Review: Hilton Waikiki Beach Hotel (formerly Prince Kuhio Hotel)
Book the Hilton Waikiki Beach Hotel here.
Since Hilton devalued its award chart earlier this year many hotels have taken the opportunity to reclassify themselves and require up to 90,000 points a night. The Hilton Waikiki Beach thankfully did they available for just 40,000 nights while room rates in Waikiki were still high ($300+) just past New Years Eve.
The hotel is one block away from Waikiki beach - right in the center of the action in Waikiki but also overlooks a quiet residential area in the back.
The public airport buses 19 and 20 run in front of terminal and stops in front of the hotel. It can be slow at times so consider shuttles and taxis (which may be slowed down by the same traffic though).
Check-in was very friendly and very quick. To my astoundment I received my first major upgrade in my Hilton Diamond life - a full two room suite. Never had that happen to me. The upgrade happened before my arrival and the agent could not tell me why exactly.
The room was in great shape - not super luxurious but it felt like a high quality apartment with a kitchen area, two bathrooms and two patios. The living rooms was furnished simply but it was well done.
The beds were excellent with high quality linens.
I really liked the view from the patio in the 25th floor and spend quite some time ogling at the green hills of Oahu there.
The hotel also features and Executive Lounge with breakfast and evening appetizers. I found it disappointing though as breakfast items were of very low quality. The evening appetizers were not worth showing up either and alcoholic drinks were all for purchase.
There is a good coffee shop at the Mohana Surfrider hotel which has excellent coffee and breakfast items for less than $5 - that's were you'd find me.
The hotel has a pool in the 10th floor. It has basically no crowds even in the busy season - the only issue is that the main building draws a huge show on the pool area so it only becomes useable (and warm enough in winter) after 2 PM.
The WiFi was just reasonable - certainly not fast. It felt like a basic Internet that you get in some hotels but no premium option was available on my request.
The hotel also has a gym which I did not visit :)
As I had a late night flight back to California the hotel offered a hospitality room for one hour to use at night. This was a fully equipped standard room that I was able to use to get a shower after the beach and catch up on emails. That's apparently a standard offer - not just for Diamonds. I found this a great amenity!
Conclusion:
This is a good business hotel just one block off the Waikiki beach. It checks all the boxes for a major business hotel and has good facilities. The staff is excellent and ready to help as much as they can. Don't count on the Executive Lounge though - it won't do much to improve your experience (in fact it's a major letdown).
Book the Hilton Waikiki Beach Hotel here.