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Sheraton Kona Resort & Spa at Keauhou Bay

Exterior

At a Glance

    Pros

  • cool pool
  • manta rays on view nightly
  • resort style at lower price

    Cons

  • no beach
  • daily resort fee for Wi-Fi and parking
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Sheraton Kona Resort & Spa at Keauhou Bay Review

What it might lack in intimacy (it's a big concrete structure), the Sheraton makes up for with its beautifully manicured grounds, a historic sense of place, freshly renovated interiors, and stunning location on Keauhou Bay. Longtime Big Island visitors might remember the hotel as the old Kona Surf, and new management just completed a $20 million renewal of the property, featuring a beautiful lobby lounge where wine tastings are held each evening, plus a revamped reception and front desk area. Many of the rooms have great views of the bay and feel like you're right on the water. Each is decorated in a modern Polynesian style inspired by renowned Hawaii designer, Sig Zane. The big selling point for those traveling with kids is the pool, one of the coolest on the island, with a slide, waterfalls, and an ocean view. Be sure to take the historic walking tour with the resort's cultural liaison, who will teach you about the historic significance of the area. The luau takes place on a grassy lawn with a backdrop of coconut trees, where the sweet-potato salad and fresh ahi poke are the stars of the buffet. Or grab a cocktail, appetizer, or dinner at the new Rays on the Bay restaurant and watch the mantas glide in the water below the lanai in the glow of a spotlight.

    Hotel Details

  • 485 rooms, 24 suites.
  • Rate includes no meals.
  • Credit cards accepted.
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Fodorite Reviews

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    Family Value

    We stayed during the middle of June 07 and had a great time after a couple of minor setbacks. We received a room overlooking the pool, which was too loud for a napping infant and they gave us a bay view room. It turned out to be very pleasant to look over the bay and up at the volcano with some hot java in the morning. As it turned out the luau at night was right below us, this was acceptable to us and fun for the kids. The pool was awesome for the kids, and they stayed in for most of the days we were at the hotel. The big slide was fun for kids and the adults. The pool bar food was good, basic beach fare. I was partial to the Kona longboarder, at least one per day while on vacation. We didn't eat dinner at the hotel, but found some good place in Kailua and locally on our own. Hotel staff was very helpful when not busy, and they could answer all my questions, get me my newspapers, more room coffee, more towels, etc. The self parking was a bit far, so consider valet, i ended up getting the car and picking the family up at the lobby. The grounds were nice to walk around, there's a couple of gardens, lots of grass for the kids to play on, manta rays at the bar deck at night, and i even saw a turtle on the rocks. I didn't make it to the spa or workout room, but they looked as nice as any gym/spa, with new machines. They did have pool tables, foosball, ping pong by the smaller pool which helped kill some time while waiting for the others to shower and dress. Although there aren't any beaches like here in california there was awesome snorkeling, more turtles and fish than maui and lanai. Amazing landscapes to see, volcano, waterfalls, old lava flow, rain forests. Now if someone could get me some trojan tix...

    by USCobra, 7/20/07
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    Not good !

    The hotel was actually NOT on the beach as described on the website and we find this unacceptable ! We have 2 small kids and booked the hotel because we wanted to stay on the beach. We complained with the manager and all we got is "...we are sorry if you were not given the correct information !". We filed a complaint with Starwood and were told that there was a mistake in the description on the website ... how convenient ... Not a great response from Starwood either !
    Some of the romms have been remodeled while others look very tired. Will never go to this hotel again ! Not worthy. The manager has no idea of what "customer service really means !

    by giorgiorossi, 5/28/07

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