More about Hawaii Prince Hotel Waikiki
Waikiki hotel without the madness
by paul.mac about Hawaii Prince Hotel Waikiki, Oahu
Experience:
Great location. Great service. Great view. We stayed at this hotel during the last full week of 2008, including Christmas, for 4 nights while visiting family on Oahu. I tried to research hotels with limited time and settled on this hotel primarily because of location, cost and room size.
The hotel is right next to the Pacific Ocean. In fact all of the rooms have view of the ocean. No garden view, mountain view, parking lot view here. When you come out of the elevator on your way to guest rooms, all the rooms are on one side of the hallway. The other side of the hallway is large windows through which you can view the mountain side of Honolulu. It was nice not having to walk through a dark hallway to get to the room. I really think this layout is a major plus of the hotel.
If you book a cheaper room, you will get a room between 5th through 10th floor. Even these all face the ocean although your view of the ocean is blocked somewhat by the small boat marina. Also all rooms face the ocean so you don't have to worry about someone looking into your room through the window.
Because of an issue at the 1st room (6th floor) we were in, after 2nd night we asked and were given a new room on the 18th floor. My wife and kids were having major allergy issues in the first room. The allergy symptoms went away when we were out of the room visiting family. It was either caused by trees/bush right outside of our window or cat hair from past guests. My guess is the cat. Anyhow we asked for and the front desk gave us a new room on 18th floor. Basically the issue wasn't the hotel's fault but they responded in a positive way immediately.
When we got to the 18th floor, the view of the ocean got much better.
Food:
We had breakfast buffet in Prince Court Restaurant in the hotel one morning and it was pretty good. The restaurant is on 5th floor btw. When we went it wasn't too crowded and were seated right next to the window. There's the usual breakfast stuff plus menu catering to Japanese/Asian tourists. Kids enjoyed fresh fruit.
I discovered Marina Front Cafe on the last morning we were there. You can pick up something quick to eat or coffee. If you are in a hurry to go on a tour that leaves early in the morning Marina Front Cafe would be a good choice. There is a Starbucks and McDonalds across the street from the hotel also. While in Hawaii, you should try McDonalds for some of the items that are available only in Hawaii.
We didn't try it this this time but a few years ago I was in Hawaii, we tried shave ice in Prince Court Restaurant and it was awesome. It was a bit pricey for 'shave ice' but it was beautifully presented and the ice was very smooth, which according to my wife is a key part of a good shave ice.
Room size:
We didn't get the suite but the room is still pretty good sized. I think its rooms are larger than other Waikiki hotels. About 420 sq ft. And the Bathroom has separate tub, shower, and enclosed toilet area with a separate glass door. Pretty useful when you have kids. Because of the tub I'd recommend this hotel for families with little kids that need to be bathed by parents.
Parking:
We valeted our car for $22 (?) a day. Self-parking is $15/day I believe. They had different rates for visitors without room reservations. But in case you have visitors coming to the hotel in own car for some reason, they can use metered parking facing the boat marina.
Negatives:
-Furnitures are dated. I think the TVs are about 10 yrs old. They probably won't replace the TVs with wide aspect LCDs any time soon as the Entertainment Stand doesn't have the room.
-Not much to do at the hotel itself. At Hilton Hawaiian Village you can just walk out of the building and see tropical gardens, fish ponds, sandy beach, penguins etc etc which are good enough to entertain little kids and maybe even adults for awhile. But at this hotel, there is the nice airy lobby and view from the hotel and that's about it. You could walk over to the Hilton Hawaiian Village by following the sidewalk which takes you through the Hilton Lagoon and than the grounds of Hilton Hawaiian Village. It's about 5 min of walk to get there.
Lastly, we were there when the entire island of Oahu lost power for 12 - 24 hrs. All elevators were out of service when we pulled in 30 minutes after the blackout started. We were bracing ourselves for the walk up to our room on the 18th floor but thankfully they got one elevator working in both of the 2 towers in time. I heard the next morning that Hyatt had no running water during the blackout. Not our hotel. All rooms have view of the ocean. If your floor is low enough, most of the view is taken up by the small boat marina.
Not in the middle of Waikiki but near enough that it's quiet. Within walking distance of the Ala Moana Mall.
Spa, Dolphins and more
by Fun4you about Kahala Mandarin Oriental Hotel Hawaii
The Kahala is one of the most luxurious oceanfront hotels on Oahu. The ocean view is spectacular and there is plenty of privacy for relaxation. Yet the hotel is only 10 minutes away from downtown Waikiki activities and shopping.
