Turtle Bay Resort Rating: 4.0 Pearls

Oahu, Hawaii, United States

Much of Turtle Bay Resort feels dated.

Probably best not to watch the 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, which was filmed at Turtle Bay, before coming here. In the movie, the characters stay in luxurious beach bungalows. Life, alas, doesn't imitate art at Turtle Bay.

This amenity-packed, right-on-the-beach resort on the quiet, scenic North Shore attracts a mellow mix of honeymooners, wedding parties, families, and locals. But if they're expecting the bright lobby and appealing bungalows from the movie, they'll have their hopes dashed. While the resort does have 42 beach cottages and villas, most guests stay in one of 375 rooms in the three-wing main building, which, while large at 478 square feet, are blandly decorated. Though the resort underwent a $70 million dollar renovation in 2004, much of the property already feels worn and dated. The walls and furniture in the room are chipped and scratched. Hallway carpets are stained, and machines in the fitness center are rusty. I chatted with two fun thirtysomething women from Los Angeles who admitted they'd picked the resort on a whim after seeing the film, only to be disappointed when they checked in.

Built in 1972, and later run by Hilton and Hyatt, today Turtle Bay is independently owned. With its owner, Oaktree Capital Management, facing financial troubles, it's been up for sale for years. A sense of carelessness abounds, from the debris in the hallways to the bathrobe delivered to my room in a crumpled heap. The "luxury accomodations" the website touts aren't all that luxurious, unless you're one of the privileged few paying big bucks to stay in the beach cottages and ocean villas.

What the website does get right is its calling the resort "True Hawaii." As the only resort on the North Shore and one of the few outside of crowded Waikiki, Turtle Bay gives guests a taste of a less developed Oahu. Just down the road, you'll see fruit stands selling pineapple and the island's famous shrimp trucks.

Turtle Bay is not without its problems, but it's also not without its charms for those seeking a large resort on Oahu outside of Waikiki. It's typically cheaper than resorts in Ko Olina, like Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club and the JW Marriott Ihilani, has greater natural beauty, and an ideal location for those who want to surf the North Shore or just soak up the island's surf culture. And, with two 18-hole golf courses, helicopter rides, and its own stable on-site, Turtle Bay offers an unbeatable array of amenities, and there's not another hotel in sight (not the case in Waikiki or even Ko Olina). Guests who can look past the dated decor and maintenance issues (or afford a cottage or bungalow), should enjoy themselves, but they should also consider Ko Olina, which has a top golf course, luxurious spa, its own marina, and more recent renovations. The worn lobby and guest rooms aren't picture perfect, but the surrounding area is.

Service is adequate but not luxurious. Check-in is quick, and lines are short -- none of the long, wraparound lines you see at mega resorts in Waikiki. But service is lacking the extra little touches that you might expect. Turndown service is provided only on request. When I asked for a robe, it was brought to my room in a crumpled heap. Service in the restaurants and bars varies from the bartender is your new best friend to annoyingly slow. Especially at Ola and the poolside Hang Ten Bar & Grill, servers can be overwhelmed.

View on a Larger Map

Turtle Bay is on Oahu's famed North Shore, an area known for world-class surfing that's about an hour's drive from Honolulu and Waikiki. Compared to that hotel-packed part of the island, the relatively undeveloped North Shore has few places to stay. So it feels less touristy and far quainter.

The main building sits on Kulima Point, a picturesque spit of land with a swimming beach on one side and a longer, rockier beach on the other. The 880-acre resort includes five miles of beachfront and a dozen miles of hiking and bike trails. Much of the land is undeveloped, and the main resort area -- the pools, swimming beach, restaurants, and spa -- is fairly compact.

• The North Shore's most famous surfing beaches, including the Banzai Pipeline, Sunset Beach, and Waimea Bay, are all within a few miles -- a 10-minute drive from the hotel.
• Shark's Cove, one of the best snorkeling sites on the island, is a 10- to 15-minute drive.
• The Polynesian Cultural Center, home to one of the island's best luaus, is a 12-minute drive.
• One-hour drive from the Honolulu Airport

Turtle Bay's mellow Kulima Cove beach

The resort includes five miles of beach, but the main beach used by hotel guests is Kulima Cove, just outside the main building. Like all beaches on Oahu, Turtle Bay's beaches are open to the public. But Kulima Cove strikes a nice balance between feeling tucked away, like the secluded coves of Ko Olina, and open to all, like Waikiki's packed beaches. Lounge chairs are set up for hotel guests, but you won't see tons of signs shooing away the public. The vibe is nothing if not mellow.

