Help me pick a Big Island hotel

ChanaC

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 25, 2014
Forgive me if this question isn't specifically Aulani related, but I've never been to Hawaii and all the commentators in this thread seem so nice and helpful that I am hoping they can help me make a decision! For some reference, this is an adults only trip and will definitely be post Covid, whenever that may be (hopefully maybe February, but even that's looking too optimistic right now).

I'm looking at going to the Big Island and do a split stay between two hotels. The reason for this is that the first three days I'm planning on being more adventurous and I don't want to spend money on a big beach resort if I'm barely going to be in the hotel. For reference, the plan is to arrive one day and explore Kona, then spend one day on a tour of the southern half of the island (including Punalu’u Black Sand Beach, Volcano National Park, and stargazing near Mauna Kea) followed by another tour of the middle/northern-ish half of the island (including Waipio Valley, Akaka Falls, and Rainbow Falls) another day (all through Wasabi Tours, which I've read great things about - let me know if you tried them!). The current plan is to stay somewhere like the Kona Seaside Hotel or the Holiday Inn Express Kona, depending on the best rate I can get.

After all that, I was to do three days doing the classic beach vacation, just relaxing by the beach and pool. After a bunch of research, I'm kind of stuck between two options - the Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort and The Westin Hapuna Beach Resort.

The pros of staying at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott is that it's walking distance to a lot of shops and restaurants. I don't plan on renting a car, so it would be nice to be able to eat or go somewhere that isn't just the resort, and possibly save some money on the marked up hotel food. There is also a beachside restaurant right next door, and some cool looking ancient petroglyphs just down the road. The beach it's on also looks beautiful. The downside is that the reviews aren't great, especially when it comes to the food. Also, the prices aren't that much better compared to my other option, and in some cases even look higher.

Which brings me to The Westin Hapuna Beach. It looks absolutely gorgeous! The reviews on everything seem great and the beach looks fantastic. There is also an adults only pool, and since it will be an adults only trip this feature is particularly welcome. It's definitely a step up in quality from the Marriott. Also, such a small detail, but all the rooms seem to have a large lanai/balcony with a day bed and a table and chairs, and it looks like all the rooms are at least a partial ocean view, which would mean just sitting out there should be a great experience. The downsides is that it is pretty far away from everything, and without a car it seems like you are pretty much stuck there for your entire stay, as going off property for food would be a hassle. Many of the reviews also mention a lot of noise and disturbances from construction pretty much in front of the hotel, but hopefully when I go (post Covid) it will have wrapped up (as a note, the construction seems to technically be off the Westin property so from what I can tell, there isn't much they can do about it, so I hate to fault them for that).

What do you guys think? Have you stayed at either hotel? I think I'm leaning towards the Westin, but something about being around other shops and restaurants is calling me back to the Marriott. What should I do?
 
This coming February is extremely unlikely to be "post-Covid". We have a June trip booked & I'm not even expecting that to be post-Covid. I hope we'll be able to go.

That said, the Westin Hapuna does seem to be a great hotel. We've never been, but have our big island trip already planned & Westin Hapuna was a serious contender for our resort. We ended up booking the Fairmont because we wanted a little more luxury, but the Westin still looks like a great hotel & the beach is supposed to be one of the best on the island.
 
This coming February is extremely unlikely to be "post-Covid". We have a June trip booked & I'm not even expecting that to be post-Covid. I hope we'll be able to go.

Very true. Maybe just some left over wishful thinking.

I looked at the Fairmont as well, it looks beautiful! They have an outdoor spa which sounds like a dream!
 
Hapuna beach is lovely.
We stayed at a B&B in Volcano when we explored that side of the island. We spent some time touring the park and a day at the beach.

For the Kona side we stayed at the Grand Hyatt.

FWIW, I think a car is necessary.
(And the selection of restaurants in the strip mall is kind of limited to mostly chain restaurants as I recall.)
 


