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Cheaper
Average
Higher
About
4.5
#2 of 12 resorts in Honolulu
Location
4.6
Rooms
4.6
Value
4.1
Cleanliness
4.7
Service
4.6
Sleep Quality
4.7
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
The Kahala Hotel & Resort is Hawaii's reigning luxury resort, set on a secluded beach just ten minutes from the world class shopping and entertainment of Waikiki. This legendary hideaway resort in Honolulu's plush Kahala district is a favorite with presidents, international royalty and celebrities. From the moment you arrive, you will know that you are truly somewhere special.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travelers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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Nestled in a serene location away from the busy Waikiki area, The Kahala Hotel & Resort is celebrated by many for its tranquil atmosphere and proximity to attractions. Guests frequently commend the spacious rooms with spectacular views, though some suggest that updates are needed. The resort's beach, pool, and dining options earn high marks, although improvements in lounge chair maintenance have been noted.
While the cleanliness of the resort receives accolades, the value proposition is met with skepticism due to the high costs of extras. Service at the hotel is generally lauded for being attentive and efficient.
Location
Secluded
Atmosphere
Tranquil
Rooms
Dated
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Pristine
Service
Attentive
Amenities
Satisfactory
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What a beautiful resort. My husband and I had a fabulous three days here in an ocean view room and it was beautiful. The pool and beach are wonderful and the dolphin lagoon was such a lovely surprise.
Our room was large and very clean with a very comfortable bed.
Staff were brilliant too.
All in all we had a wonderful stay.
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Date of stay: February 2024
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, Guest Services / Front Office at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Mar 5, 2024
We're delighted you had such a great time with us! We are indeed very fortunate with our location, so nice we could share our Aloha with you. Please visit again soon!
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We booked a five night stay in one of the ocean view rooms since this hotel is a part of the Leading Hotels of the World. There was a bit of confusing during check in but was quickly cleared. They upgraded us to a corner ocean view with a large lanai under the Leader’s Club Aurelian tier program and we could not be more pleased.
The hotel has taken every precaution necessary to ensure the safety of all guests and staff. One day we noticed that they have a UV machine to disinfect guest rooms! Our room was completely clean with very nice bathroom facilities. The water pressure was very strong and there was also a separate soaking tub and an automatic Japanese washlet. The daily house keeping was excellent. One thing to note is that during the pandemic, guests will have to request house keeping or they do not enter the room which might be a welcomed feature to some.
The hotel ground is well kept with a dolphin pool where you can choose to swim with the dolphins or just watch the performance. Our booking includes breakfast at the Plumeria Beach House with an 80 dollar allowance per day which was enough to get us plenty of food but we managed to go over everyday - that’s how good the breakfasts are! The wait staff is polite and professional and provided excellent services.
The hotel offers both valet and self parking options. We opted for self parking since we don’t feel comfortable with valet when there is a pandemic going on. The rate is 40 dollars per night whether self parking or valet. I think for a car dependent resort like this one, perhaps they should waive the parking fee like most resorts we visit in Europe, but it’s definitely not a deal breaker.
The location might not be ideal for first time visitors to the island as it’s a bit far from where the actions are, but it’s great if you value privacy or are done with most of the touristy things and just want a place to unwind before heading home - which was our case.
We have not felt so pampered in a long time. We will definitely be coming back for more.
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Date of stay: January 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Jan 22, 2021
Aloha! We appreciate you joining us at The Kahala. Our staff has worked diligently to ensure the highest safety protocols. Glad you noticed. Even more pleased that you appreciated our efforts. We look forward to your return. Mahalo.
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Great kama'aina deal to spend time with the family, kids loved the pool & beach front, & watching golf on our patio. When we checked in, they advised us of the availability of services since not everything is available. The bellhop was great and brought us extra water and ice with our bags. The concierge were very nice and accommodating despite forgetting our amenities list we emailed prior to our arrival. Hotel felt clean and sanitized. Snag a cabana for the whole day, it's worth it since lounge chairs are limited due to social distancing. One suggestion to do a mid-day cleaning because sunscreen in the water kept gathering at one corner of the pool. There's no valet but I personally don't like other people driving my car so the In & out self-parking was great for us to grab food or coffee quickly at Kahala mall. We had a great time and a weekend full of memories!
