Kacee

Yes it's a really no brainer for me with HR priced higher than Ali'i and no more resort fee waiver.

edgewood49

Frankly Ali's is still better. Private pool, on the beach

thekaica

I heard Melody, the VIP Manager is leaving. No word yet on a permanent replacement.

FriendlySkies

That is very unfortunate. Melody was extremely helpful when I emailed her about an issue last year.

edgewood49

Problem is that position there is a revolving door to other major properties throughout the world. Last one went to the Park in Chicago. Melody will be missed but be sure there will be another one. What will be interesting to see is the overall management of the hotel now that there are new owners who as I understand will slowly bring it back to it once was before GS and then Blackstone sucked the life out of it

dukerau

Any thoughts on HR Wakiki vs the new Hyatt Centric Waikiki? I'm booked later this month at HR on a c+p booking (was hoping to get a Parlor Suite via DSU as we are 2 adult couples, but hotel is fully booked). It looks like I could switch to Centric and possibly use a DSU there - lots of unbooked room types for my dates. Is it supposed to be better?

edgewood49

I too am hoping to see what the property is like. It will also be interesting to see how the Waikiki property handles the new Globalist on stays. Generally their crap with Diamonds now same as the Maui Andaz

Maybe the Centric is great alternative ?

josephstern

Interesting. It's not on the beach, but they have some sort of beach area? They say the resort fee includes beach chairs.

Kacee

I see two negatives for Centric: no balconies, and located on Kuhio which is not beachside (despite what the website says). It's not even clear to me whether the windows open (perhaps someone can report . . . .).

I'm looking forward to freedom from Hyatt in Honolulu. All the properties are sub-par.

josephstern

I know I'm going way OT here, but what SPG do you recommend in Honolulu?

I booked the HR in a bid to get Diamond again, but that's done for.

jpdx

Quite frankly, SPG options in HNL aren't spectacular either. I've been Hyatt Diamond/SPG Plat for over a decade, and have stayed at each of the SPG properties at least a half dozen times.

The problem with SPG is that there's no guarantee that you'll get a suite or decent room. Unlike Hyatt DSUs (which are confirmed at booking), SPG's Suite Night Awards (SNAs) are applied to your reservation and will be confirmed between 5 and 1 day prior to your stay. In Waikiki, this is a huge gamble, because hotels are frequently sold out and the upgrade doesn't clear.

In theory, Royal Hawaiian, Westin Moana, and Sheraton are all superior to the Hyatt -- with some great rooms in the upgrade pool, and at least in case of the Sheraton, occasional upgrades to spectacular suites 2-3 categories above the standard suites SNAs book into. So if you're lucky to get a good upgrade, the SPG properties will be much better than the Hyatt. However, if the hotels are full, you can end up in awful rooms. We stayed at the Moana over Thanksgiving 2016 and were assigned a cruise ship sized room in the historic (Banyan) building.

As much as people complain about the Hyatt, you're almost guaranteed to receive an oceanfront room, very decent sized by Waikiki standards. I've certainly had much better upgrades at Moana/RH/Sheraton, but if you end up in a standard room there, you will be wishing you'd stayed at the Hyatt.

For me, as long as the Hyatt could be had for sub-$200, it was the clear winner, despite its shortcomings. Now, with base rates well over $200, resort fee not waived and requiring an additional parking charge, a $200 BRG at Sheraton and Moana is mighty appealing.

Kacee

OTOH, the DSU suite at HR Waikiki is not appealing (not to mention rarely available). And they've gotten stingier with the upgrades . . . my last stay was ocean front . . . on the 6th floor, which is approximately palm tree level, with tons of traffic noise.

At least all three SPGs are beachfront (as is HHV).

edgewood49

Hear you that place is terrible for Diamonds. What will be interesting will be after March 1st. I had a long conversation today with someone at Hyatt regarding what they envision treatment to the new Globalist ( expressed my compete hatred of that term) and Hyatt has sent out through various means instructions etc on how we are to be treated. I was told to get a ho0ld of them if there is someone that I do not feel is quite right. As I am creature of habit I know most of my hotels fairly well and generally know if I am getting a standard or "upgrade"

Hey we will see what happens in the meantime I am staying here.

And I am booking a stay at the Hyatt in Honolulu this spring and will see how we are treated.

Kacee

Interesting. I wonder if they're completely unaware that "waiting until next year" to roll out the red carpet will in many instances be too little, too late, since many of us have already decided to move our focus elsewhere.

I already have five non-Hyatt nights booked for January (San Diego and Mexico City). In both instances, the alternative was approx. 2x the price of the Hyatt.

StirredNotShaken

I can guarantee you that a Diamond member is NOT guaranteed an oceanfront room at the HR Waikiki, because I got an Ewa-facing room this weekend (although it was also NYE).

I typically get an oceanfront or a partial-oceanfront room on a high-floor roughly 75% of the time. In two years of being a Diamond, I have only gotten a DSU to work once - the HR Waikiki is incredibly booked year-round by a large Japanese visitor base.

I'll update the Hyatt Waikiki Centric thread later, as I have a reservation there this weekend.