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Royal Hawaiian Honolulu, Hawaii post renovation 2009 [Master Thread]

Old Oct 27, 2018, 4:15 pm
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Royal Hawaiian Honolulu, Hawaii post renovation 2009 [Master Thread]

Old Jan 8, 2016, 7:40 am
  #376  
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Formerly of SacTown, Cali
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Any recent experiences with the Mailani Tower? As a mere gold I am debating if worth an extra $150 to go Mailani Tower and thus guarantee ocean view. Decisions....
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Old Jan 8, 2016, 9:47 pm
  #377  
DCF
 
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Originally Posted by SacTownGuy
Any recent experiences with the Mailani Tower? As a mere gold I am debating if worth an extra $150 to go Mailani Tower and thus guarantee ocean view. Decisions....
The tower view is nice but the rooms are as ever fairly plain and small. And the two level suites are too low to have a view.

The Mailani lounge is absolute garbage. Food is grossly inferior to the Sheraton Waikiki lounge next door and while there is a three hour slot with wine in the evening, there is literally zero by way of other drinks, not even soda.

It is the area in front of the elevators. They tried to call it a lounge six years ago and were laughed out of Waikiki and they are trying it again - they have even installed a single wall with a door to try to con people into believing it's a lounge.
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Old Jan 9, 2016, 2:42 am
  #378  
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Originally Posted by DCF
The tower view is nice but the rooms are as ever fairly plain and small. And the two level suites are too low to have a view.

The Mailani lounge is absolute garbage. Food is grossly inferior to the Sheraton Waikiki lounge next door and while there is a three hour slot with wine in the evening, there is literally zero by way of other drinks, not even soda.

It is the area in front of the elevators. They tried to call it a lounge six years ago and were laughed out of Waikiki and they are trying it again - they have even installed a single wall with a door to try to con people into believing it's a lounge.
I think this is a bit harsh. The food offering whilst not extensive is high quality whereas the fearing over at the Sheraton is extensive but low quality. The Mailani rooms are MUCH better than the frankly awful and tiny rooms at the SW even though they aren't exactly capacious.

The evening drinks offer has a cocktail of the day too plus waters (I am sure sparkling water and juices/Virgin cocktails were on offer too. I also thought beer was an option.

Whilst the lounge is quite limited and can get hot being totally exposed and without AC it is nicely laid out. In many ways the SW lounge layout is far better but it gets clogged up with argue numbers of Plats and families and the ambience becomes rather unpleasant.
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Old Jan 9, 2016, 10:58 am
  #379  
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
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What's the chance of suite upgrade at the RH now? I have 4 nights coming up, booked through citi prestige for a Luxury Privileges rate + plat status + suite upgrade requested.
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Old Jan 22, 2016, 9:28 am
  #380  
 
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: Formerly of SacTown, Cali
Posts: 1,240
Mailani Tower - so-so

So we stayed in the Mailani Tower last week. We stayed in the same building last year before it was "re-branded." As discussed by others the only difference is a wall downstairs, blocking off the elevators and limited food/drink offerings. The main reason we switched to it was to guarantee an ocean view with the nice lanni. I am only gold so figured an upgrade was a long shot. It was about $100 more per night than the grove rooms. I think the tower was about $465 a night. Worth the extra $100? For the ocean view and comfortable lanni yes but the lounge is minimal. Breakfast was VERY sparse to me. On vacation I like a full breakfast. On the other hand if you are a light eater then it's perfect. Yogurt, granola, fruit, some baked goods. The evening free drinks was long. It was like 5-8 or even 8:30. However, the two nights we went it was just beer and wine. Apparently on some nights they have a specialty cocktail but that is not every night. The hotel was allegedly sold out but the lounge was never too busy. Never a problem getting seats together. One funny. When I booked it the cost was an extra $8 for a "high floor" v. a "low floor." I figured why not. When checking in, at the separate Mailani Tower check-in desk, the woman proudly told me we had a high floor. There are 17 floors in the tower. Our "high floor" was 8. Hmmmmmmmm... not sure on that math. The rooms are identical to before the refurb so I think it is just the elevator area that was re-done. The pool is still tiny but beach is nice. People complain about the beach chairs. It's $40 for two chairs and am umbrella each day. Plus a little table if you are in the roped off section. There is no resort fee there currently so I don't see what the big deal is about a few bucks for beach chairs. You are already dropping five bills a night so what's another $40 for good seating on the beach!? Excellent housekeeping and pool/beach attendants. Food at Mai Tai bar is still fine but not worth going out of the way for in our opinions. The hotel is still great for a romantic get-a-way in my book and I am sure we'll be back.

Last edited by SacTownGuy; Jan 22, 2016 at 9:42 am
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Old Jan 22, 2016, 10:06 am
  #381  
 