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Date of stay: July 2020Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Aug 3, 2020
Mahalo for sharing your visit!
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I had my wedding during Valentine's Day weekend at the Kahala Hotel & Resort and I can't recommend this hotel enough. Leading up to the wedding, the staff was extremely helpful and responsive, especially our Catering Manager Kristal Kikumoto. She went above and beyond to make sure our day was everything we wanted it to be, from ballroom layout to customizing our banquet menu, and corresponding with our wedding coordinator. The food was exceptional. I have had multiple guests of the wedding tell me that the food was the best they've ever eaten at an event. The Plumeria Grove for our reception was beautiful, overlooking the ocean, and the ballroom was gorgeous having an old-time glamour feel.
In addition to the wedding, we had a hotel room block with a group rate. All of my guests loved staying at the resort. They raved about the views from their rooms, and the exceptional service. I had the pleasure of staying in one of the one-bedroom suites and it was beautiful. We had a view of the pool and ocean. The bed was super comfortable. The couch is even a pull out sleeper sofa, and my bridesmaids were able to stay with me the night before the wedding. There was also more than enough room to get ready, including makeup artists, bridesmaids, mothers, videographers, photographers, and wedding coordinators.
The hotel itself just felt luxurious. One of the reasons I chose the Kahala was due to its location away from Waikiki. The beach was quiet and not very crowded, even for a three-day weekend, and made for perfect sunset beach pictures. Also, how many hotels can say they have a dolphin lagoon onsite? We loved watching the dolphins.
I can't recommend this hotel enough. I couldn't have asked for a better venue for my special day.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala_Resort_Hawaii, Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Mar 4, 2020
Aloha! Such a gracious review! We delight in hosting brides and their family and friends. Our staff knows they HAVE to get it right and they do everything in their power to ensure weddings are special at The Kahala. We are so pleased you had such an experience and we wish you the very best in your married life. Mahalo nut loa!
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We hardly ever write reviews but decided we needed to after our Hawaii experience at this resort. The first day of check in started with the best customer service experience by the most friendly staff. The resort is beautiful (inside and out), we had a large ocean front room on the 10th floor. It was quiet and had a beautiful balcony overlooking the ocean where we heard the peaceful sounds of the waves in our room. The concierge helped us with all of our dining reservations and any other questions we had. The beach was private and not crowded (we went to Waikiki for a day to visit and were so happy to be staying at the Kahala). The dolphins are available to watch all the time which was really amazing, we also swam with them (make sure you book early online for the dolphin quest). The food was amazing and they catered to us, for instance we had the seafood platter as an in room dining option but couldn’t get it at the restaurant but they were accommodating and brought it to us at the restaurant anyways. The resort property is well taken care of, there are kayaks, paddle boards and boogie boards available to rent. The ocean water was warm and fun to swim in. We also booked the Pacific Dream Photography, the photo session was complimentary for being a guest. They took photos of us around the entire property. The photo pricing is a little pricey but well worth purchasing as the photos came out beautiful. We also received massages and were treated like queens and relaxed in one of the private cabanas after with tea and water for about an hour. The food at the restaurants on site is delicious, we started with fresh fruit inside of a papaya every morning. We took an Uber everywhere. Ensure you book everything you want to do way in advance as they book up fast, we went to the Dole Plantation to try the dole whip (delicious), North Shore (Laniakea Beach) where we saw turtles in and out of the water, we went to Pearl Harbor (tickets open up Hawaii time at 3pm for the next day - They go fast so make sure to get them - no same day tickets were available to see USS Arizona site), and we went to a popular restaurant (Side Street Inn), be prepared for large portions and great affordable food (make reservations). Hawaii is beautiful and the Kahala Hotel and Resort is the place to stay if you’re looking for a relaxing (not overly crowded) vacation. We couldn’t have asked for a better first time Hawaii experience, best vacation ever!!
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: July 2021
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Jul 18, 2021
Aloha! Pleased to hear your first visit ot Hawaii was everything you imagined! We hope to host you again. Mahalo for sharing!
