Wish you were here?
Hotel overview
Property information
{{title}}
Hotel details
Hotel advisories
General policies & fine print
Ratings & reviews
TripAdvisor traveler rating
6897 reviews
-
Feb 19, 2025Great Relaxing Base to Explore Oahu and Experience Waikiki
I thought this was an excellent resort. I love the older part of the hotel and the history. It has a lovely old hotel feel to it with rocking chairs on the porch. The staff was attentive and experienced. We had a two room suite on the end of the tower and it was amazing. Spacious and the most incredible views of Waikiki and Diamond Head. Comfortable heavenly bedding. I have been to the Big Island, but i always wanted to see Oahu, Honolulu, Waikiki, and Pearl Harbor. This is a fantastic place to stay to do everything. You can rent beach lounge chairs and umbrella for 100 - but it is extremely limited. Reserve on the app. They have an overflow option next door. We chose the Tommy Bahama chairs, which are free to rent for those with sufficient status. 25 dollars otherwise. I did do surfing lessons off property on Waikiki with my 13 year old. I had never been before. It was exhausting and I really learned how hard it is. FWIW our instructor told us 95% plus on waikiki are learning and have no idea what they are doing. After my lessons, the next time I watched the surfers from my balcony, I could tell how inexperienced (like me) they all were. The buffet breakfast is excellent - western and a limited eastern. There is only one restaurant, but it is quite good. They have a nice large gym. There was construction going on probably floors 10 and down. They appear to be renovating. But unlike the other reviews i have read, we did not hear it. The balcony reno seem to be finished. We had full access to the our balcony, and all of the balconies, other than the bottom three floors, appears brand new and renovated. Though at times only one elevator worked, which was inconvenient, needless to say. The bar makes some fantastic drinks including four versions of a Mai Tai. I had the Moana Mai Tai and loved it, though it is strong. I do think that three bartenders for the entire property is not really sufficient. There are lots of servers running around, but space around the pool and beach is extremely limited. We primarily just went to the beach with our Tommy Bahama chairs. We did buy boogie boards for like 20 bucks off property. I believe they are also available for rent. Don't miss the statue of the Duke and the stones of life on Waikiki. The restaurants, food halls (like 6 you can walk to), grocery stores (and yes Target) make Waikiki certainly the most convenient Hawaii location. All are walkable. Be sure you understand that Waikiki and Honolulu are extremely busy, lots of traffic, lots of people. This is not the relaxing part of Hawaii you might have envisioned. But it is a fantastic location for a base to explore the island. We rented a car the entire time and circled the island with the Guide Along (audio GPS tour), which I highly recommend. Parking really is 65 dollars (which is more than we paid for the rental). I explored other possibilities before I left, and it's just the reality parking in Honolulu. You might be able to get 45 nearby, and walk to the hotel. You could try renting only certain days and avoiding parking fees. But renting near the resort is more expensive than the airport, and you would also pay uber fees to and from. I think you absolutely need a rental car to truly get the most out of Oahu, though perhaps stringing together organized bus tours might be more economical. We hit Kualoa Ranch (UTV Raptor), North Shore surfing viewing, Dole Plantation, USS Arizona, surfing lessons with Moku Surf, Bishop Museum, Iolani Palace. The pockets of beaches on the north side are really empty and quite enjoyable. It was a fabulous history trip, with some great natural views, and some beach fun. For clarity, I give 4 stars, because I only give five stars to the most exceptional hotels, like a Four Seasons, St. Regis, or Ritz Carlton. This review is a strong endorsement.
-
Feb 12, 2025First Lady of Waikiki is Losing Her Luster
My wife and I love this hotel. We've spend many of our wedding anniversaries here over the last 25 years. The history, the location, and especially the staff are amazing. BUT, it really feels like they're letting the property slip into less than pristine condition. Just a few examples: The rooms in the historic Banyon wing really need some attention--Many of the blinds are broken. The shower looks terrible. The furniture is really showing it's age. Then, there are the very uncomfortable lounge chairs at the pool, the rigid metal frame seems to hit at all the wrong places. I could go on but I'd also like to say something positive... Most the staff at the hotel are simply amazing people. Pool staff (Colin, Kaiya, Isaac) are so helpful and friendly, staff at breakfast time on the Veranda are equally great (Alyssa always has a warm welcome at the hostess desk). And maintenance was friendly and quick to respond when we had an issue with our room safe. So, can I recommend the hotel, and will we return? Probably "yes" but mostly for the location, the history, and the staff...the hotel itself has lost some luster.
-
Feb 10, 2025
Luxury Venue with Menu prices to match
We visited the Moana Surfrider cafe for drinks after a day on the island, just for drinks and light bites to eat. It's a beautiful venue, with superb patio overlooking the beach and sea views. They had a live Hawaiian guitar player. It's worth stopping here for a few beers and we chose the Nacho dish with raw fish. It is pricy though! Check the menu for prices before you sit down.
-
Feb 09, 2025
A wonderful original property on Waikiki - worth the visit
We stayed at the Surfrider February 1st through the 6th (2025). I really loved the old style of this place. It exudes history everywhere I looked. We were in whatever the wing on the north side of the courtyard is called -- not the newest very tall wing, but the one right by the pool. It had a great view of the courtyard and its very beautiful banyan tree that is over 120 years old. We also had a view of the beach and ocean and were able to watch all of the surfer students out every morning "learning", hee hee. The staff were friendly and engaged and helpful when I asked questions. The bar was OK. It's a hotel bar, so nothing special, but it did have the views of the beach and ocean. Also some sort of live music almost every night (maybe every night, we missed a night or two, doing other things.). The bar prices are about what most hotel bars are. I again loved the banyan tree! The room (659) was OK. The carpet was a bit dated, but it was clean and I loved the pattern. The bathroom was tiny, but this is an original tower, I believe, so YMMV. We purposely avoided the "balcony" rooms because the hotel site told us they were being renovated. I'm not sure why other people are so upset about the work going on -- the site clearly mentioned it. Anyhow, my only negative feedback about the room is that it didn't have enough power outlets. There was an outlet behind the bed and a power strip on one side of the bed, but nothing on the other side of the bed. I had to improvise to charge my phone at night. One super negative item to me is the valet parking fee. It's $65 per night to valet!! That's almost highway robbery.
-
Feb 07, 2025Wonderful place
My wife and I just stayed here jan31 -feb 2nd for 2 days. We made the right choice as we were back and fourth on where to stay. Beautiful hotel . Love the old style but beautiful. Didn’t feel at all like a huge hotel at all. We were greeted very nicely by the Valets and the front desk. I forget who served me at the front desk upon arrival but she was very nice. I did talk to Cindy the next day and she was very very nice and helped me out with my late checkout. We got a fantastic room. I wanted an ocean front high floor with a balcony. We most certainly got it . My wife and I are all about the view and we got it . Rooms are not huge but that’s ok. We have balcony with 2 rocking chairs. Great atmosphere outside at the bar. Staff, drinks food all excellent. Nice view as well. We had dinner at the beach house. Great great dinner . Great location in the heart of Waikiki. The only negative I had after staying here for 2 days and spending almost $3000.00 was when I checked out . The front desk girl could have asked how my stay was and if I enjoyed myself . Nothing , a little disappointed in that . But everyone else was great. We will be coming back next year