B on Hawaii

Furthering the effort to educate visitors to Maui on why Kapalua is so culturally significant, the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua has launched an "Ambassadors of the Environment" program in partnership with the renowned Jean-Michel Cousteau's Ocean Futures Society. This marks Cousteau's first venture in the State of Hawaii.

Ka'anapali's Royal Lahaina Resort launches a 6-concert summer series that begins this Saturday, with the incredibly dynamic duo of Eric Gilliom and Barry Flanagan. The event begins at 6:15 p.m. for those who opt in to a "Dinner and concert" package.

In this neighbor isle issue, we thought we'd put two new hotels on your radar. Each are a study in design, with offerings different from what we've seen across the state in other hotel experiences.

While the grand resorts that skirt the Maui coastlines of Kaanapali and Wailea have their respective offerings and lavish amenities, they’re not always what a visitor is looking for.

For those in the food or wine business on Maui, Lahaina Grill is a meeting place, of sorts. Well-researched tourists who make the jaunt to this historic whaling town may find themselves enjoying one of the best meals of their trip.

One of Hawaii's hottest rising chefs, Jojo Vasquez, quietly left his post at the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua's Banyan Tree at the beginning of this summer.

If any of you dear readers haven't been to the west side of Maui in a while, things are a-changin' in them parts of the chain. First off, the number of townhomes, condos and developments on the mauka side of the highway is staggering. Which obviously isn't going to help the insufferable traffic problems West Maui is already experiencing.

June is a happening month on Maui, without a doubt. Still coming down from the high that was the most successful Maui Film Festival to date, the Kapalua Wine & Food Festival kicks off at the tail end of this week.

Tonight will be an exciting evening on the Wailea, Maui, coastline: It is the official opening of Kō. An ingenious, new restaurant concept opening inside the Fairmont Kea Lani, Kō is the brainchild of chef de cuisine Juaquin "Jake" Belmone, as cultivated by executive chef Tylun Pang and food & beverage director Peter Sylvester. It has been two years in the making.

Fresh off a huge, multi-million dollar renovation, the Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua, is casting the spotlight on its newly refurbished Kai Sushi restaurant, a seafood buffet at The Terrace restaurant, and the opening of the new Beach House café.