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We recently concluded a restful, wonderfully peaceful stay at the Kahala Resort, an historic property which has attracted presidents and princes over its many decades of existence, especially when it was the Kahala Hilton. We reserved a beachfront room with a stellar view of the hotel's carefully-manicured beach. The room was perfect in every way. The view from the spacious lanai was breathtaking and housekeeping went the extra mile in keeping everything clean and well-stocked. We enjoyed the resort's location, away from the madness of Waikiki. We took advantage of the hotel's complimentary bike rentals and pedaled into Waikiki, which was quite the accomplishment since you have to maneuver up and around Diamond Head. The Kahala is not close to anything which can be a liability if you want to be near Waikiki. We considered it a plus. The beach is frequented by locals on the weekend which is not surprising since it's probably the one of the nicest hotel beaches on the island. The food was good but not great, however. We ordered the four course meal at Hoku one night and were a bit disappointed by the quality and service at this restaurant. Similarly, it seemed like it took forever to get served at other restaurants. We decided to go off property and had fabulous meals at the Hau Tree and Hula Grill restaurants. Neither establishment came close to the $330 price the two of us paid at Hoku. I will say all of the employees work hard to make you feel welcome, so maybe the hotel was short-staffed. When you pick up the phone in your room and you're repeatedly unable to reach anyone, you've got a staffing issue or a service issue or a little bit of both. I hope the Kahala regains its mojo so it can live up to its historic legacy.
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Review collected in partnership with this hotel
Date of stay: June 2021
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Jun 28, 2021
Aloha! Glad you enjoyed your stay with us. Appreciate your feedback and trust that it will be reviewed by our team. Mahalo for taking the time to share your visit!
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We stayed at the Kahala Hotel for my birthday celebration. The staff, specially Wendy Nagaishi from Concierge, went above and beyond to make it special. Wendy is wonderful! From her personalized service to her attention to details, Wendy ensured that all aspects of our stay was well taken care of. She has made our stay-cation memorable.
The room was impeccable; we enjoyed the dolphin view and the serenity of their beach front location. Service through out the property was top notch. We visited the Plumeria Beach House a few times and would highly recommend it.
The Kahala should definitely be recognized for providing luxury service despite current situation with COVID-19 concerns. They make the guests feel at ease with the abundance of safety precautions for all guests.
We look forward to many more stays!
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Date of stay: July 2020Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Aug 3, 2020
Aloha! Thank you for noticing our planning and efforts to ensure the comfort AND safety of our kama'aina guests! Glad you had a great birthday experience at The Kahala. Wishes for many more. Mahalo.
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The hotel opened in 1964 but they keep the hotel clean, grand, and luxurious. The carpet in the room look old but feel clean. We stayed in a beach front room and we can open the sliding door and feel the breeze and hear the ocean. The bathroom was spacious and feels clean. They give each room with complimentary small bottles of water every day. The shower drain works properly without water accumulating in the shower. The toilet seat is a heated bidet toilet seat. Housekeeping clean the room daily and they cleaned our room before noon time just the way we wanted as we like to go back to the room cleaned and tidied up.
All the beaches in Hawaii are public including the beach in front of this hotel but this side of the beach is not crowded probably because it’s far from the public beach entrance. The hotel has beach chaise lounge chairs for the hotel guests and there are palm trees that offer sunshades. The water is always calm (the coral reefs off the shore block the energies of the waves far from the shore) no matter what time of the day and the water doesn’t get deep until you go further away from the shore. Because of that I enjoyed in the water a lot even though I am not good swimmer (my 9 and 11 years old kids are better swimmers then me). They have rinsing area for you to rinse off the sand from you feet and body. The area is quiet unlike Waikiki. The area feels safe. The beach is facing south so the sunset is not over the water though.
The front desk staff (Carolyn) and all the valet staffs (cannot name all of them) are courteous and polite. The burgers at Seaside Grill taste great and have the off the grill taste.
The location is great as there is is shopping center, Kahala Mall, close by about 5-7 minutes drive. Whole Foods, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Musubi Cafe Iyasume, Jamba Juice, California Pizza Kitchen, etc, are in Kahala Mall. Leonard’s Bakery where they have tasty malasadas and Nanding’s Bakery where they have tasty ensaymadas and spanish bread with ube (purple yam) are about 12 to 15 minutes drive away. Peal Harbor is about 25 minutes away. Kuoloa Ranch (where many movies were filmed including Jurassic World, etc) is about 50 minutes drive. If you want to see the inside, you need to get tickets for the tours but they are all booked a month ahead so you will need to book the tour at least a month or longer ahead of time. But you can still see the mountain wall which is majestic to see and they have a gift shop and a cafe.
