bdaviskc

Thanks for all the suggestions folks, going to give them a spin! (Also appreciate the suggestions on local activities once we get to the Orchid. Looks very nice, so looking forward to it.)

^

Ancien Maestro

Let us know how it works out.. especially the request for upgrade. It would be curious to see how the Orchid treat base member FPCer requests. Our family will be down there Spring Break for 15 nights.. in a suite..

Must dos.. Excellent snorkelling, Volcano, Mauna Kea observatory, Four Seasons Surf Sand and Stars (lobster tail and seafood all you can eat, and excellent service), Gathering of the Kings, Ruth's Chris Prime Time (Local Mall), Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.. their beach and Sunday Brunch, Kona Village Luau

Other mentionables.. Pesto Cafe, Tommy Bahamas, steak house in Waimea (anybody remember?), Sansei Sushi (early dine in special 40% off). Happy Trails

bdaviskc

Will, do. Thanks for all the great suggestions. Going to make a list and try and hit these spots. Also hoping to get some cycling in (think I have that one figured out) and may take a helicopter trip to see the volcano (not sure if the kids will be up for that--wife and I loved it last time on the Big Island)

Ancien Maestro

DEAL! $210 cdn per night for Garden View Room, travelocity.ca on Expedia.ca and hotels.ca for Spring Break!! NFAF is more than this... and in American dough. Partial Oceanview at travelocity.ca is $235 cdn per night.. NFAF is more than this too.

Checked fairmont.com.. they got prepaid in this range. Must like the public better than F&F? This is evidence that F&F NFAF is losing its' value!

Can someone try booking this rate through FPC reservations? Let us know if upgrades can be done on the rate.. I'm already booked. Aloha.

767300ER

Just came back last week from the Orchid, For those interested to upgrade using their PLT coupons they handle those upgrades based on the type of room booked.

If you book a regular room with garden view you will be upgraded to a garden view suite, same trick for ocean view and ocean front. You may get lucky and get an ''upgraded upgrade'' but this is the way they do it. Got an ocean view suite in the north tower which was quite nice with view on the golf course, the ocean and the mountains.

Very smooth stay, staff was very nice and friendly. Our return flight was leaving around midnight so I asked about a late checkout. Best I could get was 1400hrs but was offered an hospitality room early in the evening with enough time to take a shower and change for the flight... nice touch.

I am not a big fan of hotel shops but the one at the Fairmont really stands out. Quite big (but just open from 10:00 to 14:00hrs) I was surprised by the variey of things they have and the fair pricing. (PLT have 15% discount there)

We had breakfast each morning at the Brown's deli which was plenty for us, closer to the beach and in a very casual setting.

We had also dinner one night at Brown's House. I was not thrilled by the level of service we got. Service was 6,5/10, I had to ask 3 times for the basket of bread then I had to pour the wine myself during the dinner exept for the first glass. I ordered a nice white wine and it arrived warm so we had to wait at least 15-20 min until it was ready to drink which at this point was main course. Not super attentive... Typically not the level of service I expect in a Fairmont.

The good side is that the food was good, (but not exeptionnal). We took the 20th anniversary menu which is a very good value for what you get.

Sunset drinks outside at Louana lounge were above average... The staff working there was great, good attitude, nice chat and good follow-up with customers.

The grounds are very well maintained, lot of space for everyone, we really liked the little hidden jacuzzi.

So overall... a nice stay at the Orchid.

Ancien Maestro

So did you get an upgraded upgrade at check in?.. did you originally book the garden view and upgraded to garden view executive suite at reservation?

How long was your stay at the Orchid?

767300ER

I got exactly what I was told, I booked an ocean view room and was upgraded to an exec ocean view suite. I was there for 3 nights.

Ancien Maestro

I got lucky the last time.. so we'll have to see what happens next week when we arrive. GV to OF suite, at check in last time. First couple stays, got what we booked. We're doing 15 nights and then hopping to Maui for 7 nights.

CanuckFlyHigh

Why not prearrange what suite you are getting upgraded to with FPC Plat / The hotel.

Ancien Maestro

767300ER nailed it on the prearranged with FPC plat. Book GV, get GV suite. Book OV, get OV suite. I don't know if FPC can book OF, and get OF suite at time of reservation. We always book GV, and get GV suite at reservation. It's the upgrade on the upgrade which management has discretion at time of check-in.

Of course, we're always open to move to an upgraded upgrade suite that is available at check-in to help out the hotel in case of a crunch

bdaviskc

Was at the Orchid for 7 nights (arriving back in Kansas City this weekend just in time for 8 inches of snow--literally started falling within hours of pulling in the driveway!) Trip was great--upon check in we were upgraded from partial ocean view to ocean view---I simply asked and they said no problem, happy to provide a complimentary one level upgrade for FPC members. I was in the North tower--believe this was the renovated section of the hotel. (Note--when we checked in they were at 65% occupancy and very pleased to be that high--few days later I noticed one of the beach side bars was closed and asked--occupancy down to 35% at that point--bottom line, I don't think its crowded nor will you have any trouble getting upgrades with a polite request.)

