murrayhill

Stayed there from Jan. 27-Feb. 2 on a GLONP2 award for our baby-moon with the ever-pregnant Mrs. Murrayhill.
I should preface my remarks by saying the mega resort is normally not our cup of Earl Grey, but we were ready to accept the HWV -- trams, Dolphin Encounters and all -- on its own terms. Plus, the price was certainly right.

We were in the Ocean Tower and given access to the Executive Lounge as Diamonds. First night started in a snit as they put us in a room with double beds instead of a king, as we had long ago requested. They claimed the kings were spoken for in the tower, though they could have moved us to the Lagoon Tower, a 15-minute walk away. A non-starter as that would have meant a schlep to the lounge. We sucked it up one night and got moved to a king in Ocean the next day, with a decent ocean view (make sure you're on the fifth floor or above for that).

The rooms are all spacious and nicely decorated, though nothing in the way of abject luxury. Still, more than adequate. They'll turn you down at night, too, if you want.

The staff we encountered were almost uniformly courteous and helpful. But the lack of oversight was glaring. Though not unique to HWV, the problem of room service detritus left outside doors was glaring. Walking to and from breakfast, tray after tray of last night's dinner was still outside. Since we're dealing with exterior corridors, this means attracting bugs and birds. It's a problem that seemingly grew worse each day.

Restaurants at the hotel are horribly overpriced on the level or above of the highest-end restaurants on the Big Island. We only tried the Chinese restaurant, Kirin, which was middling, but with prices 2 to 3 times higher than what you'd see in a big city. Fortunately, we had access to the lounge for b'fast, instead of forking over $17.50 for a continental breakfast or $24 for a buffet. Unconscionable.

We didn't get there, but the Chinese joint in the nearby King's shops has some good writeups. You'll pay about half what the Hilton charges. Same for the Japanese restaurant in the mall, compared to the Hilton's Ichiban, though the latter has a very nice setting and a koi pond worth a stop.

I can recommend Roy's in the King's shops for the quality of the food, though not the size of the portions. Thought I received a better value in other Roy's.
Other dinner choices: Don't laugh, but Costco makes a decent pizza. Large pie is 10 bucks. We found ourselves out and about and wound up there. BTW, if you're in Kona, Costco is the place to gas up before 9:30 p.m., provided you're a member. The gas is 25 cents a gallon cheaper than nearby locations -- at a still-hefty $2.34.

Back to dinner: Filling, cheap and tasty comfort food at Hotel Manago in Captain Cook; in Kona, very respectable Thai food at Royal Thai Cafe in the Keahou Mall; Indonesian food at Sibu,which has good lunch deals. Follow that with a humongous load of shave ice next door at Scandinavian Shave Ice (ask for yogurt). But some of the best eating on the Big Island can be found up in Waimea, about 25 minutes from the hotel. We had an excellent dinner (par for the course) at Merriman's, and a generous and reasonable brunch at Daniel Thiebault.

Moral of the story: Get off the hotel grounds (self-park for free, don't valet for $10.50 a day) and explore, be it the volcanoes, nearby historical parks or to spend some time on a real beach, something you can't do at HWV. If you do stay, the good news is the size of the place can work to your advantage, as you can invariably find someplace that's uncrowded without a lot of effort. Heading over to Buddha Point by the Ocean Tower is a great place for the sunset, if you can snag one not overwhelmed by the evening clouds ( a lot easier said than done).

Suffice to say, we didn't do the Dolphin Encounter, though we watched others who forked over the bucks and appeared to be having fun. And there was a lot else to keep the under-18s occupied and fed to their specs. Indeed, ultimately this place does works best if you're with a family. But if you're shy of that goal you can still have a good time. One place is the excellent spa and fitness facility.

The gym equipment was the best I've seen at any hotel-run facility and the locker room was immense, well-equipped and luxurious. I went down once just for the whirlpool. Just about every type of spa treatment you can think of (along with ones you didn't) is available at predictably steep prices. They didn't seem to lack for customers, and I heard it's a good idea to make reservations for massages and the like upon arrival. Definitely worth multiple visitsm but it's over at the Lagoon Tower. So, if you're staying at the Ocean, be prepared for a half-hour round-trip walk.

Overall, it was a pleasant experience and the location, with relative proximity to Kailua-Kona as well as Waimea and upcountry made for relatively easy driving. I'd go back, provided it was an award stay. Otherwise, I'd think I'd leave there thinking I could have done better. YMMV.

P.S. If you're taking the AA redeye home, make sure you're at security early. The flight leaves at 11:15, but the checkpoint is history at 10:30. If you're still hanging around the check-in counter by then, the TSA staff will go home, but you won't. Someone we know had our vacation unexpectedly extended when this happened.