Jul 26, 2010

Where to stay in Waikiki ~ Royal Hawaiian Hotel

Where to stay in Waikiki ~ Royal Hawaiian Hotel 

Royal Hawaiian Hotel General description:

• The Sheraton Royal Hawaiian Hotel also known as the “Pink Palace,” is the single most iconic hotel in the Hawaiian islands. The very first building was erected on the site over a century ago even though City records register the present construction as finished in 1926. Needless to say that countless improvements were done over it’s history, with the most “recent” one being the construction almost 40 years ago of the so called Royal Hawaiian Tower that is painted with the same trademark pink color as the original. The Royal Hawaiian Hotel is taking part of an ambitious 750 million dollars renovation project that involves all 4 Sheraton properties in Waikiki and that is scheduled to extend well into 2011.
• The property belongs to a Japanese company called Kyo-Ya.

What we like about the Royal Hawaiian Hotel:

• The Royal Hawaiian Hotel has a very good location, it can not be more central than this area.
• The Royal Hawaiian Hotel is on the water and has the service that you have come to expect from a Sheraton Hotel.
• You can feel the elegance of a bygone era in every corner of the hotel.

What you may not like about the Royal Hawaiian Hotel:

• One of the main reasons to stay on an oceanfront hotel like the Royal Hawaiian Hotel  is to be able to enjoy the beach in front of it, unfortunately the beach on that area is very narrow (specially during high tide). The only 4 star hotel with a somewhat better beach in front of it is the Hilton Hawaiian Village. The big problem with the Hilton Hawaiian Village is that is not central, If you want to be in the center of Waikiki (and there are very good reasons for that since most people like to stay in the center of Waikiki) you may very well look for a hotel on the other side of Kalakaua and save the money.
• If you are searching for a modern looking hotel, you will love it however if you are fond of antiques.
• Most people that choose the Royal Hawaiian Hotel want to be in the “old” section, the main problem with that section is that there are no 2 rooms alike, some are very good and some are not, if you are already here and is for that same day, then ask to see the room, if on the other hand it is a future reservation then is better to call us at 808-394-2112 we check what rooms they have available and choose among the better ones. You will not pay a penny more for the room and at least you will have a better chance to end up in a room that you will like.
• Another problem with the old section of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel is that the balconies are not operational, so rooms in this section have no balconies, only windows.
• Staying in the “new” section of the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, also called the Tower, kind of defeats the purpose of staying in a classic hotel since it looks and feels like a modern building.
• It is not completely clear the extent of the inconveniences that hotel patrons may experience during this period of general renovations that is scheduled to end well into 2011. It is better to stay away from the Royal Hawaiian Hotel until all renovation work is finished.