Room was very nice, and service was quite good. Ditto the above poster's comments on breakfast--deli was fine plus grabbed some cereal/items at Foodland nearby to have in the room--kids liked that better anyway. Did not eat many dinners at the resort so did not hit Brown's for dinner. Lots of activities kept me busy (side note--night snorkel with manta rays was awesome). Service at Hale Kai for dinner was very good one night, good the other night we ate there. While at the beach, look for a waiter named Christian (he is Candian)--very good. Other servers at the beach, not so great.

Staff was very helpful and responsive (extra towel requests, coffee requests etc), room service was timely (one meal in the room). We had a 9 PM flight out and asked for a late checkout--was told normally 2 PM is no problem, but would do 4 (or later possibly) for FPC member--ultimately they gave me a 6 PM checkout--perfect. Talk to Kathy at the front desk, she is nothing short of awesome to deal with!!

Did some paddle boarding with Uncle Kelani, nice guy. All in all, very nice. I would go back. Scratch that, I WANT to go back......

Ancien Maestro

Excellent! Glad you an awesome time down at the Orchid.. surprised that their occupancy dropped to 35% considering this is part of the Spring Break.. but, I guess the height of Spring Break is approaching end of this week.

We are arriving at the Orchid this Wednesday for 15 nights and hopping to the Kea Lani for 7 nights.. last stay was 18 nights at the Orchid (we extended from 12 days to 18 days the last time because they upgraded to OF suite).. so hopefully they'll do a one or two category upgrade for us.. will bring more business next year if they come through again Anyways, ditto on the breakfast.. I've arranged with front desk for brekkie buffet every morning (cost is $48.60 for 2 adult, kids 5 and under are free). If we did Fairmont Gold, then this would not be necessary, but we like a suite, and the Garden View Suite for our first two stays was just fine, actually could see the ocean, so that was a bonus. Plenty of room for the kids, and the extra bathroom is a bonus.

Just driving around, and can remember the awesome feeling of Hawaiian weather through my minivan vent... nice sunset tonite, certainly I'm ready for a deeeeep aloha holiday.

Anyhow, for those heading down to the Orchid, concierge has notified me that the FPC rate for Cabana rentals dropped down to $30 per day this year.. you get the Cabana and a snack bag with bottled water.. the snack bag is a cooler, and you get some fruit, snacks, and stuff thrown in.

There is also a Spa Without Walls special "You Deserve it Package", its $299 plus tax and gratuity, and you get 2 ocean side massages, cabana rental, lunch at the beach bar (I think), and self parking. We are going to do this special.. it is going to be nice.

Gathering of the Kings this year is only Saturdays . Won't be attending because we are going to the Four Seasons Surf Sand and Stars Saturday evenings for both Saturdays. Basically all you can eat lobster, seafood, steaks, ribs, etc.. awesome service, I believe the price is $62 pp, kids 5 and under are free.

I think I've convinced my wife to do some luaus, simply because this gives the kids something to do (limited to what we can do with 3 month old, and 4 year old).. so why not visit different parts of the Big Island simply by attending luaus.. so I think we'll do Kona Village, King Kamehameha, Mauna Kea.. will miss Hilton, did that last time, and wasn't a must do.

See you guys down there!

bdaviskc

Yep, Cabana rental at $30 is a good deal. In fact, we felt it was the "best" deal going beach/pool wise. Paddleboard rental was steep unless you bought an activity card and since we had our own snorkel gear and wanted to hit other beaches (Hapuna, Beach 69, Spencer etc) we didn't want to be locked into an activity card at the Orchid, thus $30/hour rental on the paddleboard although one of the beach guys was cool and said he felt it was to high and shouldn't charge more just because we had our own snorkel gear etc so he gave me the activity card rate--$10/hour. I made it worth his effort with a nice tip. Unfortunately, the guy running the place the other 2 days I rented was not so nice and I paid full rate on the board.

Cabana deal--soft sided cooler with two waters, two bags of chocolate covered mac nuts (small bags) and two non-refrigerated snacks--one bag of cookies, one bag of chips was the usual deal.

For lunch--try the Mahi Mahi taco wrap--good stuff!!! My kids really liked the coconut limeades. Enjoy! I'm back in the office this morning, ugh, tough to be back at work.

Ancien Maestro

I'm wrapping stuff up at the office.. we're rarin' to go.. kudos on the cabana content update.. I'm cheap and usually don't rent the cabana for more than 2 or 3 days a trip.. but with a three month old, the cabana will be a God Sent.

Will try the beach lunch pad this time a couple of times.. brekkie every morning, and hitting up 4 luaus and 2 Surf Sand Stars.. we'll be rolling out the welcome team.. that is when we head back home from vacation. Which luaus did your family hit up?

bdaviskc

Look for Christian at the beach (waiter), good guy. Tell him Mr. Davis (the mountain biker) sent you! We just did Kona Village for luaus--lots of other evening activities (Hilo late one night due to Volcano Park visit, night manta ray snorkel--wow was that cool!!! Kona one night etc)

Enjoy!