• Protective coral reef keeps the water fairly calm and clear, though visibility suffers when it's windy.
• A roped-off portion with a sandy bottom is good for swimming.
• Good (but not great) snorkeling; $20 resort fee covers one hour of snorkel equipment use each day.
• Towels and snorkel gear available at the water activities shack, where beach toys and sunscreen are also sold (but, annoyingly, not until 9 a.m.).
• Home to Ola, one of the only restaurants on the island where you can dine with your feet in the sand or grab a drink in your Speedo.

The rooms have lovely views, but little decor.

While Turtle Bay bills itself as a luxury resort, the majority of the rooms fail to deliver on that promise. Instead, the standard room, while large at 478 square feet, feels dated and bare. My Deluxe Ocean Front Guest Room had no mattress pad, so I could feel the mattress's quilting through the fitted sheet, making for an uncomfortable night's sleep despite the Serta mattress. The room's largest wall is bare, save for the green paint. No artwork in the bathroom either. The effect isn't minimalist chic but simply a sense of indifference. The hotel underwent a massive, $70-million renovation in 2004, but the electronics are disappointing.

• The rooms, all the same size, are furnished with either two queens or one king-size bed.
• All have ocean views thanks to the building's pinwheel shape
• The cheapest "ocean view" rooms have no balconies. For $20 or so, guests can upgrade to an Ocean Front Room with a small unfurnished balcony.
• Deluxe Ocean Front Room (another $20 or so) has a larger balcony with table and chairs. It's worth it. With no other buildings to block the view, the North Shore views are incredible.
• Sharper Image alarm clocks that connect to MP3 players
• 27-inch Philips tube TV broadcasts 30-some channels, including HBO, and dozens of pay-per-view movies in English and Japanese.
• Large bathrooms with a separate vanity area have marble floors that suggest luxury. But they appear worn, as does the the caulking around the dimly lit shower/tub stall.
• Quality toiletries from Spa Luana
• Individual digital thermostats, but I couldn't cool my room down to the bracing chill that some prefer.

Turtle Bay's stable offers daily trail rides.

Turtle Bay's roster of activities is hard to beat. Only the resorts in the Ko Olina complex come close. The hotel's two spacious pools, both built in 2004, overlook the ocean. A lovely outdoor treatment area at Spa Luana has ocean views too, and massages are available in an oceanfront hut that puts the typical "massage-by-sea" cabana to shame.

• $20 resort fee covers more than usual, including parking for one vehicle and use of the fitness center.
• For $15 a day, guests have access to the Spa Luana facilities, but all you're paying for is a steam room and small lounge, and I encountered some maintenance problems (malfunctioning lockers).
• Fitness center also has problems. On my visit, only one of the three treadmills was working, and even that one had a loose piece. Rust on free weights and weight machines, perhaps somewhat understandable given the seaside location, but this is supposed to be a luxury resort.
• Kids' pool has waterslide, turtle mosaics underwater, and boulders
• Main pool offers drink service.
• The tennis center features just five Plexipave courts, but they're in lovely condition -- four were resurfaced in July 2009. (Sadly, a handul of adjacent courts are dilapidated and not used.)
• Resort fee includes one hour of tennis court time per room per day; after that, $10 per person per hour.
• Daily clinics are $20 to $25; a $20 matching service pairs guests for games; private lessons available
• Stable offers daily trail rides on the beach and through the ironwood forest, including a sunset ride ($75 for 60 minutes) and a ride for kids ages two to seven ($25 for 20 minutes). Private rides are $100 for 60 minutes.
• Helicopter rides, scooter rentals, surf lessons, and kayak tours on-site from outside vendors (all can be charged to room). The [www.hhsurf.com Hans Hedemann Surf School] is one of the most respected on the island.
• The hotel holds a small luau weekly.

