Lori W.
Yelp
Stayed here for almost 3 months while finding housing for our move back to HI. Was in a 1-bedroom condo style. Chose here because we KNEW we didn't want anything to do with staying in Waikiki, but needed to be close to town (not out in Kailua in a timeshare or something).
KILLER washer/dryer in the unit. If you have children or just a dirty spouse, that washer/dryer is a godsend. Seriously. Save on laundry soap, laundromat costs, just plain ol' time from schlepping your delicates up and down to a machine that had who-knows-what just in it. I did laundry at 1am while watching Chopped, at a hotel. How cool is that?
Kitchen was stocked, and we were able to ask for a complimentary rice cooker (only in Hawaii, brah!). Our unit was a little older, so there were no drawers in the kitchen (okaaaaayyyyy...), but we got used to having the silverware caddy in the cabinet above the stove. Refrigerator was full sized, which was very nice for a hotel room. Microwave was pretty powerful, too, and also full-sized.
Housekeeping was 1x/week, which was perfect for us anyway. I clean my stuff myself, thanks. Seriously, who cleans only 1x/week in regular life? But the times we did use the housekeeping service (honestly, I think we did it just so the hotel could be reassured that we weren't raising ferrets or cooking meth on their property; it's a small way that they know the room won't be a mosh pit when we leave, so we're cool with it), it was fine. The housekeepers were really nice, and mostly just wanted to do their job and get on with it. Very thorough for most hotels, from what we could see. But I still had my own vacuum (some people collect stamps; I clean).
Rooms were quiet and the mattresses were decent. View was awesome. We had a mountain view on an upper floor. Not the typical "Hawaii hotel room" view, but we loved it. Views of the city at night were great; floor to ceiling windows in the bedroom made for beautiful night lights. Got caught humming "Honolulu City Lights" by the significant other more than once. Eh, no shame!
Location, location, location, my friends. Bus stop right below you, Longs Drugs just off the escalator, and 7-11 right below you too. If you just happen to have a 2am manapua craving (and ok, we did), well, there ya go. Not super big on the nightlife part of it, although we knew Aloha Tower was walkable and so was Ward, really. Pretty much nighttime was the right time to chill from working all day, and that's what we did--to that effect, there weren't any loud parties or loud people on our floor or in the hotel, for that matter.
Aaaaaand parking...OK, so it's a mixed use building, so people own condos there, have offices there, and there are quite a few people who just use the parking structure to park for their personal errands (had more than one person park in our stall to use the 24-hour fitness place; thaaaaanks, guys). The parking management didn't like to tow people because it was such a hassle, although it's posted clearly on almost every reserved stall--so sometimes we had to just find parking somewhere else. Eh, it was OK, but some of those weirdly ropy women were flat-out scary to see back-lit late at night, sweating their way through the parking structure...
The hotel staff were incredibly nice and helpful, remembered your name, and the concierge was very gracious. Would recommend staying here to any visitor looking to experience Hawaii beyond fake plastic leis and the pros in Waikiki. So it's not the Four Seasons or Kahala Mandarin, but if you want good value, nice local people who aren't stuck-up, great location, easy access, and good amenties, this is your pick.