Heading to the Marriot-Waikoloa in a few weeks at Big Island. Has anyone been there recently? How is the hotel? How is the Spa? Any loud construction noises?

Thanks in advance.

Last stayed there in March 2003, did not utilize the spa. This is a good hotel along the upscale Kohala coast, that neighbors Hawaii's disneyland:Hilton Waikoloa.

The resort has a crescent shaped beach known as "A-Bay" in front of it which has good snorkeling, occassional turtles and boat snorkeling and whale watching excursions.

The only concern is that there is some condo construction between the Outrigger Waikoloa Beach Marriott and the Hilton Waikoloa, but when we were there in last March the noise was not noticeable in the wing we stayed in. I think this is a good family hotel as it has a decent pool with a sandy area, waterslide and 2 jacuzzis. Good luck with your vacation!

We just returned from there Aug. 6. The loacation is terrific, right across from the Kings shops where you can go for shopping and restaurants. However try to get a room away from the wing facing north. Your view will be of the construction site. I spoke to Debbie the manager on duty who happily accomodated us in a terrific room. I don't know what type of room you have ( OV, OF etc) but if you have OV like us then you have a right to expect more than a construction site. Be firm, insistent and polite and you should be fine if the room is not a good one. We ended up in 5133 and it was great for us. I did not try the spa. The hotel itself is wonderful IMHO. The grounds are beautiful, the staff polite and all went well for us. Do try to eat at Roys across the street in the Kings shops but make a reservation!. I posted a trip report and you can find it if you wish by posting my user name in the search box. Feel free to ask any questions. Aloha! You'll love it!

Stayed there and loved it. The beautiful bay and the hammocks between the trees make it a terrific place. My sons best friend just returned from the BI where his family stayed at the Hilton next door. While he said it was lots of fun at the Hilton, his entire family agreed they would have prefered to have stayed at the Marriott. Better location and really nice hotel. They got tired of the size of the Hilton.

Also the Hilton has no beach either.

Hi!
My husband and I stayed there on part of our honeymoon last week. We liked it, it had a nice pool area and a great setting on A-Bay. Particularly pretty during sunset. We had a partial ocean view, and it was a great view.

This is definitely a great family hotel, lots of kids and parents enjoying the pool. We did not see any construction.

Our only complaint about the hotel was that compared to the other 3 hotels we stayed in on this trip, the room/bathroom itself was not as nice. And we paid about $200 per night in every hotel, so this one wasn't any cheaper. The room seemed a little "cheaper" though, more bare, and the beadspread was very itchy.

We would stay here again, we really liked it, and its location. I would definitely recommend it!

Congrats on your Honeymoon beachgirl. No wonder you missed the construction.

Jacketwatch: Thanks! We just missed you there, we got married on the 6th, headed to Oahu on the 7th, and the Big Island on the 9th. We loved it -- how did you enjoy it? Had you been before?

Hello beachgirl: This was our first time to the BI unless you count one day in 1992 when we flew from Maui and spent the day there, driving the Kona coast. We loved it! This had to be one of out best vacations ever, second only to Fiji in 2001. I am bitten by the Hawaiian bug again and would like to go to Lanai next yr. but first must convince my better half to agree to that long flight again. We are in Chicago. Everything went very well, i.e. the weather was good, the hotel
staff was friendly and I liked the hotel too. We went to the Hilton one day and it is very impressive but too big for us, too spread out and has no beach at all really. Did you go to Roys for dinner? We loved it there. Congrats again. It sounds like you had a great honeymoon.

Stayed there two weeks ago in an Ocean Front Deluxe room that was no better than a typical Holiday Inn room... It was the biggest disappointment on our four island 25th Anniversary Trip... Staff was not very helpful when our room wasn't clean for check-in and made us wait 2 plus hours... offered smoking room and excuses that the manager would check on cleaning staff but no upgrade offer, free drink, or anything... just sorry, you will have to wait...

The other hotels we stayed at had similar situations... Hilton Hawaiian Village upgraded us to Suite in Ali'i tower... Ritz in Maui also had room not ready and offered free dinner and drinks worth $150...

Marriott Waikoloa has beautiful grounds but an ordinary hotel with poor service... sorry I stayed there...

Gary, just curious......... what was your room rate at the Ritz, the HHV and the Marriott-Waikoloa? We were very pleased, when we've stayed there, with our room but I agree with you that the rooms are average, not luxurious. But I didn't expect really luxurious. The rooms are not going to compare with the Ritz or the HHV Ali'i Tower, but then I doubt the rates would compare either! When we stayed at the HHV years ago, in the Tapa Tower, the rooms were really pretty basic, but still nice, and I found the same thing at Marriott-Waikoloa. In any case, sorry you weren't pleased with the hotel...... we feel it's a great deal for the money (we always use the Entertainment book there, get OF for half-price), and that so much about the place is very Hawaiian, and more authentic! Better luck next time with finding exactly what you want!

Jacketwatch: Thanks for the well wishes! We hit Oahu, BI, and Maui on this trip (our 1st to Hawaii) and I have to say the Hawaiian bug bit us! We loved it. We stayed at Hapuna Prince one night on the BI (which was beautiful) but had to leave due to a mix-up, and chose the Marriott over the Hilton for the same reason -- more manageable grounds. Will you be posting a trip report?

Gary: I agree with you, the Marriott does have beautiful grounds, but does not compare room-wise with the other hotels we stayed at on this same trip.

I did beach girl. Just do a search under my user name if you wish to read it. Cheers, Larry

I just clicked Outrigger Waikoloa Beach Marriott and got a " this is no longer available" ...what gives? ( I did not place dates, was just hoping to check what the facility had to offer. Thanks! OSB.

SouthernBelle, here's the link for you. (It's no longer an Outrigger!:

http://marriott.com/property/propert...rshaCode=KOAMC

Thank you Bonnie! OSB.

Looking for any more recent stays at the Marriott Waikoloa, especially with kids (ours are now 11 and 7) and about the kids 'program'?

We were there 11/02 when it was an Outrigger and generally liked it. (except for some service/housekeeping concerns. but the positive outweighed any negative) Our daughters REALLY liked the kids program, they are older now but we may be able to go April 05, hoping for some of the same 'stuff'.

Just a bump here--also should we hustle a bit with hotel/air reservations, or still have some time?

We're staying there from Nov23 to Dec3....I'll let you know what it's like when we return (our kids are 7 and 14 years)