Ed

I will be travelling to the Big Island in early October. I am torn between two hotels, the Orchid at Mauna Lani, and the Four Seasons. The Orchid is about $200 per night less than the Four Seasons, which is considerable, but I would like to be sure that the Orchid is as nice as the Four Seasons. Any suggestions?

CF

Ed, that's like asking if your Escort is as nice as my Lexus....

maw

Ed, do a search for posts with Four Seasons Big Island or such and you'll see people just RAVE about the place, same with the hotel reviews. Guess it's the "best of the best" on the Big Island!

mag

We stayed at the Orchid for our honeymoon last year and LOVED it. It was a great hotel, with a nice sized pool and great bay for snorkeling. Good food, and wonderful staff. That said, we visited the 4 Seasons and it is gorgeous. If we went back, we'd stay there I think, just for a change. We didn't the first time around because we were doing the 4 Seasons on Maui and didn't want to do the same hotel on every island. It was less expensive to stay at the Orchid for us, too. They are both great hotels so you can't really go wrong.
If you do the 4 Seasons make sure to get a room with a garden shower!

Jane

The Four Seasons is not just the best of the Big Island.
It's virtually always rated the best in Hawaii, and always one of the top hotels in the entire US.
The Orchid is good, a re-done Ritz Carlton that was not a moneymaker for RC, but like CF said, you're comparing top of the line to good but not world class.