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Originally Posted by SacTownGuy
So we stayed in the Mailani Tower last week. We stayed in the same building last year before it was "re-branded." As discussed by others the only difference is a wall downstairs, blocking off the elevators and limited food/drink offerings. The main reason we switched to it was to guarantee an ocean view with the nice lanni. I am only gold so figured an upgrade was a long shot. It was about $100 more per night than the grove rooms. I think the tower was about $465 a night. Worth the extra $100? For the ocean view and comfortable lanni yes but the lounge is minimal. Breakfast was VERY sparse to me. On vacation I like a full breakfast. On the other hand if you are a light eater then it's perfect. Yogurt, granola, fruit, some baked goods. The evening free drinks was long. It was like 5-8 or even 8:30. However, the two nights we went it was just beer and wine. Apparently on some nights they have a specialty cocktail but that is not every night. The hotel was allegedly sold out but the lounge was never too busy. Never a problem getting seats together. One funny. When I booked it the cost was an extra $8 for a "high floor" v. a "low floor." I figured why not. When checking in, at the separate Mailani Tower check-in desk, the woman proudly told me we had a high floor. There are 17 floors in the tower. Our "high floor" was 8. Hmmmmmmmm... not sure on that math. The rooms are identical to before the refurb so I think it is just the elevator area that was re-done. The pool is still tiny but beach is nice. People complain about the beach chairs. It's $40 for two chairs and am umbrella each day. Plus a little table if you are in the roped off section. There is no resort fee there currently so I don't see what the big deal is about a few bucks for beach chairs. You are already dropping five bills a night so what's another $40 for good seating on the beach!? Excellent housekeeping and pool/beach attendants. Food at Mai Tai bar is still fine but not worth going out of the way for in our opinions. The hotel is still great for a romantic get-a-way in my book and I am sure we'll be back.
Really?
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Old Jan 25, 2016, 3:08 pm
  #382  
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Originally Posted by 5DMarkIIguy
What's the chance of suite upgrade at the RH now? I have 4 nights coming up, booked through citi prestige for a Luxury Privileges rate + plat status + suite upgrade requested.
High for a garden, low for anything with a view.
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Old Feb 1, 2016, 2:38 pm
  #383  
 
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Just a few updates...

The resort fee is no longer being charged. This fee recently started being waived for Platinum members, but it has now been expanded to all guests.

Platinum members are now provided access to the Mailaini Tower lounge, whether you are booked into a Mailaini room or not.

To the comment about "buy up" options for the Platinum breakfast (at Surf Lanai), they are $15 each and include items like Belgian waffles. I will take a photo during our next breakfast and post it.

This means that Platinum guests now have at least two options for breakfast, both being similar. The Platinum breakfast amenity provides a broader window (9:30am vs. 11am). It is an excellent non-meat option, imo.
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Old Feb 1, 2016, 2:54 pm
  #384  
 
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 13
Originally Posted by jibi
Just a few updates...

The resort fee is no longer being charged. This fee recently started being waived for Platinum members, but it has now been expanded to all guests.

Platinum members are now provided access to the Mailaini Tower lounge, whether you are booked into a Mailaini room or not.

To the comment about "buy up" options for the Platinum breakfast (at Surf Lanai), they are $15 each and include items like Belgian waffles. I will take a photo during our next breakfast and post it.

This means that Platinum guests now have at least two options for breakfast, both being similar. The Platinum breakfast amenity provides a broader window (9:30am vs. 11am). It is an excellent non-meat option, imo.
wow, you're right. this is great. now to decide if i want to stay here or the westin moana. even though the base rate is more at the RH, no resort fee makes it cheaper than the westin!
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Old Feb 1, 2016, 5:39 pm
  #385  
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
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Also, I didn't see anything about the on-site spa, Abhasa. As expected, it is expensive ... and according to my wife, it was worth it. We had the Hawaiian-style Lomi Lomi massage, which will be the special for just about every spa on the island.

A warning to those making reservations at the spa, there are up-sells. When you arrive in the cabana, you are presented with a selection of three lotions (all smell great ... lavender something, coconut something, and rosemary something). You are also presented with a price list for a few oil selections (coconut something and two others, as well as essential oils). At the end of the massage during checkout, you are presented with "recommendations" from the masseuse, which may include oil used during your massage or something else from the spa store.

Also, an 18% gratuity is already included in the rate, so don't be confused when they hand you the receipt and it has a suggested gratuity calculation listed on it.
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Old Feb 9, 2016, 7:14 pm
  #386  
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 403
Originally Posted by chops
wow, you're right. this is great. now to decide if i want to stay here or the westin moana. even though the base rate is more at the RH, no resort fee makes it cheaper than the westin!
RH gets my vote every time. Moana always feels crowded and the bar is always busy. I can always get a seat at the MaiTai bar and love the beach at the RH.
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Old Jul 8, 2016, 8:21 am
  #387  
 
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Any recent reports?

Will be there next week. I'm a plat and have applied suite nights. Have never stayed at RH.
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Old Jul 14, 2016, 8:31 am
  #388  
 
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Originally Posted by Milhous Gloriosus
Will be there next week. I'm a plat and have applied suite nights. Have never stayed at RH.

Anyone? Recent reviews, thoughts appreciated.
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Old Aug 20, 2016, 7:04 pm
  #389  
 
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 49
Beach Chair Issue

SPG Plat, 4 night stay at RH coming up next week I frankly never knew about the beach chair reservation system, which is bizarre. Of course, chairs are booked for most of my stay. Crazy to me that RH won't reserve any chairs for Plats. I sent some emails complaining and the hotel essentially shrugged. Any suggestions? Or is the indifference to Plats typical at RH?
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Old Aug 21, 2016, 2:47 pm
  #390  
 
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Originally Posted by TravelingAssociate
SPG Plat, 4 night stay at RH coming up next week I frankly never knew about the beach chair reservation system, which is bizarre. Of course, chairs are booked for most of my stay. Crazy to me that RH won't reserve any chairs for Plats. I sent some emails complaining and the hotel essentially shrugged. Any suggestions? Or is the indifference to Plats typical at RH?
Do you really need to reserve beach chairs (all day or even half a day) for most of your stay? The roped off area for beach chairs is somewhat small and furthest from the water. You could always do like many, many others do ... set up shop in front of the roped off area on the rest of the beach (or pick a better, less crowded beach). Just some thoughts.

Also, there really is no use in complaining about Platinum recognition for the beach chairs. This service is managed by Waikiki Beach Services, which is not owned by the hotel itself. They simply hold contracts for the Royal Hawaiian and the Sheraton Waikiki next door. As for Platinum recognition in general, it is above average at this location.
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