Overall, I recommend this hotel to anyone who wants a beach front hotel where the beach is not crowded and a beach with calm water all day long. The room rates are expensive but I think it’s worth it.
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Date of stay: July 2021Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Jul 18, 2021
Aloha! Pleased to hear you had a great experience! Good tip noting that advance reservations are needed for many top attractions on Oahu. Many thanks for sharing your visit!
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The best thing about this resort was the staff. Everybody was really nice and friendly. Wendy at the concierge desk was amazing, and Kathy, Errol, Angie and Aaron at the Plumeria Bar were wonderful to talk to. Our room was large and comfortable, with lots of windows, but the bathroom was smallish with one sink and a tiny counter. Food and drinks were very expensive and it was a $15 Uber ride to Waikiki to eat at an offsite location. The breakfast buffet was excellent but $108 for two, with a tip. The food was generally good but we did not like the Italian restaurant...it seemed more Japanese than Italian. With a bottle of wine it was hard for two to eat dinner in the nicer restaurants for under $250. The only pool area was nice but very small, and there were lots of young children. The fitness facility was well supplied and quiet most of the time. This may be a pretty nice place for Oahu but, in our opinion, is not as nice as the resorts we have stayed at on Maui and Kauai. We stayed at this resort for 11 nights.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Rooms
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala_Resort_Hawaii, Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Mar 4, 2020
Aloha! We appreciate you choosing The Kahala for your extended stay. Our staff delights in serving our guests and glad that you experienced such touches. Appreciate all your comments and your critiques will be reviewed. Mahalo for sharing!
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Every year my wife and I do a yearly trip, thanks to Covid19 we could not travel. So we planned a staycation, found the rates at the Kahala hotel were reasonable so we booked it. As we arrived to the hotel we were greated by Gary, we liked how their name tags have little tid bits about them, weqqq remember how it said he liked to gamble. He was very friendly and helpful and even though he was wearing a mask you could tell he was smiling the entire time. This made us feel even more welcome. We preceeded to the front desk, there was a couple in front of us. Upon the couple completing their business the lady at the front desk wiped everything down which made us feel safe. I believe her name was Emiko, and again you could tell she was smiling through her mask. She welcomed us and made sure that we felt comfortable and attended to our needs. Checking in was fast, and our rooms were ready as promised. The rooms were clean and comfortable. We had a room on the beach which I would highly recommend. One morning as we were about to go exercise we had a few questions on places to eat and running routes I believe it was Tyler working the front desk, he made excellent suggestions for place to eat and gave us a small map of different running routes with mileages. He also made sure that we were comfortable and enjoying our stay. You could also tell he was smiling through his mask. All the staff made us feel welcome and safe. You could see them cleaning the general areas constantly. The beach was beautiful and easy to access. I would also like to recommend swimming with the dolphins. Very educational and their care for the dolphins is extraordinary.
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Date of stay: October 2020Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Kahala Resort Hawaii, General Manager at The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Responded Oct 13, 2020
We are so glad to have hosted you! Mahalo for sharing your experience. Glad to have been part of your annual travels ... even if it was not so far away. We do hope to host you again, soon!
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There are more places to choose from in the Honolulu area.
PRICE RANGE
$537 - $742 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
the kahala hotel honolulu, the kahala hotel and resort, kahala resort honolulu, kahala hotel honolulu, mandarin oriental oahu, kahala hotel & resort, kahala mandarin oriental
LOCATION
United StatesHawaiiOahuHonolulu
NUMBER OF ROOMS
338
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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Frequently Asked Questions about The Kahala Hotel & Resort
Which popular attractions are close to The Kahala Hotel & Resort?
Nearby attractions include Diamond Head State Monument (2.0 miles), Waikiki Beach (4.2 miles), and The Magical Mystery Show at Hilton Waikiki Beach (3.1 miles).
