THIS PLACE WAS AMAZINGGGG!!!!! My kids including myself thought that the pool was out of this world!!! The pool was SUPER huge SUPER clean and the temperature was great even with the big size. The beach too was very nice and sandy, with restaurants and stores along it. The hotel also had a restaurant right there as well as a grab and go breakfast station. Overall, this place was absolutely great and everything my family and I could want.
We stayed at the Royal Sonesta but the resort property is shared with Marriott Vacation Club. The pool was massive and allowed for plenty of space for all guests. There was a separate, smaller pool with slide for the littles. We could sit at the pool and overlook the beach and ocean, while enjoying poolside service. There were plenty of chairs and umbrellas for the guests. There were also chairs on the grassy area by the beach for guests, but those had more limited availability. The room was nice and spacious with an efficient balcony with an incredible view of the pool, beach, ocean, and cliffs. The resort had multiple restaurants but there was also an area across the street with multiple options and a convenience store with alcohol, some food and snacks, souvenirs, etc next door. The hotel provided complimentary shuttle service to and from the airport, which we also used when we had a helicopter tour of the island. We were on an anniversary trip but we also saw several families, so the resort is great for both couples and families.…
This hotel is very nice and not too crowded. The pool is wonderful and large and there is plenty of room around it for everyone. We rented a palapa around the pool one day and around the beach another. It was so relaxing! There are restaurants and shops in walking distance and at night the tiki torches light up the bar and pool area. The renovated rooms were nice and overall the place was wonderful. The only downside is that it’s very pricey and the rooms did not have enough drawer space.
Checkout at the house we rented for a family vacation was early, and our flight didn't leave until evening, so we purchased Resort Passes for the day at Royal Sonesta i including a cabana near the pool. The grounds are beautiful,pool is huge and clean, lots of chairs to relax in. Food service was excellent and was reasonably priced. A server checked regularly with our group to see if we needed anything. Pool towels were included. It was a perfect way to spend the day and relax before boarding a long flight. Outdoor showers are available and bathrooms for changing clothes. The property is on a beach also. The pass was well worth the price and our family of 7 loved it!
I was a bit hesitant to stay this close to the airport, but I couldn’t have been more wrong! The entire resort is beautiful and we enjoyed everything about it. The only minor critique we have is related to the Italian restaurant, which is not operates by the resort. I would definitely stay here again. It’s great for couples, families, girls getaways, etc.
We stayed at this property long ago before it became the Royal Sonesta, and I think it has only gotten better since then. We had an ocean view room on the top floor which had been newly renovated. The room itself is airy in calming beige, taupe and blue colors mirroring the beach outside. The view from the Lanai is fantastic - an expansive view of the pool area and the beach which, if we had better weather, would have been a great place for watching the sunrise and sunset! Some nice amenities include a Keurig with Kauai Coffee Co coffee and a steamer (essential for those wrinkled clothes after a transatlantic flight!). The grounds are immaculately kept; I enjoyed the koi pond in the center and the East Asian artwork and statues scattered throughout the grounds. There are 5 hot tubs under pergolas arranged around the pool which was never crowded and - pro tip - when one of our days turned rainy and stormy, sitting in the hot tub was a great way to spend a few hours because you're going to get wet anyway so you might as well be in a hot tub, and the pergola protects you from too much rain! The resort fee also gives you access to the beach chairs at the shoreline which is far less crowded than some of the popular beaches down on the south side. Things that could be improved on - food options were a little limited, but I think this is a reflection of Covid limitations. I usually like venturing out of the resort for food anyway so this didn't bother me much at all and there are a few great places in walking distance including Duke's Kauai, where you can use room charge even though it's not officially part of the Sonesta, Noka Grill, Aloha Leige & Waffles, etc. The staff were all super helpful and friendly. Nuts and bolts: yes, there's a parking fee ($25/day as of this writing, but it's pretty rare for a resort to not have this) and there's a resort fee (gives you access to pool/pool towels, beach lounge chairs, gym). All in all I think the Royal Sonesta is a great home-base for a Kauai vacation and I would stay here again!…
The Royal Sonesta is a dreamy delight. All the staff from check in to check out were top notch, friendly, helpful and kind. Kauai is sleepy and tranquil, and the royal sonesta embraces the feeling of ohana all around the island. Our room was newly remodeled, with plenty of fresh towels, a keurig with local coffee and a very nice lanai. There is no nightlife on the island really, but our 19 year old son was so captivated by the beauty and serenity that he didn’t mind at all! The pool is magnificent, with 5 hot tubs and PLENTY of seating. We will definitely return to Kauai and the Royal Sonesta!
