Honolulu, HI, USA
Featured Lodging
Halekulani
What to expect: Two feather-helmeted, granite sculptures guard the entryway to a central courtyard with comfortable wicker chairs and splashing waterfall. Upon arrival, guests are escorted to their rooms for private registration and introduction to the hotel's amenities. Celebrating couples, vacationers, and business travelers enjoy the calm, almost-residential atmosphere of this five-acre oceanfront resort that dates from 1917. |
Amenity highlights: The bottom of the heated oceanside pool is covered with an orchid mosaic composed of about a million glass tiles, and surrounded by a terrazzo deck; attendants supply cold towels, cooling spritzers, and CD players with headsets. In the spa, treatments focus on South Pacific healing methods and are offered in suites opening onto private courtyard patios. Complimentary wireless Internet access is available throughout the hotel. |
Insider tip: In front of the resort, a freshwater channel passes through the reefs into the ocean. Guides can lead guests to spots in the ocean where the cold mountain water can be felt, places considered by ancient Hawaiians to have healing properties.
The Kahala Hotel & Resort
What to expect: Opened in 1964 and frequented by Hollywood's elite (Frank Sinatra, Tom Cruise, Michelle Pfeiffer), entertainment notables (Faith Hill, Luciano Pavarotti, Billy Joel), every US president from Nixon to Clinton, and royalty (Queen Elizabeth, Princess Grace, the Dalai Lama), this resort attracts the rich and famous and the discriminating and sophisticated. Ordinary families cavort next to the glitterati. Consistent awards prove this resort is among the world’s best .
Amenity highlights: For a modest fee, guests (kids, too) can swim and interact with the resort’s most loved residents, the Atlantic bottlenose dolphins. Emphasizing education, Dolphin Quest scientist/trainers run the program in the 26,000-square-foot salt-water lagoon.
The Kahala Hotel and Resort's elaborate pool complex includes a large ocean-view pool lined with blue Italian-glass tiles, a big spa, and a children's wading pool—all surrounded by a sundeck furnished with thickly padded lounge chairs and fronted by a sunning lawn graced by coconut trees.
Responding to celebrity requests, this Honolulu resort built five 550-square-foot spa suites (one for couples) where guests can receive various massages and body treatments in an utterly tranquil, private setting, beginning with a foot-bathing ritual.
Insider tip: The Kahala Burger, available at the open-air Plumeria Beach Café, brings guests back to the resort year after year.
Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa
What to expect: Giving new meaning to "global village," Waikiki’s largest resort draws guests from around the world and welcomes them efficiently in a lushly landscaped, open-air lobby that overlooks gardens, the main pool, and the ocean beyond. Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa never seems overcrowded, even with the presence of conventions, conferences, and other special events.
Amenity highlights: The 33,000-square-foot Mandara Spa includes a sun terrace, mosaic-tiled infinity pool, and extensive fitness center. The resort's gardens and ponds are dotted with artwork and wildlife, including parrots, penguins, flamingos, and reef fish. On Friday evenings, the King’s Jubilee features a procession led by a regally uniformed Village Guard, an hour-long revue of Polynesian dance and music, and a fireworks display. About 90 boutiques and specialty stores are spread throughout the resort.
Insider tip: The resort's South African penguins are fed daily at 9 AM and 3 PM at their grotto lodgings between the Alii Tower and the lobby (times subject to change).