May I ask why you don’t want to rent a car? Any of those tours you listed can easily be done in your own. The roads on the BI are in great shape and well-marked. Understand if you’re from somewhere where you drive on the other side of the road—that’s tough to adjust to in a short time (or it was for me when I went to Japan). But then you’d be free to do whatever, whenever. Also if it’s your adult-only getaway, seems it’d be more romantic to be on your own rather than with a tour group of who knows what demographic. Of course, you could be talking a private your, which might be kinda great—built-in photographer LOL Just wanted to say don’t skip the car rental just to save money—IMO you’re not saving much if anything. Make sure to see some lava!!! (And lava tubes—fun!)
 
Good question! I originally planned this as a solo trip, but I might bring my mom along, depending on a million different circumstances with Covid and work schedules. If I go solo, I don't know if I would feel comfortable driving everywhere on my own. I've done 3 hr drives solo, but in a new and unfamiliar place it's a little scary. I know parts of the island can be rural, so god forbid a rental car breaks down somewhere you are unfamiliar with. The tour would be a small group of at most 13 people (they are all in passenger vans) so it would be nice to not be totally alone while experiencing everything. Also, I always enjoy having a tour guide. The reviews for this company say the drivers talk about everything and anything on the road, so I'm sure there is a LOT of information I would learn with the tour guide that I wouldn't get driving in a car by myself. In addition, it would be nice to sit back and look at the window as we are driving. I had initially looked at renting a car myself and driving, but the tour does some stuff that I wouldn't be able to do on my own, like go down into Waipio Valley (you apparently need a four wheeler, and even then it's a rough road for someone inexperienced). They also do a guided star gazing near Mauna Kea (which is on the top of my must-do list). Maybe if I do have someone to go with I would consider renting a car, or just doing one of the tours and driving the rest. I know there are lots of stargazing options out there, and I think some of the resorts do them on the beach.

I'm looking at doing half of an adventurous trip, half of a relaxing trip. So far, the plan is to fly into Kona in the early afternoon, check into the cheap hotel in the Kailua-Kona area, and spend the rest of the day exporting the downtown area. Then two days of the tour and/or driving around, followed by another two or three days at the beach resort. I'm looking at just doing a week, because with my work schedule (and budget) I don't know if I would be able to stay longer.
 
I stayed at the Waikoloa about 5 years ago. We did a split stay and stayed at the Mauna Lani for the second part of the trip. The Marriott felt more like a kid friendly resort with its own bay. I’d skip the Marriott if it’s an adults only trip.

Mauna Lani was much nicer with its own beach and didn’t have the desert feel that much of the island has. We rented a Jeep and did some off-roading. I feel like a car is a must on big island unless you don’t plan on leaving the resort. I imagine the Westin will be similar to Mauna Lani.
 


We stayed at the Mauna Kea Beach hotel during our trip to the Big Island last year and it was fantastic. Very pricy but worth it and I look forward to hopefully being able to stay there again next year. Its the only hotel I would stay at on the Big Island. The food at all of the restaurants was really good and we did not feel like it was overpriced and was all good quality. Service was also fantastic too. I do recommend renting a car. While we spent a majority of the time at the hotel, we did venture out to some of the other resort areas one or two of the evenings and everything is rather spread out so we found the car helpful. There were taxis but I am not sure how much they cost. I do not believe that there is Uber and if there is I would not rely on it.
 
Without a car, I think you are much better off at the Marriott in the Waikoloa resort complex simply because of the restaurants, shopping and the petroglyph trails. If you rented a car, I would say stay at the Westin. It sits on Hapuna Beach, which is absolutely one of the most stunning beaches I have even been to and is one of our family top 5 beaches. There is something so tranquil and yet wild about it. I have been to the beach in front of the Mauna Kea hotel and although it is the same stretch of ocean, it just isn't quite as nice as Hapuna to me. However, the Westin is pretty isolated and you are basically at the mercy of the restaurants/service of them without a car. It very, rarely rains but if it does you are kind of stuck there.