The resort has everything you need, we never needed to leave it! Rooms were clean and spacious. Yes there is construction going on but you barely notice it. Just be aware that housekeeping is every other day, but you can also request it. The food in the restaurant was amazing although quite expensive. The on-site shops sells fresh sandwiches daily which we found to be a cheaper alternative for lunch (we also took advantage of the nearby Domino's too!). Staff were friendly and helpful. The island of Kauai is so beautiful, green and peaceful, what a lovely relaxing week we had!
We had a wonderful stay at the Royal Sonesta Kauai for 5 nights in early April 2022. We got a partial Oceanview room and ended up on the top floor of the Ha'upu Tower, on the far side of the hotel by a public shoreline access. This was actually rather convenient since that tower has its own parking lot right behind it, vs the larger main lots that were a bit of a walk from the main building. That lot did fill up from time to time, especially since it was also used for the public access, but 4 out of 5 nights, we were able to find a spot in that lot or on the hill driving up from that lot to the road. The partial Oceanview was mostly from the lanai (the bay/ocean was to the left), while the straight on view was of the gorgeous pool and the property. The sliding glass door did an amazing job of soundproofing the room - the difference between when the door was open and closed was pretty drastic. In general, the room was very quiet and spacious. The beds were comfortable, and the bathroom was really large with a nice big counter for all of our stuff. My one complaint about it is that it had frosted glass in the sliding door, so it was impossible to make the room dark if someone was in there. Also, the sliding door was very heavy but at least had soft close. I'm not sure if we accidentally got an accessible room or if they're all set up this way, but there were a ton of handrails and towel racks (also a bench in the bathtub, which we removed, and a lower peephole on the door), which were convenient for hanging up all of our swim stuff. And swim we did - the pool was the largest I've ever seen, with plenty of seating around and in the middle of it, and (rather slow) poolside service from the Kukui's restaurant, located right by the pool. There were five hot tubs, and the beach was a very short distance away. The kid's pool is very small and very shallow, with a short waterslide. We had originally booked this hotel partly because of the waterslide but my 8 year old did it once, bumped her butt on the shallow bottom on exit, and never went back to it. It looked like a lot of fun for small children, but my daughter had more than enough fun swimming around and exploring the large main pool. Because the pool was so large and spread out, it didn't get too crowded or too loud. I also loved the beachside walk to get to Duke's and Cafe Portofino (attached to the property, but on the other end of the beach), as well as the Kauai Beach Boys rental place for SUP, kayaks, etc. Past Duke's you just crossed a bridge or a road to get to the two nearby malls with ABC store, Skinny Mike's ice cream (convenient but expensive), food trucks, and a bunch of restaurants. The beach was relaxed and not crowded, with lots of seating, beach volleyball nets, etc. We didn't actually go on the beach that much because we loved the pool, but it seemed fun. The location in Lihue was also really convenient for the airport, larger stores like Walmart, Costco, etc, a lot of local restaurants, and for getting fairly quickly to other locations on the island. Two of the activities we booked, mountain tubing w/ Kauai Backcountry Adventures, and kayak/hike to the Secret Falls with Kayak Wailua, were a short drive away. The property itself was also beautiful and sprawling. I'm not sure which part was Marriott Beach Club and which part was Royal Sonesta, but we spent one evening exploring. The area by the lobby and meeting rooms is beautiful, there were BBQ grills in another location, and the whole property just had a nice feel to it. The whole upper walkway area from the lobby around to the Ha'upu Tower overlooking the pool had lots of seating and chairs/tables and places to just relax or eat your takeout meal. We would definitely come back to the Royal Sonesta. I'm missing it already!…
This is the former Marriott and is now The Royal Sonesta. The staff was very friendly and helpful. Location can’t be beat. 5 minutes from the airport and 5 minutes from Lihue town and the mall. For those of you from big cities, you will be disappointed in the mall, however, one doesn’t come to Kauai to shop. You come to relax and the Royal Sonesta is the perfect place. They have plenty of jacuzzis and a huge pool. Beautiful grounds and a koi pond. I would highly recommend this property if you will be traveling to Lihue, HI.
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