The Fazio course, the easier of Turtle Bay's courses

The resort often makes, but doesn't top, lists of the best golf in Hawaii. The more notable of its two 18-hole golf courses is the Arnold Palmer course, designed by Ed Seay and Arnold himself. With narrow fairways and sneaky bunkers, it's a challenging course. It's also a beautiful one, surrounded by jungle and a wetland bird sanctuary. The course's signature hole, the 17th, offers stunning ocean views from a plateau 100 feet above the sea, but the course lacks the oceanfront yardage of Kauai's top courses. The second and older Fazio course by respected designer Tom Fazio is easier both on the player and the pocketbook.

• Palmer charges resort guests $150 to tee off in the morning: Fabio charges $100. (Guests save $15 to $30 over the public.) *When I visited in August 2009, the hotel was offering great deals on twilight rounds.
• Prices include carts. They are not GPS-equipped, but a GPS can be rented, as can clubs and shoes.
• Clubhouse restaurant, Lei Lei's, is popular with locals. It was the best food I had at the resort.
• Daily clinics ($30), private lessons ($85), and full and half-day schools ($175 to $350). Resort guests receive a free 10-minute range lesson with a pro.

The waterslide at the kids pool

Turtle Bay strikes a balance between being a family-friendly resort and one that caters to mellow singles and honeymooners -- there's a kids' pool, but also plenty of boozing at the poolside bar.

• All restaurants, save for the formal 21 Degrees North, have a children's menu, as does room service.
• Kids' pool has a waterslide.
• Keiki Club for children ages five to 12, but only during the summer; $85 for a full day, $45 for a half-day.
• During the winter, all that is offered is a Saturday evening (5 to 9 p.m.) program that costs $85.
• Children as young as two can go horseback riding, provided they can hold themselves up in the saddle without assistance; $25 for 20 minutes.
• Tennis center offers junior clinics and a tiny tots clinic for kids ages five to eight.
• Adjoining rooms availabe, but guests must pay an extra $40 to guarantee them. Families can connect a standard room with one king-size bed to one with two queens.
• Rollway beds are available and, at $50 a day, costly; cribs are free.
• One bedroom suites have sleeper sofas.

The hotel completed an extensive, $70-million renovation in 2004, but these days it feels a bit shabby.

• Lobby furniture is badly stained, and lobby slate floors don't look clean.
• Hallway carpets are often stained and speckled with debris; carpets in the guest rooms look fresher.
• Marble bathroom floors suggest a former grandeur, but the grout and caulking are worn.
• A stuffed turtle greeted me on my bed, with a note informing me that I could adopt him for a fee. Based on the stains, it looked as though half a dozen snot-dripping toddlers had already refused the turtle.

Turtle Bay's Ola is a true beach restaurant.

The resort's six restaurants range from fine dining at 21 Degrees North to casual poolside fare at the Hang Ten Bar & Grill, and the food is better than your average resort fare (far better than the restaurants at Marriott's Ko Olina Beach Club). The hotel also holds a small luau weekly. Sadly, due to weather, it had to be moved indoors during my visit. The food is far better than your average luau (the fish tastes fresh and isn't overcooked), but the entertainment is modest and there are no activities like palm-weaving beforehand (a kid favorite). The Polynesian Cultural Center, home to one of the island's best luaus, is a 12-minute drive.

• Popular beachfront Ola has one of the best locations on the island -- you can eat with your feet in the sand, a rarity on Oahu. Cuisine is contemporary Hawaiian; dinner entrees typically in the mid- to high-$20s
• Locals often prefer the golf clubhouse restaurant, Lei Lei's. Prices are slightly lower than at Ola's.
• Palm Terrace serves a breakfast buffet as well as prime rib and seafood or Hawaiian dinner buffets.
• The $15 breakfast buffet is better than most with a nice selection of baked goods and both smoked salmon and marlin. It's hardly necessary to upgrade to the full breakfast buffet, with omelet bar, for $24.
• Room service available 24 hours a day
• Ocean Villas have full kitchens.
• Great local restaurants, in all price ranges, in Haleiwa, a 20-minute drive. Try Kua Aina Sandwich Shop, Haleiwa Joe's, and Grass Skirt Grill.
• The island's best-known shave ice joint, Matsumoto Shave Ice, is in Haleiwa (though I think its lesser-known competitor next door, Aoki's, is better!).

A private beach by the horse stables, just one of several ceremony locations

• Wedding Size: Up to 500 people; up to six weddings per day (typically two)

• Extra Fees and Restrictions: All receptions include a site fee, though this site fee only includes 50 chairs (each extra chair is $3.50) and outdoor receptions might also include an additional $350 set-up fee and the cost of renting a tent. In addition, most menus require at least 30 guests.