For Kona, I would go with the Holiday Inn Express.
 
Been to Big Island several times. Obviously budget is key - if it’s within your range, Four Seasons Hualalai has consistently been ranked as one of the best hotels in the world. And many consider it the best FS in Hawaii for sure.

Kona is all about the laid back vibe...for me Hilton Waikaloa is the epitome of what I don’t want to see in Hawaii. Any resort that has its own train system is not going to be relaxing. It is very similar to Hilton Hawaiian village on Oahu.
 
Kona is all about the laid back vibe...for me Hilton Waikaloa is the epitome of what I don’t want to see in Hawaii. Any resort that has its own train system is not going to be relaxing. It is very similar to Hilton Hawaiian village on Oahu.

Agreed. I looked into before, and while it looks fun it also looks like a LOT. It doesn't even look like it has a nice beach either. If I go with the Marriott I might hop over there to check it out for a bit, but that would probably be the extent of it.

Four Seasons looks lovely but yeah... a bit over the price range. And by a bit, I mean a lot. I'm looking at closer to ~$300 a night. Maybe one day!
 
Without a car, I think you are much better off at the Marriott in the Waikoloa resort complex simply because of the restaurants, shopping and the petroglyph trails. If you rented a car, I would say stay at the Westin. It sits on Hapuna Beach, which is absolutely one of the most stunning beaches I have even been to and is one of our family top 5 beaches. There is something so tranquil and yet wild about it. I have been to the beach in front of the Mauna Kea hotel and although it is the same stretch of ocean, it just isn't quite as nice as Hapuna to me. However, the Westin is pretty isolated and you are basically at the mercy of the restaurants/service of them without a car. It very, rarely rains but if it does you are kind of stuck there.

For Kona, I would go with the Holiday Inn Express.

This is what I'm leaning towards too. A-Bay does look very nice, although Hapuna does look great. I've been seeing some decent rates and reviews at the Kona Seaside Inn, but the Holiday Inn Express is a close second if any of the rates fluctuate (and who knows what the rates will be like once travel opens up a bit more). And the Holiday Inn includes breakfast, which is always a nice feature, especially if you are looking for something quick before heading out the door.
 
A-Bay is lovely but the sand is kind of gritty and the water can be rough. There is some ok snorkelling there but Hapuna is just gorgeous. Hands down Hapuna is a much nicer beach.
 
A-Bay is lovely but the sand is kind of gritty and the water can be rough. There is some ok snorkelling there but Hapuna is just gorgeous. Hands down Hapuna is a much nicer beach.
Wow, good to know! It's so hard to tell from looking at it on Google maps. Did you see any cool fish out there?
 
We stayed at the Mauna Kea Beach hotel during our trip to the Big Island last year and it was fantastic. Very pricy but worth it

I was waiting to see if anyone chimed in regarding this hotel. My family's experience was quite the opposite--very substandard at any price, let alone the $2,500+ per night we were paying for the vice presidential suite and a connecting second room. The customer service was indifferent at best, and we were very let down by the F&B on-site. It had a great beach but the pool is a joke. I came away with the impression it was a great place in the 60's, and they still cater to the same people who loved it back then (and who turn a blind eye to all the flaws based on their overly-romanticized memories of the past). For a modern Hawaiian resort, especially at that price point, they seriously underwhelmed.
 
Wow, good to know! It's so hard to tell from looking at it on Google maps. Did you see any cool fish out there?

some but it is was kind of murky the one time I went out. I have saw a turtle on the beach there once but I have been to A-Bay quite a bit and it was only the one time.

There is a decent snorkelling spot just south of Kona called Kahalu'u Bay which was teeming is teeming with fish and lots of turtles too which you may want to try and get to while you stay in Kona proper. It is a great beginner spot as it is a fairly safe sheltered reef where as A-Bay is pretty open and can be rough.

