Mary2e

Humm... not a bad idea. I'll look into it.

Richard1148

Actually, you can get enough miles from the sign up bonus for the HA Visa to get an inter-island ticket. The Plat card gets you 10,000 miles and the Gold gets you 5,000. There is an annual fee, however, of $50 for the Plat card and $25 for the Gold, but a ticket would cost you more.

villain189

Hey,

Not to distract you

Just kidding...but I did have a couple more questions after some research I did.


Anyways, was researching these hotels:
Hilton Waikoloa
Hapuna Prince
Manua Kea Beach Hotel
Fairmont Orchid
Manua Lani Bay Hotel

I like the idea of a more relaxed atmosphere of someplace other than the Hilton or Sheraton as long as the price isn't alot more.

So I found Fairmont Orchid 5 night stay for $263 per night which sounds pretty good to me. Reviews of the grounds are great, but the rooms, service and restaurants leave a little to be desired from the reviews. Are the rooms, service and food really as bad as some of the reviews at the Fairmont? In general they are pretty good on trip advisor but there are probably 10-20% that just rip into them...
How does it compare to the Hapuna Prince and Manua Kea which are also in this $250-$300 price range?
Restaurants aren't too big a deal cause it sounds like there are quite a few resorts/restaurants with quality food & service located within 10-15 minute drive from Fairmont...right?

I know the Hapuna & Manua both have better beaches...but it looks like the rooms and properties aren't quite as nice as the Fairmont. We could always drive to a nice big beach so we'd rather get more bang for our buck with a nicer place than a nicer beach...just wondering what you though about this.

Thanks again!

brendamc

As it's your honeymoon & you don't have 4 kids under 10, I would definitely go with the Fairmont. We were there when it was Starwood, but I have read the TripAdvisor reviews & I would take them with a grain of salt, as it sounds like you have. It's a lovely hotel - just be sure to get an inward facing room. The beach & snorkelling are excellent & we loved Brown's Beach House for a sunset dinner.

You used to be able to sign up for Fairmont's President's Club without a previous stay & get an upgrade if available on arrival. Maybe others can fill you in if this is still available.

I get a headache even visiting the Hilton - as others have mentioned, Disneyland on steroids with kids everywhere & huge distances, yuckky rooms, etc. Food is pretty awful there too.

I personally don't like the Mauni Lani either - too stark & 70's architecture. Have heard nice things about the beachfront rooms at the Mauna Kea, though.

Happy Honeymooning!!

rockdoc

Regarding rooms at Hapuna, we have always gotten the beds we requested. I am sure if they knew it was your honeymoon you wouldn't get two doubles.

Jon Maiman

We stayed at the Marriott Waikoloa this past summer and liked it a lot. It is a nice comfortable place, but not what I would call luxurious or upscale. As far as restaurants, none of the hotels in the Waikoloa area are very far from each other. So it is easy to go to any of them or to go to the restaurants at the Kings Shops across from the Marriott. I recommend Merriman's at the Kings Shops. Also Waimea is about 20 to 30 minutes drive from Waikoloa and has many dining options. We liked the Waimea Merriman's a lot and highly recommend it. The Merriman's locations have different menus and different executive chefs.

I do not recommend Daniel Thiebault in Waimea. Food was excellent but service was abysmal. We had a 7:30 PM reservation. We arrive at 7:15 PM and they couldn't seat us yet even though there were lots of empty tables. Okay, fair enough we were early and retired to the bar. Checked on seating at 7:40 PM and they said they were running behind. Finally at 8:00PM we were telling the bartender our tale of woe, he was the one bright spot in the service, and he fixed everything. We were seated immediately (note: the dining room was still half empty). They did comp. our drinks and an appetizer in the bar. They also presented us with another compliment appetizer (unordered) in the dining room. While we appreciated the gesture, we really didn't want another appetizer at that point. We graciously accepted it anyway. Service of the main meal was also spotty. May be we just hit them on a bad night. If the service had been decent, it would be a great place. The menu was very creative and all of the food was very well prepared. End of rant on Daniel Thiebault's.

