I absolutley love this place. I have been coming to Maui for the past 10 years, and I always stay at Village by the Sea. There are many reasons why I think it's the best place to stay in Maui:
1. It's not a huge resort, and Maui is such a relaxing place, this place definitely has the kick back and relaxed vibe that Maui's all about
2. 1 minute or less walk to the OCEAN
3. The beach in front of the resort doesn't have public access, so the majority of the beach visitors will be people living/staying at Village by the Sea, and the few other places down the way.
4. There's a great pool, hot tub, kid pool, shuffleboard and even a mini golf putting course.
5. The landscaping is beautiful, with many plumeria and hibiscus flowers around the whole property.
6. IT'S THE BEST PLACE TO STAY IN MAUI, AND THAT'S COMING FROM A FREQUENT MAUI VISITOR.
- Just a little note... Make sure you get a suite that's as close to the oceanside area as possible, and if you care, make sure your suite has been renovated. The people in the office are very friendly and helpful, and your first full day there they offer a free breakfast with fruit, bread, coffee, and other stuff.

This is a basic, cheap condo/apartment building. The complex is old and plainly built, and is a mix of locals living there in apartments, and budget vacationers using the timeshares or renting from owners.
The good part is it's oceanfront and most units do have views.
Beyond that it's fine, but certainly not very nice and nothing remarkable about it.
There is a LOT of road noise from S. Kehei Road in most units.
The overall building is fairly old and not in that good of repair nor very clean - it kind of feels like going back to the old college dorm - really.

We were there with an extended family group - had 4 units - each one was quite different according to the remodeling and furniture tastes of the individual owner.
If you want a budget place with a kitchen and just want to be on Maui this may do although there are probably better options around.
If you are expecting anything nice or with amenities - look elsewhere.

Our stay at Kauhale Makai 501 also known as Village by the sea was a retreat we will always hope to return to. The unit 501 we stayed in was spiffed up to the T with a great oceanview. The owner went above the standard to make sure everything was set prior to our arrival into the airport and into the condo. We noticed that the unit we rented was in a great location and like new condition. Shopping and resturants are close by which made it nice if one of us left with the car. I could easily walk to the mall or shopping center. I liked the beach for my morning walks. Thanks again to the owner for a fine job with a very comfortable place for us to stay and excellent care for his guests. Hope to visit Maui this next year and stay here again.

Aloha
Gwendolyn

Last year we had booked our stay thru Resort Quest and stayed at the Kamole Sands which was paradise so when they recommended this place as an upgrade we thought great... so we arrived quite late to get our keys from a lock box and went to park in our designated spot but someone of course was parked there so after finding parking and dragging our stuff up the stairs we opened the door to a total disgusting nightmare. This place was so dirty I would not even take my shoes off, I instructed my children not to touch anything since I was scared they would infect themselves. The carpet was so dirty that it was beyond cleaning and had huge stains all over it and a sticky feel, the kitchen had bug and mice traps everywhere, the tile counter was dirty, the front of the fridge, stove and microwave had food chunks on it, there were ants everywhere. Then the bedrooms bedspreads and pillows were stained badly, the shower did not drain, you turned on the taps and bugs came out... it was like a horror movie. The next day to the minute we phoned Resort Quest who said they couldn not move us we would have to find our own accomadations and we did. We are still here and having a blast I totally recommend Papakei on the west side, it is a piece of heaven, clean, luxurious and more..