Waikiki one night lodging suggestions
 

I have only one evening in Honolulu (awaiting travel to Kaua'i) and have had several recommendations re lodging near Waikiki...Hawaiiana (~$155/night) and Queens Surf (Waikiki Grand Hotel ~$145/night). I'd also noted a hotel closer to Diamondhead...New Otani Kaimana Beach Hotel (~$155/night). My plan will be to check out the beach and possibly do an early morning Diamondhead hike. Any recommendations among those or others? The location/view would appear to be better from New Otani, but that price is for room without a view (and view is not much of an advantage while sleeping ;-)

Location-wise, I think you will do the best at the New Otani, if you are looking at a hike to Diamond Head. Please know that you need to walk up the hill (ocean side) a mile and then around the crater counter clockwise till you get to the entrance to Diamond Head. From there you walk up the hill a ways before getting to the start of the hike.

philsbert1, if you want a view, get the ocean view junior suite at the New Otani, as high as possible ... fabulous views of the ocean, Waikiki and the mountains off that balcony!!!

A great location from which to climb Diamond Head! :-)

And the restaurant, Hau Tree Lanai, at the New Otani is very good!

Wow...the ocean view junior suite sounds great but doubles the nightly price to >$300. Is the fact that the New Otani is significantly away from the mainstream Waikiki Beach a positive or a negative? I have read a lot of reviews complaining of noise during their Waikiki stays, but the hotels look pretty squeezed together. Has anyone had direct experience with ResortQuest (previously Aston) Waikiki Beach, Bamboo, or Ocean Resort?

For the New Otani - Most that stay there want to stay there because of the location. They want to be close to Waikiki and yet close enough to the "action". It is a few blocks from mainstream Waikiki. This makes it a lot quieter and less congested. Yet it is still close enough to walk to the mainstream Waikiki.

On the other hand, mainstream Waikiki has shops, restaurants, museums, etc, that for others makes it much more convenient almost at your doorstep.

New Otani is not any closer to the Diamond Head entrance than Waikiki Grand, Queen Kapiolani or other hotels near the corner of Kalakaua and Kapahulu.

From New Otani you would have to cut across Kapiolani Park (or Paki St.) to Monsarrat Ave and take it to Diamond Head entrance. Or you could take the more scenic (but longer) way on Diamond Head Road.

From Waikiki Grand you can take Monsarrat Ave (backside of Honolulu Zoo).

http://www.driveguidemagazines.com/oahu_waikiki.html

http://www.driveguidemagazines.com/o...i_makapuu.html

So if you are budget minded, take the more inexpensive mainstream hotel.

I like the Hawaiiana alot, but don't think that would be my choice for your situation.

I love the fact that it is not a high-rise, many rooms have louvered walls, the gardens are beautiful with two pools, coffee and juice put out for you on the patio in the morning, BBQ grills that the staff will set up for a small charge, all rooms have kitchenettes, front desk is very helpful.

It's that is it so homey and nice to hang out there IMO but it's not a particularly convenient location for hiking Diamond Head... and the things that make it special, well you wouldn't really have time to appreciate them. The rooms themselves are nothing to brag about (although they are slowly remodeling various floors and wings).

If you end up at the New Otani, please do post back. Several people have recommended it to me and I've only seen it from the outside (it's right near San Souci beach, right?)

Suze

You are right about the location being near San Souci Beach. There are a few other hotels/condos in the area. The "W", Kaimana and Marc Diamond Head Beach Hotel are there. It is also known as the Gold Coast.

I like the fact that the New Otani is a little isolated from the noise, but I see that you pay the price in being away from the Waikiki 'activity' as well. It's hard to tell from maps...is it a long jog to the entrance to Diamondhead, or conversely to central Waikiki beach? Does anyone have any experience with Waikiki Circle, Bamboo, or Outrigger Luana Waikiki hotels (the latter of which I believe is on the far end from Diamondhead, but near a park. Can't locate it on the map)? My concerns re the Waikiki Beach Hotel would be getting stuck in one of the older/less desirable rooms in the ?Mauka Tower. Thanks for any help!

The outrigger Luana is the Waikiki Terrace on the map. It was purchased and refurbished by Outrigger about 5 years ago. It is near Ft. DeRussy.

It is about 1 1/2 - 2 miles from either New Otani or Waikiki Grand to Diamond Head entrance. The entrance is almost right across the street from Kapiolani Community College. From the entrance to Diamond Head, it is almost 1/2 mile to the trailhead. The hike to the summit is about 3/4 mile from the trailhead.

dusty56438...thanks so much for the info!

thanks for the good discussion. i was considering this area for my next trip and walked thru the area last time. it seems a bit isolated for my needs (since i don't have a car and most likely would be solo)... but with all the construction on BeachWalk and Lewers Street was thinking I may need to branch out from the Hawaiiana (my usual).

Long jog up Diamond Head? No, not if you are a jogger. I just did it this morning! I want to say it's about a mile or a mile and a half from the Otani to the entrance of Diamond Head, then maybe another 1/2 mile up the hill to the parking lot in the crater (where the hike actually begins).

The length of the main part of Waikiki (where the hotels are clustered) is about 2 miles long. the length of Kapiolani Park is a less than a 3/4 mile, I think. So if you are walking to 'central' Waikiki from the Otani, maybe it's about a mile and a half to two miles, depending on how far you go.

Thanks for the distances. The jog to Diamond Head doesn't seem far, but the distance from the New Otani to the central part of Waikiki and back may be an issue for much repetitive sightseeing there. Also, I noted from some reading that the New Otani Kaimana doesn't have specific non-smoking rooms [while the Queens Surf/Waikiki Grand is all non-smoking, which is in its favor in my case]. Ocean Resort also has some great internet pricing even for an ocean view. I ruled out the Outrigger Luana as being be too distant for my purposes, and your info on construction (thanks MelissaHI!) makes it even less desirable. I have read reports that city noise can be a factor in some of the less soundproofed buildings downtown. So I have worked it down to the New Otani, Ocean Resort, Queens Surf/Grand Waikiki, and Waikiki Resort, with the 1st three appearing to be more toward Diamond Head. If anyone has any experience with the latter 3, I would be very interested.

But you're only staying in Honolulu for one night, right? There won't be repetitive sightseeing in Waikiki. You'll go in once, maybe, and then back out. The beach outside the Otani is nice!

The real sightseeing is outside of Waikiki.

MelissaHI, you're right. I probably won't be doing that much traipsing around, as I (sadly) won't be there long enough. I should just be searching for a place where I can get a good night's rest, and be close enough to some good, [relatively for Waikiki] reasonable restaurants for dinner and breakfast. I am adding the selfish criteria that I would like to have a view of some kind, partial maybe, either of Diamond Head or the ocean/beach. I may just have to kick in some extra money for the night. A Diamond Head view room at New Otani will run ~185. Do you know of any other hotels that would satisfy these criteria for <$200?

Does anyone have any (relatively) recent experience with Ocean Resort, Ohana Waikiki Beachcomber, or Waikiki Beachside hotels? I am looking for on or near the beach, with easy access to bus or shuttles and <$200 per night. I am having some second thoughts about the New Otani Kaimana in re to lack of designated non-smoking rooms.