rentals.

The Wailea Grand Champions Villas, perfect for golfers, had studios listed from $110 when I checked this morning. The golf in Wailea is outstanding, and the beaches are just as good as most in West Maui. Lovely resorts all along the coast, including Four Seasons and the family-friendly Grand Wailea with its endless pools and slides for kids.

I went on Expedia and found deals on flights from Toronto to Maui in November for $900 on American Airlines, flying through Dallas. It's not a bad way to go and it's a pretty good fare when you consider it's easy to drop $600 these days on a flight to Vancouver or L.A.

 Aloha!