JoniC

I just got back from 7 lousy days at the Fairmont Orchid. I should have trusted some of the earlier posts about this hotel.

Good Points:
.Brown's Restaurant on the beach - great food with live music.
.Brown's Deli - Sure beats the expensive buffet.
.Beautiful, well-maintained grounds.
.Nice snorkel beach with turtles

Bad Points:
.Horrible check-in process.
.Did not help to be a Club Member.
.Disgrunted staff who weren't afraid to show their feelings to the guests.
.Rooms need maintenance (eg., burnt out light bulbs, toilet leaked then eventually wouldn't work at all, shower clogged and overflowed when you tried to use it, room and bathroom door did not shut properly).
.Inattentive and incompetent waiters in the main restaurant.
.Poor service almost everywhere in the hotel.
.Extremely expensive food and drinks, even by Hawaii standards.
.For the prices, not a top tier hotel but charges like one.
.Pool closed early almost every day for an "event".
.The way the rooms are situated, very few have a true ocean view. Most have an ocean "sliver" so don't bother to pay for an ocean view you won't get.

To top it all off, the customer service survey on the tv did not work! Hmm, I wonder why? Seems like the new owners don't care about anything other than making as much money as quickly as possible. I would never go back there and now question the Fairmont chain in general although I cannot recall if the new owner is Fairmont or the new owner bought the place from Fairmont and they just haven't gotten around to changing the name yet? Does anyone know? If the latter, it is in Fairmont's best interest to disassociate themselves with this hotel as quickly as possible!

Sorry for such a long rant but I was extremely disappointed. I should have listened to my husband and moved after the first day. I just kept thinking it would get better the more mai tais I drank (at $15 each).

JoniC

girlonthego

Ouch!!! 15 for a mai tai? We were down the street drinking lava flows for $10 a piece at the Hilton (last spring). We visited your hotel and thought it looked nice.
We agreed that the Hilton had lots more to do, but not everyone likes that. Sorry to hear you had such a lousy time. I am sure it wasn't a cheap lousy time either.

reneea

Hi JoniC. We go there every year during December. I am from Honolulu and it's always a good getaway. I am so sorry to hear about your bad stay, though. I just got back from a Lanai trip (Lodge at Koele) and sorta felt the same way.

As frequent travelers, we can probably overcome many things, but poor service can ruin even the most beautiful place.

We most recently (this past weekend) went to Maui and stayed at a lovely B&B. It was reasonable, salt water pool, jacuzzi, very non-intrusive and close to the resorts and shops in Wailea.

If you ever plan to go to Maui, consider the Pineapple Inn. They have 4 double rooms and even have a cottage for the entire family.

After all the fancy resorts, this was definitely my idea of vacation!

jallard

Anyone had a better experience at the Orchid? Wondering if it is "real luxury" or not?

Dukey

Somewhat mixed reviews on TripAdvisor but also plenty of "5" ratings so who knows?

jallard

I know that is what I am wondering??
Can't decide between 10 days in Wailea, Maui or 6 in Wailea and 4 at the Fairmont Orchid this summer. We love luxurious resorts and I would hate to be disappointed. The 4S on the Big Island is booked.

Samsaf

We spent 5 nights at the Fairmont Orchid last Oct/Nov, and we loved it.

Our room wasn't ready when we got there, so they said we could order a free drink at the bar while we waited around the pool. The staff was extremely nice, we thought.

I wouldn't have liked it if the pool had closed early, but it never did the 5 nights we were there.

The food is expensive, but you pay for the luxury and the convenience of eating with your toes in the sand!

I also love luxurious resorts, and we do quite a bit of traveling. I don't think the Fairmont is as luxurious as the Four Seasons, but it's not nearly the price, either.

Our room was very clean. We had turndown service every night (never requested it, but they did it). They had champagne and snacks in our room the first night (we had told them we were celebrating our 25th anniversary). They also gave us a dessert on the house one night at Brown's because of our anniversary.

One thing I really liked about the pool was that they didn't have the piped-in music everywhere. All we could hear were the birds, the waves, the trees in the wind, and occasionally other people talking, although the pool was never crowded while we were there. There was an attendant walking around giving little plates of fruit, and she also would come around and spritz us to cool us off.

I have seen some of the mixed reviews on tripadvisor, too, but we thought the Fairmont was great.

travelinwifey

I stayed there several years ago and we liked it better than most 5* properties we've stayed at in Hawaii. We've stayed at almost every 5* on all of the islands except a few on Maui because we don't care it as mauch.

$15 for a drink doesn't surprise me at all. There are plenty of foreign visitors that think $15 US dollars is not a lot of money. Obviously people are paying for it of the prices wouldn't be as much. Also, prices for food and drink are going to continue to rise in Hawaii because of fuel costs.

The pool closing would definitely bother me but most Hawaiian hotels do the same, it is not unique to the Orchid.

Regarding the view, that is an easily searchable fact. You can see by the hotel view on Fairmont's website that the rooms are slanted towards the ocean. I agree that they are not the best ocean views but the resort is still one of the best in Hawaii imo.

