ksucat

Anyone stay here lately?
Just want to chill for a week..eat, drink and swim.
Aloha

sf7307

I thought you were going to the Montelucia to chill?

ksucat

Hi sf!
We are staying at the Montelucia..thanks to you and Deb!..that's our 4th of July blowout with a group of friends and then we head to the Biltmore..with over 100 degree heat, I don't think their will be much chilling.
I'm looking at September for a week.
Have you been to the Ihilani? Are you and your DH going to the islands this summer?

Aloha

Samsaf

We've been to the Ihalani several years ago and liked it. Our daughter and new husband were there last July for their honeymoon. It is a nice place, and the rooms are great. The pool is fine, but not wonderful by Hawaii standards. The manmade lagoons were fun to explore. The food at the hotel is EXPENSIVE, which is to be expected.

sf7307

Sorry, haven't been there. We may go in the fall, but not sure where --- we usually pick the location based on the airfare we can get!!

ksucat

Thanks Samsaf!
sf..Hawaiian Air is $264 each way toSD/HNL.
I hear you on picking the place after you get the killer airfare.
I'm using points.

kona514

I have stayed there 3 times over the last 4 years. It is beautiful but the rooms are starting to show some signs of age. They are building a HUGE Disney Resort right next door so be aware there is a lot of construction. It is also expensive to park ( over $30.00 per day) and you will need to rent a car if staying on this side of the island.
The rooms are large and have huge lanais and the grounds are pretty with man made lagoons. It is very peaceful and perfect to just chill out.
I have always had an ocean view room and have never been disappointed with the view. The pool is very small but the lagoons are very good for swimming and water activities.

I would say go for it!!!!!!

ksucat

aloha kona!
Thanks so much for the detailed info.
My only trepidation, is the HUGE construction zone right next door and the dated rooms.
$30 bucks a day just to park is insane.
That peaceful lagoon isn't going to be so peaceful when Disney gets up and running.
Waiohai in Kauai might be our best bet.
Thanks again!

sf7307

>>

Next time you come to San Francisco, be sure to leave your car home. Parking at the Hyatt Regency is now $62.50 a day!

sf7307

Waiohai in Kauai might be our best bet.

Here's a link to my Waiohai review on on TripAdvisor.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...ai_Hawaii.html

ksucat

You are awesome sf!
Thanks for the report on TA of your trip to Waiohai.
We peeked in when we had drinks and dinner at Red Salt next door at Koa Kea.
It seemed nice but I would hate to be stuck in the parking lot room and if timeshare owners have first bid, especially in Sept., I might be out of luck on oceanview room.
I don't need to see the ocean since we have homes that have views and we do enjoy the mountain views but no parking lot views which we did see and it wasn't pretty.
Since I'm cashing in on over 125k in points, you think of all the blood, sweat and tears that went into all your stays to incur those hard earned points so you want something that will be worth it.
Something to think about.

Hyatt in Sf is $62.50 a day..yikes!
Usually we'll fly up and rent a car a couple blocks away from the St. Francis and it works out best.
I've parked in the structure under Union Square..it's been a couple of years..whats that going for now?

Thanks again sf for all your help!

sf7307

>>

I'm not sure since I never park there for more than a couple of hours. Most regular garages (non-hotel) are in the $30s per day, but of course, they don't allow in-and-out.

DebitNM

Hawaiian has some flights a bit later [Oct/nov] $180 and 190 each way from San Francisco.

MomDDTravel

Ksucat - the construction was pretty bad last year in November when we were there - we stayed @ the Ko'Olina on the same cove area - we were not impacted by the construction but when walking down to the JW it was a lot worse. The hotel was okay, we did not see a room, but the property was pretty with ponds and did not appear too dated. I was surprised by how small the pool was.

I actually liked the timeshare property better - We did not eat at the JW but you can take a shuttle over to Roys from either property as well as back and forth between the two (Ko Olina) = the area was okay once you were on the resorts - driving there was not great - very dry - not "pretty". We loved our time there though and will be returning.

ksucat

HI Mom!
Disney is building a huge resort next door and I don't want to use my hard earn points staying in a construction zone.
Our O'ahu house has guests for the summer so we decided to stay at either the Moana Surfrider or the Royal Hawaiian.
We love both properties and we just want to hang and go to happy hours and take the bus all around the island.
You are so sweet to report back.
Did you like the Ko Olina?
Wanted to stay at the Halekulani which is stunning but can't get the wife to spend the $600 a night, which is crazy.
I think we are going to go back to Kauai and do the Waihoi with the 2 bedroom condo in Poipu.
I want to use my Marriott by next year..you never know when they are going jack up the points!
aloha

MomDDTravel

We did like the Ko Olina... I was pleasantly surprised. We had an amazing view - which will be obstructed when the Disney resort is done. We have loose plans to return over Christmas - I just keep watching the airfare - and it is only going up.

Not the Halekulani but still Oahu

I would not use the points to stay there (in the construction zone) personally - Go to Kauai... husband's favorite island...ahhhh I can feel the tradewinds from Coto almost

wtm003

I think using your points for the Waihoi in Kauai over the JW Ihilani is a good decision. We stayed at the JW a couple of years ago and while it was very nice and the room was a good size I did not love the hotel. We had a mountain view, but it was not very lush or pretty. In addition, the balcony was not very private and included views of the highway and valet parking area. The lagoons were okay. One of our highlights was walking west on the footpath, past the property boundary and over some rocks to enjoy our own private beach for sun and snorkeling. This was wonderful, but I'm not sure if this is possible with the current construction.

We haven't stayed at the Waiohai, but we were close by at Kiahuna Plantation. I love the beach in this area! We would walk over to the Waiohai every morning for coffee and pastries. The grounds are very nice.

MomDDTravel

<The lagoons were okay. One of our highlights was walking west on the footpath, past the property boundary and over some rocks to enjoy our own private beach for sun and snorkeling. This was wonderful, but I'm not sure if this is possible with the current construction.>

Yes, we did that in November - the construction is in the other direction - that was a great day for us as well.

DebitNM

ksucat - how was the Montelucia???

SeeHag

Good to hear this info as we are planning a trip in September or early October and we usually stay in Marriotts to use points too. I have been looking at the Ko Olina beach club for a few nights before we go to either Maui ot Kauai. We did an afternoon at one of the lagoons a few years ago but we didn't check the resort at all. After reading Mom's good reviews as well as a few others we may try it out unless the construction is awful. When I was looking at the Marriott website I noticed there is a new property opening in September on the yacht harbor area. Hmmm, just looked because I couldn't remember the name and they have pushed out opening until October. It's called the Waikiki EDITION. Not a location that does much for me. I love the Waiohai but it seems like when I put in the dates I wanted to use points there was nothing available. I am looking at the Wailea Marriott on Maui but it gets mixed reviews on TA and I posted here and got no responses.

ksucat, maybe we will bump into each other! We don't have our dates set because we need to work on using points for upgrades to first class because DH is too tall for coach.