The certifs did indeed come as part of the signup for the RC card. They are labeled as "Club Level uograde up to 7 night's." Will save them should we decide to splurge for the RC for a couple of nights.

Thanks for the succinct information. It is appreciated.

They're not a signup bonus. You get 3 of those a year, good for upgrade to club level at a RC hotel (and only a RC hotel) on a paid stay (with your ritz card) of up to 7 nights.

Don't worry. Others will (and have) answer you vs. berate you. This forum is the place to learn new things & search or ask for answers. Enjoy your stay in Hawaii.

Cheers.

Just back from 2 brief stays at this property.

I am gold, and had booked two paid nights here in a partial ocean view in a room with 2 queens. There was no upgrade.

The rooms were clean and beds were comfortable. Room felt a bit cramped.

We were in Waikoloa for bulk of our stay, and I preferred that location.

However, this was a good place to stay for our first two nights. We arrived very tired after 12 hours of travel. So, this was a convenient hotel to crash and walk around Kailua Kona the next day.

Our second stay was unplanned. Our return flight was cancelled due to mechanical problems, and the airline provided a voucher for this hotel. On the second stay, we were given a nice view of the tennis courts :-) and we did have a backup into the shower, which I reported. But the room itself was clean, and the beds were comfortable.

Would I stay again? Yes, but as I did this time, for the first night (or two) following a long travel day. It is a convenient location to walk out to shops and restaurants, and an easy drive from the airport. The rooms are clean and staff are pleasant. But the rooms seem a bit cramped for an extended stay if not traveling alone, and I would personally prefer to stay out of town, in easier walking distance to a bigger beach.

Thanks for the update. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

Marriott Courtyard Kona (King Kona)
 

Pleasantly Surprised!!!
This is the place to stay for the ironman
Parking $15
stayed one night for work recently

upgraded to a King with a fantastic view (best room/view in the place i think)

for the gift was a BIG box of chocolate covered macadamia nuts (they were out of kona coffee)

would go back again in heartbeat, great place to go for a run

gonna try the hilton property next time but its like a 20 mile drive from the airport this is 9 miles

Stayed here again for the first night of a two-week trip. I continue to like the location after a full day of flying and five hours time difference. As a gold I was upgraded to an ocean view king (booked 2 queens because that room was cheaper). The parking fee wasn't on my bill; but when I mentioned it when checking out, the desk clerk said "No worries" and didn't charge me. Nice perk to start my vacation.

I was able to leave the car in the parking lot until late afternoon when I moved to Waikoloa, which I appreciated.

Unless you are unwilling to walk 5 minutes (less time than it's taken me to get my car in Waikiki or the nearby Hilton Waikoloa Village) there is no need to pay for parking at this hotel. There are some free spaces right in front of the hotel, but if these are occupied (more often than not), there is a free lot a few minutes walk away. Ask the front desk: they'll give you the easy directions.

This is certainly a good property to stay at, if you don't need all the resort bells and whistles. A particularly good choice for biz travelers, or for folks looking for an affordable "base" to explore the Kona side of the island (not who want to spend all day at the hotel).

Great staff and location
 

Check In Arrived late evening at the hotel and was helped immediately since there was no one in line.  I was helped by the rather infamous check-in staff (if you read TA, you will know who I am talking about). As a Plat Elite member, I was given a choice of different items to choose from as my arrival gift, went for the Mauna Lao Macadamian choc box.  I was given an upgrade from a Partial Ocean view to a Full Ocean view Queen room.  I did enquire about a further upgrade, but was informed none were available.  Other than that, no further perks as Plat at the property.  Was given a run down of the different activities and facilities of the property.  All in all check in was efficient and fast. Room Bathroom was on the smaller side, but other than that, everything was in working condition and water pressure and temperature was good.Noise: Walls were on the thin side - though not much disturbance from the neighbours besides the occasional water pipe and flushing noise.  The only bad is when you have the doors to the balcony open, and the proximity of the room to the pier/street area, you do hear people talking and shouting throughout the night especially in the weekends.  Also in the morning, starting from approximately 5.30 am, some club/organization gets ready to bring the kanoes/longboats out.  Most probably the East wing would have less of this issue.Internet was available and as an Elite, was offered the Premium internet speed - this was fast enough - although I forgot to check out the speedtest.  I did have 2 additional devices added above the 3 max - but those were super slow - not sure what the reason was but did not bother to dig into that since they went above the 3 max device.Room was on the 3rd floor and I believe the West wing ( it was the one closes to the street).  It was a well appointed room.  Layout was good and in good conditions (I believe the rooms were recently renovated?).  There was a nice balcony with nice Lanai doors.  I kept this open at night (air-cod will switch off automatically when the doors are open) due to the nice cool breeze at night. Service They do have different on-site activities and external organization to help with car-rentals (Hertz, Dollar, Thrify), luau activities, etc.  There is also a H.I.S agency on-site.Did not try but from the outside the gym facilities looks sufficient for a good workout.Only facilities I used was the pool and hot tub.  The pool area is on the smaller side - I can't imagine how it would be during peak periods/season.  The hot tub was on a smaller side and with just 4 adults in, it was on the crowded side.  The small beach in front of the hotel gets busy - it's too bad that it is a public beach instead only for hotel guests as it would help to elevate the problem of the smaller pool.   Dining The only dining consumed was during the Happy Hour at the poolside bar.  Happy hour is from 5-6 pm and strangely only the pupus are on offer for 50% off. No alcholic drinks offered at 50% off. The poke at 50% off was a steal and very good.  I could have that everyday!  Cocktails were not too badly priced, around 8$.  Service was ok - though not super friendly.Did not partake in the breakfast.   Location Very close to the airport and in the main Ali'i street.   Overall In general - at least for this Courtyard hotel - I am ok to pay the price as the location is good and staff are friendly and there is no silly resort fees.  The only thing I do not understand is why do they charge so expensive for parking, $15 when the Kona Seaside hotel opposite the place charges only $5 and as stated by other posters, walking about 5 mins you have the free parking lot.  Best staff encountered at this hotel were the front desk staff - they were all very friendly and exceptional.  Outside of this group - all the other people encountered were 2 levels below the friendliness shown by the front desk.  