Many persons or corporations that own a hotel pay to have an affiliation with a "name" hotel brand like the Orchid, Four Seasons, or Mandarin etc.

jallard

Thank you for your replies. I think we are going to give it a try - it looks beautiful in the pictures.

travelinwifey

Jallard I'd keep checking the 4S to see if there are cancellations, it is the best resort in Hawaii. To me the Orchid was the second best. Have stayed at the 4S 4 times, Orchid 1, Hapuna 1, Mauna Lani 1. You can see turtles along the beach at the 4S and the Orchid. But again the 4S is definitely the best property on the BI. No other resort comes close, imo though I think the Orchid's views of the neighboring islands top the 4S. You can contact me through my email if you have any other ?'s Since you have 10 days I'd try a second island. Have a great trip.

jallard

Thank you. I called the 4S direct and they have two of the 4 nights available. I am thinking maybe 2 at the Fairmont and 2 at the 4S. Have you been to Lanai?

happytrailstoyou

It is alarming that respected names in hospitality often don't deliver. Now I can add Fairmont to Hyatt and Marriott, which have provided me with experiences such as you had at the Orchid.

Which chains consistentely deliver good service and rooms that please at prices that don't cripple?

Dukey

"It is alarming that respected names in hospitality often don't deliver"

Actually, I am a bit more "alarmed" at the number of people who assume one person's experience mimics everyone else's.

happytrailstoyou

There you go again--jumping to conclusions that aren't stated or even implied.

travelinwifey

Hi again Jallard, yes, we've stayed at the Manele Bay hotel on Lanai. I wouldn't consider that island until you've visited the other islands first. While quite lovely it is very desolate, you will mostly be eating in the hotel only. The shuttle from the Manele Bay hotel (on the beach) to the Lodge is about 25 mins. The Lodge is gorgeous, like an English hunting lodge. But again, not many sights, car rental only availible from the hotel, few dining choices. Would recommend for a day trip from Maui but not to stay until you've visited the other islands first.

Have you considered Kauai? It's the lushest of the islands.

The Big Island is unique because the south is more baron but beautiful with the black lava rock but if you travel 30-40 mins from the south the island is very lush also, colors of green I've never seen before, like Irish greenery.

If you do decide on the 2 nights at the 4S I'd plan on vegging out at the resort only to take advantage of the ammenities, especially because the price is so much more than the Orchid. There is an amazing adults only pool that's very quiet and a cell phone free zone. You really feel far and away there, leaving the worries behind Hope this helps.

Gellers

I have stayed at the Orchid and had a decent experience. I would recommend the Mauna Lani above it, though.

I have also visited Lanai and found it to be rather dull...I agree it's fine for a day trip but not really worth a multi-day stay.

jallard

Thank you again for your responses. I would love to visit Kauai, but we are going to save it for another trip - we already have flights booked where we can leave out of Maui or Kona ($50 change fee).
I think Lanai is out of the question now and we are going to go with the Big Island. Just can't decide between all four at the Fairmont ($359 a night) or two at the Fairmont and two at the 4S ($700 a night). If we choose the Fairmont, we could use the extra money for a helicopter flight or other excursion. Just hoping the Fairmont is up to par with what we like.

Samsaf

I really don't think you'll be disappointed with the Fairmont. We felt it had top-notch service, and the grounds were beautiful.

Guest540

The staff is pleasant and the place is well maintained. I would not recommend this hotel to others:

+Oceanview room. They had us on 2 different floors. I asked for rooms next to each other. The phrase “ocean view” only qualifies if you stick your head out of the balcony, and look 90 degrees to the left. I would call this a “golf course view” room. Given that we paid almost as much as room as the Four Seasons, I am sort of amazed.
+Parking. Whereas self parking was free 8 years ago, it is now $15 for self parking and $21 for valet. The Four Seasons charges $15 for valet parking and $0 for self parking
+Breakfast Buffet. Extra. The price is an amazing $29 per person. What is amazing, is how “thin” it is. I would strongly recommend against anyone paying for the breakfast buffet. Either get it included, or do not bother.
+Lawn Chairs on the Beach. If you want an chair with a cover on the beach, it is $45 per day. If you want morning yoga, that is $20. If you go to the exercise room, there is no water. That costs extra.
+The light fixture cover fell on my mother-in-law the day b4 yesterday. She had a mild bump and a scratch on her leg. The security person put on a bandaid. The reason it fell on her, was the screw that held the glass cover on it had not been tightened, and she happened to be underneath it when it came loose. The security person was concerned about what we would do. I said as long as they got the glass picked up, and there was no harm to my mother-in-law, that was what mattered. They sent us some strawberries and a bottle of champagne (?) that evening with a card that was very “circumspect” about the reason fo for it. Someone named “David” in the front office called me mother-in-law yesterday. She said I would call. I did. I left a message for “David”. He did not call back. If I were this hotel, and I had a clear case of negligence where an 86 year old guest was hit by flying broken glass, I would be all over it. This hotel takes the attitude that as long as one does not complain, nothing to be done.

As my wife said, the Fairmont Hotel is singularly “ungenerous”. They squeeze pennies and charge fees for everything they can find a way to charge for. It is clean and well maintained. But anyone staying here should be aware that this hotel will find a way to charge more than the Four Seasons charges.

The staff is uniformly courteous and pleasant. The hotel is well maintained. We are not very price sensitive. But the constant nickeling and diming of us + the response to the light chandelier falling on the head of my mother-in-law does grate.

For the same $, stay at the Four Seasons.

travelinwifey

Just to be fair, The 4S is several hundred dollars more per night, even with the add ons the Fairmont is cheaper. $29 is not uncommon for a breakfast buffet, the 4S is probably at the same price now if not more because it costs more to ship food to the islands. Hawaii stopped being cheap several years ago. As long as Europeans and Asian tourists keep filling the hotel rooms prices and nickel and diming won't change. The hotel will just fire employees to cut costs, making the ones working there angry.

I do agree about the ocean view rooms, they are more like "partial ocean".