I am going to try to give a detailed review of this property because I think it deserves it. I gave it 5 stars because of the overall value. It is NOT a 5 star hotel. It is a simple hotel with great amenities and a super friendly staff. Summary: Stay here if you want good value and a good nights sleep and you value clean rooms and friendly staff and the best snorkeling on Waikiki. Don’t stay here if you want a high class amenities and want to stay in the high end district with the more expensive shops.
The Goods:
1. The beds are excellent. We had a family reunion, and everyone was surprised how well they slept. I’ve included a picture of the mattress brand and model because we may actually buy one. We slept better on this bed than we do at home. Very rare! The pillows were ok, not bad not great. We likes the fact that the bathroom sink had a larger counter next to it to put our things. The bathtub/shower was clean and easy to use.
2. The staff, very friendly and helpful. They give you a text when you first get there saying if you need anything, just ask. I asked for several things and Olivia, Kana’I, Jules, or Kai always got back to me within a few minutes. They also only do valet parking, which I thought would be a pain, but it was much easier than self parking. They got my car within a few minutes every time and were also very friendly while doing it.
3. The location. At the far end of Waikiki, it’s more convenient to get onto the H1 highway. If you stay in the middle of Waikiki it takes 5 to 10 more minutes to get out of Waikiki. Also, it’s still close enough to the center that we walked there several times during our stay. No safety issues that we could see. It’s next to the zoo and park, but we didn’t visit there so we can’t comment on either one. Not being inside the breakwater areas in the center of Waikiki it offers more chances to see fish and turtles. We saw 2 turtles during our stay and lots of fish. Not as many as Hanauma Bay, and nowhere near as good as black rock in Maui, but not bad for out your front door. Wear water shoes, the sea urchins will hurt if you step on them!
4. Little Perks. They had lots of free perks we didn’t know about. Washers and dryers for the guests. Free reef safe sunscreen and aloe for when you get burned. Free beach towels. Free chairs, inner tubes and other items from the shop next door. ABC store on the first floor with basics and decent food. I liked their salads and sandwiches. Lulu’s on the second floor of the hotel had very good food, but like all over Honolulu, it was pricey. Another simple perk is that there is an end table on both sides of the bed. I don’t know how many fancy hotels I’ve been to which only have an end table on one side. Very frustrating.
5. The views. When we walked down Waikiki, I noticed some higher end hotels that looks to be partially blocked ocean views. We had the best views by far! I can’t understand why people would pay more for a lesser view. Our ocean view rooms (not ocean front, those are better and more expensive), had a view of both the beach and Diamond Head
The Bads:
1. The rooms are very simple, and dated. But they were clean. You only get the basics, a microwave, small refrigerator with no freezer section. The shampoo, conditioner, body wash are in pump dispensers which work fine. But they weren’t any fancy brand but they worked just fine.
2. The valet parking circle is difficult to get into. But once you’ve done it a few times, it becomes easier. I have pictures showing the circle for anyone thinking of coming here.
3. They have ice machines on only 4 of the 12 floors. Not a big deal, but I though I should mention it.
4. TVs, they may work, they may not. I never turned mine on, and I watch a lot of TV. With there being so much to do in Waikiki, we never had a chance to turn them on.
