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King bed or 2 Doubles.
A Balcony / Patio and an Ocean View view.
120 sq. ft with 2 Twins or One Double beds.
A Partial City view view.
Photos and review by Kate M., Oyster Expert Hotel Investigator.
Updated: May 4, 2010
Pros
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Cons
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An ultra-budget option two blocks from the beach on the quiet eastern edge of Waikiki. Some rooms offer superb views, but they're all old and musty. The lobby and on-site restaurant, meanwhile, feel eerily empty much of the time. Try livelier, similarly priced Aqua hotels like the Park Shore or Waikiki Pearl instead.
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Deluxe Ocean View Room
King bed or 2 Doubles. A Balcony / Patio and an Ocean View view. |
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Standard Hotel Room
120 sq. ft with 2 Twins or One Double beds. A Partial City view view. |
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Deluxe Room, City View
King bed or 2 Doubles. A Balcony / Patio and a City View view. |
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Deluxe Room - Diamond head View
King bed or 2 Doubles. A Balcony / Patio and a Diamond Head view. |
Faded and musty, populated by guests looking to save money without compromising on location
Initial thoughts upon entering the Queen Kapiolani: This is the nursing home that time forgot. Many large tropical hotels -- even of the budget variety -- feature open-air lobbies, marble floors, and ceiling fans whirring languidly overhead. This place is choked for air: The lobby's coral walls, seafoam-green carpet, and stained ceilings have seen better days, and the lack of natural light is only exacerbated by the dim brass chandeliers. The overall look might be described as faded grandeur -- though I'm not sure this place was ever grand, even when it opened in 1969.
The Queen Kapiolani consists of 315 rooms and suites spanning 19 floors. The more attractive entrance is on Kapahulu Avenue, directly across from the Honolulu Zoo (a not-so-delightful side effect of this hotel's location: rare bird screeches penetrate into the rooms at odd hours). The vehicular entrance and front desk are off narrow Lemon Street, surrounded by dingy hostels and apartment buildings.
Guests range from Hawaiian families to European couples to twentysomething groups and backpackers. I bonded with a few in the elevator over how queasy we got each time it lurched to a halt.
I paid $80 for a room that was large and had a spectacular view. But it was so musty that it made even breathing unpleasant, and I didn't want to sit on the rusty and threadbare furniture. For around the same price, I got a nicer room, better location, cheaper Internet service, and a much more vibrant atmosphere a block away at the Park Shore Waikiki.
Service is what you'd expect at an ultra-budget hotel: minimal. But the small staff is pleasant and cheerful (this is Hawaii, after all).
Staff members are few and far between at the Queen Kapiolani -- this is definitely a do-it-yourself kind of place -- though everyone I did encounter was friendly and helpful. No bellhops were in sight when I arrived (though I did see them assisting guests on my way out). And when I asked about Wi-Fi service, a clerk just handed me an instruction sheet rather than explain the procedure. The hotel did impress in one respect, though: Housekeeping delivered a stack of fresh towels in under two minutes.
On the quiet eastern edge of Waikiki and a long block from the beach. The zoo is across the street, and hostels are next door.
On the eastern edge of Waikiki, and specifically on Kapahulu Avenue, a block (and about a two-minute walk) from the Kuhio section of Waikiki Beach. With Kapiolani Park across the street and no high-rise neighbors, the hotel has fantastic views of Diamond Head. Cheap hostels and apartment buildings neighbor the hotel.
A long block up Kapahulu is Kalakaua Avenue, a touristy, milelong stretch of shops, restaurants, and high-rise hotels that runs along Waikiki Beach. It offers a curious blend of mainland creature comforts and local flavor. On the sidewalks, Japanese tourists intermingle with tanned locals, surfboards under their arms, on their way to the beach to catch a few waves after work. On both sides of the street, high-end retailers -- Tiffany, Cartier, and yes, even an Apple store -- are interspersed with indoor malls and streetside vendors hawking cheap seashell jewelry and T-shirts. Seemingly every mid-market chain restaurant can be found here -- Cheesecake Factory, California Pizza Kitchen, P.F. Chang's -- along with more than a handful of Starbucks and fast-food joints. And towering above it all: 40-story, thousand-room hotels dotting the landscape like pins in a cushion.