• Wedding Packages: While you can piece together your own wedding, the Complete Wedding Package ($12,900) covers all essential ceremony costs (site fees, flowers, a guitarist, an officiant, two hours of photography), and, just for the bride and groom, a four-night stay in the Beach Cottage, dinner for two at 21 Degrees North, breakfast in bed, and an elaborate spa regimen.

• Ceremony Locations: The Pavilion chapel overlooking the ocean ($1,200 per hour site fee), the Kahuku Terrace on an ocean-facing lawn ($800), the grassy Kuilima Point lawn ($800), the Bay View Beach Lawn near the public beach ($1,000), on a private beach near the horse stables ($1,000), or the most private location, the beach at the 18th green of the Palmer Course ($2,500)

• Reception Locations: While all reception locations include a steep site fee, this fee can be waived if the average food cost per person is $120, and it drops down to half if you pay $100 for each person's food (not drinks). Indoor locations include: the Kuilima Ballroom ($5,000 site fee, 300 to 450 guests), the Kuilima Ballrooms I, II, and III ($1,600 each, for an extra 100 to 120 guests), the Sunset Room ($1,800; 100 to 120 guests), the Hawaii Room ($1,000; 40 to 80 guests), and the Oahu Room ($800; 30 to 50 guests). Outdoor locations include: the Pavilion ($2,800; 30 to 40 guests), the Kahuku Terrace ($1,800; 50 to 120 guests), the Bay View Beach Lawn ($1,800; 50 to 400 guests), Kuilima Point ($1,800; 50 to 200 guests), and the 18th green ($4,500; 50 to 400 guests). Also, note that if you host your reception outdoors, you can only get a buffet and the party has to end by 9 p.m. (if you're indoors, the party ends at 11 p.m.).

• Photographers and Videographers: Turtle Bay regularly works with a number of independent artists, whose rates can vary. There is no extra fee to bring your own outside photographer or videographer.

• Music: You'll have to find your own musician or DJ (no extra fees associated).

• Food: The dinner buffets (the only option in an outdoor reception) have a wide variety of options (BBQ, Italian, and traditional Hawaiian, among others) and start at $60 per person. You can also add on any number of "action stations" to the buffet, such as a whole opakapaka (snapper) that serves 16 people for $220 or a tempura station for $20 per person. Three-course plated dinners start at $50. Also, for the next day, you can set up pastry and coffee breakfasts from $21 per person (full buffets from $26 per person). The hotel's executive chef will cater to any dietary restrictions, such as kosher, vegan, or gluten allergies.

• Drinks: An open bar is available from two to four hours, and rates range from $37 per person for two hours of the cheapest "premium" liquor (Seagram's, Cutty Sark, Jim Beam, among other brands) to $61 per person for four hours of top-shelf liquor, such as Grey Goose, Courvoisier VS, and Maker's Mark. In addition, you can order a "specialty bar" that, in addition to beer, wine, and soda for two hours, also includes cocktails such as a cosmo bar from $39 or mojitos, blended drinks, and mai tais from $40.

• Cocktail Hour: Hors d'oeuvres from $300 to $500 per selection (each item comes in groups of 100 pieces); cheese and fruit displays from $130 to $225 (serves 30 people).

• Cakes: All cakes are made on-site, and prices range from $60 (six to eight pieces) to $515 (a five-tier cake that serves 240 people) -- reasonable, considering that the cost of a cake at other hotels is often higher, though there's an extra $150 fee for a custom designed cake. There are nine flavors to choose from, including guava, almond, and devil's food cake, and the 12 different fillings range from coconut cream, to strawberry mousse, to guava with pastry cream.

• Flowers and Decorations: The hotel does have an on-site florist, though you're welcome to shop around for flowers elsewhere. As for decorations, the cost varies depending on what you want -- a simple trellis arch runs $75, chair covers and sash costs another $15 per chair.

• Spa Treatments: Full menu of services, including hair and makeup

• Freebies: All wedding guests get 10 percent off the standard room rate.

• Honeymoon Suite: Select packages include a four-night stay in one of the Beach Cottages.

• Airport Transportation: The Complete Wedding Package includes a limo from the airport for the bride and groom, but all other guests will need to take a one-hour taxi from Honolulu.