I was going to book part of our summer vacation to the Big Island at the Mauna Kea resort. When I tried to book for our family of four (2 adults, 2 children) on their website, it only gave me the option to reserve a room for 3 guests. I have actually never seen this before when trying to a reserve a room. There was no option for kids. I called the resort and they said that currently they are allowing four guests (2 adults and 2 children under 12) in a room, but you can't book this on their website. And, they only have rooms with either one king bed or two double beds. The woman also told me that they were reviewing this policy and they might discontinue allowing have 4 guests in a room at all-which basically means to me no families with small children. Has anyone been to this resort? It doesn't seem very welcoming to families. If that is case, I would rather stay somewhere else that is! We were going to split our time with 4 nights at Mauna Lani, 2 nights at Kilauea Lodge, and the 3 nights at Mauna Kea. We can always adjust this. The beach looked very nice at the Mauna Kea and I thought our 5 and 10 year old boys would enjoy it. Any thoughts would be appreciated!!

Thank you!!

Try the Hapuna Prince; better prices and a wonderful beach, perfect for kids. Hotels.com had midweek july prices (2 adults,2 kids) $225/night.

Love the Mauna Kes hotel but last visit we stayed at Hapuna Beach hotel and loved it too. Wonderful beach right outside your door, lovely pool. Give it s try

The Mauna Kea has never catered to kids. It's part of its appeal for higher-end travelers. Peace and quiet are valued there more than noise and play, although it's far from an unfriendly place for well behaved kids. But five is a little young to expect that, so imo you should find another property.

I third the recommendation for Hapuna Beach Prince. The hotel is adjacent to and shares the same owners as the Mauna Kea, but its beach is bigger (although more crowded), it has bigger rooms (the two options are one king or two queen beds, not doubles), and even the lobby imo has a bigger wow factor than the Mauna Kea. Free shuttles are offered between the two resorts, and staying at one gives you room signing privileges at both.

The Mauna Kea has one of the highest repeat business rates of any hotel in Hawaii, but even after staying there multiple times we still don't understand what commands the hefty price premiums over the Hapuna Beach Prince. Aside from a quieter beach and more artwork to look at, we haven't found much else.

That's an interesting policy. We love the beach at Mauna Kea, but we stay in a condo, and just drive to the Mauna Kea when we want to go to that beach.

It sounds like the Hapuna Prince would be a better option. Or I'd just be tempted to stay at the Mauna Lani the entire time.

Thank you for your advice everyone! I agree Hapuna Prince sounds like a better option for us.

There's a relatively sheltered cove at the north end of Hapuna Beach, but otherwise I think the beaches within the Mauna Lani Resort property would be better for your boys, Makaiwa Bay in particular: sheltered bay, easy mostly sand entry, and very good snorkeling. http://www.pbase.com/smg9774/image/152703080

I'd also agree you should consider spending all your west side nights there, and in a condo rather than either the Mauna Lani or Fairmont Orchid. Check out Mauna Lani Terrace condos, within a short walk of both the Mauna Lani Hotel and Makaiwa Bay.

As a family, we never felt that the MK was unwelcoming to children. Its the best beach and hotel for sure in my opinion. HP really doesn't measure up, but is the next best option if a good beach is important. imo- Mauna Lani had the fewest children and seemed the least kid friendly, with the Hilton & Fairmont most family friendly.