A two-minute stroll to one of the world's most famous beaches; Kuhio Beach, aka "the wall," is the closest subsection.
Loosely speaking, the entire 1.5-mile stretch of sand alongside Kalakaua Avenue is known as Waikiki Beach. In reality, it's more like three separate beaches, the borders of which vary depending on whom you ask. The Queen Kapiolani is one block from the Kuhio section, known to some as "the wall," for the 50-yard concrete pier that juts out from the sand at the corner of Kapahulu Avenue. (The kids who jump off the pier are known affectionately as "wall rats.")
Kuhio Beach is broader and far less crowded than its more famous neighbor to the northwest, Queen's Beach. The water is shallow and warm, and because the wall creates an artificial cove of sorts, it's also calm, making Kuhio the best place for kids to swim, according to the lifeguards there. On the other hand, the ocean bottom is a bit rocky, so tread gingerly.
Stale, stained, and scratchy; some have fantastic views.
Rooms are more "tropical" than the public spaces, but just as worn and stale. The walls have peeling wallpaper; the cheap-looking furniture is a mix of plastic and bamboo; carpets smell so musty I was reluctant to walk barefoot on them; scratchy white sheets are a nylon-cotton-poly blend; and though the view from my room was lovely, filthy windows and rusty balcony chairs made them hard to enjoy.
A small pool plus sporting-goods rentals; Wi-Fi is $9.95 a day.
The small swimming pool is on the 3rd floor and offers fantastic views of Diamond Head and the ocean. The tiled pool deck is quite spacious with plenty of lounge chairs, but has little landscaping and is a few feet from a massive power line. The hotel's restaurant, Garden Lanai, is just around the corner, and there's also a Pepsi machine on the pool deck for some quick refreshment.
Low rates, proximity to the beach, and rooms with sleeper sofas
A reasonable but distinctly low-end family option: Rooms are spacious and cheap and the hotel is just a block from the beach and across the street from the Honolulu Zoo. For some families, however, those virtues won't outweigh worn and musty rooms.
Housekeeping does its best, but the building and rooms are in desperate need of an update.
The housekeeping staff is friendly and attentive, and it's not like there's trash on the floors and overflowing garbage cans everywhere, but this place is old and worn-out. Windows are grimy; furniture is rusty and beat up; wallpaper is peeling; and the carpets smell and feel musty.
The on-site restaurant's menu is affordable and varied, if unexciting.
The on-site Garden Lanai restaurant, which serves hearty, tasty, and reasonably priced American fare, probably looks exactly as it did when the hotel opened back in 1969. With faux wood tables and candlelight, the semi-open-air setting is charming and quaint at dinnertime.
An ultra-budget option two blocks from the beach on the quiet eastern edge of Waikiki. Some rooms offer superb views, but they're all old and musty. The lobby and on-site restaurant, meanwhile, feel eerily empty much of the time. Try livelier, similarly priced Aqua hotels like the Park Shore or Waikiki Pearl instead.
| Number of Rooms: | 315 |
| Pool: | Yes |
| Fitness Center: | No |
| Spa: | No |
| Internet Access: | Yes |
| Pets Allowed: | No |
| Cribs: | Yes |
| Kids Club: | No |
| Jacuzzi (in room): | No |
| Casino: | No |
| Location: | Oahu, Hawaii |
| Toll Free Bookings: | 1-888-776-9783 |
| Address: | 150 Kapahula Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96815-4097 (See Map) |
Have you been to the Queen Kapiolani Hotel? Did you agree with Oyster's review? Did we miss something?