Our family stayed at the Hale Koa Hotel for the second time and had the most fun and relaxing time of our life.! Our room was clean and service was excellent. We enjoyed all the amenities that the hotel had to offer.

I highly recommend the Hale Koa Hotel!!!

If you've got to have extra pillows and a real comfy bed you had better pick some other place. But if you want a nice clean, reasonable, comfortable stay without all the comotion around, stay at the Hale Koa.
Service was great, people were very friendly and the food was "good to very good."
What I liked the most (other than the cost) was the room you had while at the beach or other areas around Ft Derusey. We took a walk around the main strip and it was as packed as could be. If you like that environment, you can just go next door to the Hilton Hawaian Village long enough to get your fix. Hale Koa has everything one would need including tourist attraction details. We'll go there again....

We just returned from 8 days at the Hale Koa. This was our first trip to Hawaii so I have no real point of comparison. We did venture next door to the Hilton Hawaiian Village to see the penguins and flamingos. The rooms there are double what we paid at the Hale Koa so there's no doubt we got a good deal for the same beach and the same view. The grounds of the Hale Koa are lush and mature and because it also encompasses Fort DeRussy, a public park, the largest along Waikiki. The pool area was huge and only lacked a waterslide to make it a kid's paradise. Every hour the children have to get out of the pool for 15 minutes for 'adult time' but since there is an adults only pool a few steps away I don't know why this is necessary. The hotel is about a 15 minute walk from the new Beach Walk area where all the malls and restaurants are. I preferred being in the quieter part of Waikiki.

We had an oceanview room (paid $157/nite), rates depend on rank. It was very clean, looked freshly renovated with new furniture and fixtures. There was a small fridge and coffee maker in the bathroom. Internet was $9.95 a day. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpul. Never encountered anyone without a smile. My only negative experience was with the poolside waiter who took $20 for a lava flow and never returned with my change. But I'm sure he was smiling, too. Parking is in a structure across the street, which was a little inconvenient but not terribly. It was just that once we got back from an excurusion and parked, we were loathe to go get the car again just to go out to dinner. So we mostly ate our meals within walking distance.

The Hale Koa Room was closed for renovation so we had only Biba's and Koko's (plus the snack bars) as our on-site dining choices. Biba's is by far superior in food quality. I would compare Koko's to Denny's. Great for breakfast but the one dinner we ate there was nursing home quality. We did the $14.99 breakfast buffet daily. Don't bother ordering a la cart. Coffee, a glass of juice, one egg and a piece of toast will put you in the $15 range. Just get the buffet. Trust me.

The steak salad at Biba's was my favorite thing on the menu. I ordered it twice in a row and then the third time switched to the fish special which I later regretted. When will I learn? We did the Hale Koa luau just for kicks. It was okay. I wouldn't do it again. The boys and my husband found it cheesy and boring. But how can you go to Hawaii without experiencing a luau? Now we can scratch that one off our list.

The on-site PX was so convenient. Even though everyone says ABC stores are 'everywhere,' the nearest one to the Hale Koa was several blocks away. So the PX was a real life saver. They have snorkeling equipment, souvenirs, clothing, snacks, drinks, beach chairs... everything you could ask for in a convenience store. And it's all tax free! We purchased a few beach mats and a beach chair and then offered them to another family who were checking in our way out.

The Army Museum on the grounds of Fort DeRussy is a must-see if you or your kids are military buffs. It's free, and much larger than it looks from the outside. If you walk from the hotel toward the main part of Waikiki (either thru the park or on the sidewalk) you'll pass right by it.

Remember, the HHV sets off fireworks every Friday night. The night we were there they went off at 7:45 instead of 8. So just be prepared. We almost missed it.

I wouldn't stay anywhere else if we return to Oahu. However, now we'd like to visit some of the other islands where the pace isn't quite so hectic. So it may be awhile before we return to the Hale Koa

If you qualify to stay at the Hale Koa, definitely do it. This was our first stay at the Hale Koa, but we've been to Oahu a couple of times before and this was the nicest hotel experience I've had. The hotel is nicely located - it's walking distance to the mall or to the shops, restaurants and activities in Waikiki. And I love the beach here. I think it's the best beach location in Waikiki. The beach is relatively wide here and is MUCH less crowded than other parts of Waikiki. There are different activity stands around to rent equipment from, if you want. We ended up buying a lot of our equipment at the BX located on the property. The property also has two pools for when you get tired of the beach. The main pool can get crowded, but the pool closest to the hotel never got too crowded - and it's reserved for adults only, which is a plus with me. The hotel rooms are pretty basic, but they are clean and have the amenities you expect in a hotel. The biggest negative with the rooms is that the pillows were not that nice. We may bring our own next time. There are also several bars and restaurants on the propert. We tried most of them and thought they were fine. Nothing special, but a good value compared to other restaurants in the area. Our favorite spot is Happy's Snack Shop for quick and easy breakfasts and snacks. They also have a fitness center that offers some spa services. We each had a massage while were there for a good price!