This luxurious resort has 364 rooms, six restaurants and a world-class spa. There is a pool, Fitness Center, tropical gardens and the private lagoon with dolphins.
lovely stay at the Hawaii Prince
by A TripAdvisor Member
my only regret is that we only stayed for one night!my husband and i thought this was a great hotel. the room was large, clean and very comfortable. had luxurious triple sheeting on bed, no blanket touching you that other hotel guests before you have used. every staff member from valet to bell boy to front desk, extremely pleasant, always using your name with Mr/Mrs. very nice touch. compare to royal hawaiian hotel, where front desk clerk made mention, rather loudly, that with priceline resv. you get the bottom of the categories.reserved HPrince with hotwire, front desk clerk said, room is prepaid, did not make big production that you were receiving a bargain basement price!the view of the harbour/ocean was amazing and the huge bathroom a real plus.
The Westin Hawaii Prince, just...
by sflorman
The Westin Hawaii Prince, just off Waikiki (behind the yacht docks), is a delightful hotel and just a bit cheaper than the big boys right on the white sand. However, Waikiki and the shuttles to downtown Honolulu, etc., are a very short walk away.
About $140 - $200, USD Nice views of the yachts if you're on the ocean side. In addition, the hotel has its own golf course, designed by Arnold Palmer, to which they will shuttle you.
Locals Love This Hotel Too!
by TripAdvisor Member Hawaiian_baby_808
We have stayed in hotels in several countries and other states and the Hawaii Prince Hotel is one of the best values anywhere. This is not a five star hotel . . . if you want five star accomodations in Honolulu, stay at the Halekulani or the Kahala Mandarin, which we have and you do pay dearly for the five stars. If you're looking for the best value in a Waikiki hotel between $150 - $200, this is the place. Although we live in Honolulu, we make it a point to stay at the Prince at least twice a year, one of which has to be during the Christmas season to shop at Ala Moana Center which is within walking distance. The staff is the best and the dining options good. I've seen the reviews that this hotel caters to Japanese tourists, but in all our stays at the Prince we have met people from all over the world which tells me that this hotel matches the needs and tastes of a diverse group. The hotel does not front the beach, but one of the best beaches (next to the Hilton) is such a short walk away. The rooms are clean, quiet and well maintained. Some are starting to show wear, but it never bothered us.
If you get a chance to choose a room with the breakfast option, consider it. The breakfast buffet spread is awesome (10x better than the ones we've seen in Europe or on the mainland). We will continue to highly recommend this hotel to friends and family when in town. It's the best value!
Nice Hotel but no beach and away from the Beach
by TripAdvisor Member ARBUFL
We booked this hotel as part of a package deal, which was at a very good price. The hotel itself was very nice, clean and the staff was very helpful. Self-parking in the parking garage that was connected to the hotel was $11 a day if you are a guest at the hotel. I forgot how much for valet parking a day. The room that we had was cozy and nice with a view of the marina and had a mini refrigerator in it. It had a very nice bathroom with a separate toilet, tub and shower areas. It didn’t have a balcony, which would be nice. The hotel overall had a Japanese sensibility to it. I guess this hotel is popular with the Japanese because I would say the majority of the guests were Japanese.
The hotel was great but I thought the location sucked. It was easy to get to from the airport but it was too far from the Wakiki strip to walk on over but the hotel did have a shuttle that ran over there free of charge every hour or so, but in only ran from noon to 10pm. You really can’t drive to the strip because finding parking is a major pain so you are left with taking a taxi if you want to go to the strip in the mornings or stay out later than 10pm. The Hawaii Prince was not on the beach, but there is a very small beach about a 5-minute walk away and Ala Moana Park about a 15-minute walk away.
Overall a very nice hotel with very friendly staff, easy to get to and no problem with parking but there are no balconies, it is not on the beach, and the beach close by is very small and it is too far from the strip to walk to. Of course you would have to pay more, to get a hotel on the beach or on the strip, so the Hawaii Prince is a great hotel and a great value, just as long as you don’t mind being away from the a beach or the strip.
The Hawaii Prince was $170 a night and the Sheraton Moana Surfrider where my friend stayed was $195 a night which was right on the strip and on the beach.
Amazing
by TripAdvisor Member BostonBackBayer
This was probably the nicest hotel room I ever stayed in and at a bargain price, who can complain. The hotel is about 1 mile or less from the Waikiki nightlife, but that area seems very Atlantic City-like to me. The Hawaii Prince is what Hawaii should be about...beautiful rooms all with floor to ceiling windows overlooking the harbor, with no obstructing large buildings to block any view. The bathroom was larger than some NYC apartments and had a separate shower and separate bath, so 2 people can get ready at the same time. Free water and welcome gift of dried fruit to boot!
The bell boys were the nicest and the front desk staff were also nice.
The room s were immaculate and by immaculate I mean sparkling white bed spreads that I had no problem sitting on top of the bed ot letting the bed spread touch me while I was sleeping...this is a big deal if you knew how germ phobic I am.
The Japanese did dominate the hotel and are not a friendly bunch, but don't take it personally cause I noticed they do not greet each other either!
Photos
SHERATON AND ROYAL HAWAIIAN HOTELS
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