Big Island is a great place. Already wish we were back there for another visit.
On another note, if you want to explore Volcanoes National Park, I recommend staying a day or two in the Volcano Village area. We have stayed at Hale Ohia Cottages twice and both times were great. Kilauea Lodge also looks nice and has a great restaurant which we have eaten at a couple of times.

I hope you have a great honeymoon.

Aloha,

Jon

Jon Maiman

Forgot to mention beaches in my last post. Hapuna is always easy to get access to and about 5 to 10 minutes drive from the Waikoloa Hotels. Mauna Kea Beach can be only accessed via the Mauna Kea Hotel grounds and access is very limited. Hawaii state law requires all beaches be publically accessible; however, there are a limited number of beaches passes available to the public (approx. 20 car passes). On weekends it fills up quickly. Mauna Kea and Hapuna are the best beaches in the area. If you want to walk out of your hotel room to a great beach, then stay at either the Hapuna Prince Hotel or the Mauna Key Beach Hotel. For us it wasn't worth the extra money, but we were tempted. Those beaches were truly great.


--Jon

villain189

Thanks for the excellent info Jon!

And brenda, thanks for the tip on the President's Club upgrade...just posted in the Other Hotel Programs forum to see if anyone has any details on it. Looks like it's been discontinued for first time signup, but I found a link from mastercard that looks like it may get me a cert...we'll see!

go go girl

We are staying at the Four Seasons Hualalai on the Big Island--noone has mentioned that resort. We have never been to the Big Island...and are curious to hear comments from others that have stayed there.

bocastephen

I think the FS is abit out of the OP's price range based on his initial requirements - I am cautious about recommending this property to anyone who plans on spending significant time touring because you can find quality hotels with fine service at half the price - it's alot to pay for a crash pad.

Unless you're planning on spending most of the trip at the hotel, taking advantage of it's services, it's almost a shame to spend 500+ a night. You can stay nearby and still visit the restaurants and spa at the FS and have the best of both worlds.

Now if I wanted to relax, be pampered in a spa, play tennis and golf and enjoy fine dining 3 meals a day, there is no question I would choose the Four Seasons - it is ranked one of the top hotels in the entire US, and among the top in the world...you can't go wrong there.

brendamc

Good luck - I think we got it before staying at the Kea Lani either because they were giving them out without prior stays OR because I emailed their Customer Service, gave them our other hotel affiliations & levels & asked for matching - definitely worth a try - they seem very helpful there. Again, Happy Honeymooning!!

It's been a looong time, but we enjoyed a dinner up at a little public golf course's dining room in Wailea town proper. Of course, I can't remember the name, but maybe someone can tell you if it's still there & still good & reasonably priced.

villain189

Brenda,

Actually, your advice came through huge!!

They used to offer 2 upgrade certs just for signing up a few years ago...but stopped that. If you are Gold or Plat you get upgrade certs, but not just for signing up anymore.

However, I did find this offer from mastercard while I was searching for info on what you said. You qualified if you had a Premium Mastercard (Gold, Plat, etc..) and used the promo code when you signed up for FPC. Anyways, I signed up for the Fairmont Presidents Club with this promo code and their CSR said I would be able to use to that upgrade during my stay next July 2006!!
http://www.mastercard.com/us/special.../fairmont.html

Thanks again!!

cejkwj

We just returned from a stay at the Four Seasons - great hotel. Loved the "quiet pool". Can't wait to go back - the BI is great. The drive from the FS to Hilo was very pretty. IMO better than the drive to Hana.

cejkwj

brendamc

Well, you made my day - so glad to hear the good news - have a wonderful Honeymoon!!

Sweet Willie

Some smaller, non-hotel options

Palms Cliff House Inn www.palmscliffhouse.com

or maybe a B&B www.bestbnb.com

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