This is a pretty accurate depiction of the sand and water at ABay
521592

Where as the sand and water at Hapuna is like this

521593


It does not look much different, but for me it is the shallow, clear, warm water and fine soft sand that makes Hapuna a stand out above many other beaches.
A Bay has a pretty decent drop off right away. I like it too, I mean we got married there so it really does hold a special place in my heart but it is worth getting out to Hapuna and the other beaches on the island if you can . For example, Spencer Beach Park is a wonderful little picnic spot up North of Waikoloa but the Big Island is called that for a reason. Tehre is so much to see and do once you start looking into it that it is impossible to do it all!

I feel like I have not helped but I still do think the Marriott Waikoloa is the better choice with out a car.
 
I was waiting to see if anyone chimed in regarding this hotel. My family's experience was quite the opposite--very substandard at any price, let alone the $2,500+ per night we were paying for the vice presidential suite and a connecting second room. The customer service was indifferent at best, and we were very let down by the F&B on-site. It had a great beach but the pool is a joke. I came away with the impression it was a great place in the 60's, and they still cater to the same people who loved it back then (and who turn a blind eye to all the flaws based on their overly-romanticized memories of the past). For a modern Hawaiian resort, especially at that price point, they seriously underwhelmed.

You are spot on about it being a great place in the 60's and holding a legacy. The beach is pretty damn spectacular but it was really quiet when were there. I felt like if an extreme emergency were to happen, like a shark or a tidal wave, this was where it would be. Idk, it was ok but we have never been back.
 
I was on the BI in Jan and stayed at Hilton Waikoloa Village. We had a conference that was at the Marriott Waikoloa. Marriott was a nice hotel and the beach was beautiful. The pool seemed very small tho. The Hilton had awesome pools but limited beach area. We drove to Hapuna and it was gorgeous.

You can see all the things we did on the BI in my trip report in my signature.
 
I stayed at both resorts last November / December as well as King's Land (Hilton) Waikoloa. The Westin is definitely a little quieter and a more upscale feel. The Marriott has a great restaurant nearby - the Lava Lava beach club. I can't speak to the rooms, as we were upgraded very nicely (marriott bonvoy perk).

Hapuna beach has very strong waves, depending on the season. It's a very popular boogie boarding beach. However, it's gorgeous, the sand is much nicer and it's very chill.

We've stayed twice for 9+ days in the last 3 years - I would highly recommend renting a car...I wouldn't say things are THAT rural, especially with the touring you're planning on doing. It's such a treat to stop and have malasadas or shave ice on a whim. And there are so many smaller places to see that you might be able to add in (coffee tours, vanilla farm tour, etc). And especially restaurants. Granted, we ubered a couple of times when we knew we wanted to have beverages with dinner, but there are some fantastic places to eat in all the areas - and then you can get groceries for lunches, breakfasts, etc.

One last comment - those are three very packed exhausting days - lots of car time and only seeing highlights, especially the black sand beach, volcanoes and mauna kea day. Understand the desire to see a lot, but volcanoes can be a full day in and of itself (especially if you drive all the way to the coast and see the petroglyphs there).

Feel free to message me with particulars. 8-)
 
Stayed at Westin Hapuna Beach just before the Marriott buyout. Rooms are largest hotel rooms (not talking suites....talking rooms) I’ve ever had anywhere .... same for balcony .... that’s why they can fit a lounger on the balcony.

Room reno pics look fantastic. The adult pool is new for us and we’ll be using it when we go back next fall. Beach is everything they say it is ..... saw a beautiful huge ray swim Slowly by us last time.

Gym at golf resort was very large and lots of machines. The breakfast buffet was wonderful and is free for those with upper Marriott status.

Yes, it’s not near anything ..... yet we simply stopped in the rental car at Costco to pick up beverage, etc. on the way.

Hope that helps.
 

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