Thanks for the trip report (although I'm not sure why you posted it 2 times). Much appreciated.

Cheers.

It was not my intention to post it twice, but due to some internet issues, the first time I submitted it did not appear, so I wrote another (was planning not to spend time again, but for the benefit of all - decided to write again). Did try to remove one - but due to how the review sw is set up, I could not delete it, did ask the administrator to remove the duplicate.

Cheers!

I call it the FT hiccup. No worries. Thanks for the detailed review.

Cheers.

Posting an update to my last report from 2013 and the more recent hotel review by nldogbert.

First, to clear up any confusion, please let me clarify the layout of the property. There are two towers, each six stories high. The East Tower is the one closest to Ali'i Drive and is where the taxi entrance, ABC Store, and check in counter is located. The West Tower is closest to the tennis courts and is where Honu's is located.

The property continues to try and upgrade Gold and Platinum members to better views (I book garden view rooms and got upgraded to partial ocean views). I have posted photos of the views from both the East and West wings in the wiki. East Tower is going to give you sunrise views; the West Tower has sunset views. In general the West Tower gets more direct sunlight and noise from the parking lot and tennis courts. The trash dumpsters are on this side so you get the noise of the garbage truck in the morning. The East Tower is closer to the bars and Ali`i Dive, so you get noise from there.

The other Gold and Platinum amenity is the free upgrade to the premium internet speed with a cap of three devices.

Parking as of March 2016 is now $16 per night (if you are staying on a Marriott Friends and Family rate, it is $5 per night). The parking lot is huge and will likely never be an issue, even if the hotel is full. I will mention that if you are staying in the West Tower, there is a back entrance to the hotel by the tennis courts and elevators so you can park in that section of the lot (I noticed a lot of employees parking there).

The thermostat issues I mentioned in 2013 seem to have been corrected, which is good.

An annoying thing about the mini fridge in the rooms is it seems to be set on a two hour timer so drinks and food aren't kept at a very cold level unless you are around to restart the cycle every few hours.

I still recommend buying groceries and fruit from the local markets for light breakfasts and snacks. We brought our own plastic forks and knives and asked for plastic plates from the front desk. You will be provided with four-cup filter packs from Royal Kona Coffee (10% Kona) in both regular and decaf.

Two Kiosks are available to print boarding passes in the East Tower lobby and if you ask at the front desk, they will give you a password for the three terminals around the corner in the business center. I used the latter to purchase postage and print the waybill for the USPS flat rate box of gifts purchased on the Big Island that I sent home (a good and economical alternative when buying jams and jellies, given checked luggage fees).

A few new places we found and liked this trip:

Kona Farm Direct Coffee - This is directly across Ali`i Drive from the hotel, under Splasher's. Very good espresso and drip coffee.

Daylight Mind Coffee Company - About a five minute walk down Ali`i Drive past the Kona Inn. Good iced coffee and looked to have nice baked goods. Prime oceanfront location with great views.

One Aloha Shave Ice Company - in the strip mall directly above the Courtyard parking lot entrance (there is a makeshift trail through the hedge). Their syrups are natural and nicely-flavored. Also, the people who run it are very friendly locals and I like to support them.

Thanks for the detailed trip report & pictures!

Cheers.

Greetings all, new to Mariott after SW merger.

I take it that at some point in the last three years this property was bumped all the way from a Cat 4 to a 6?

I am Gold, and will be travelling with three family members. Am trying to decide whether to stay here or the Waikoloa Beach Resort using a week Cat 5 stay (plus extra points) from the flights and stays promotion. Thoughts / suggestions welcome and appreciated.