Coral Sea Resort & Casino

The property is generally well maintained and clean. It's particularly nice compared to the surrounding neighborhood (there isn't even a street outside right now). Rooms were spacious and everything seemed to work well. There were a lot of bugs inside, but rooms come with mosquito spray and Raid, so that must be their normal. Front desk staff was very friendly and helpful. Restaurant staff is a mixed bag though. We had good service the first night in the restaurant even though they appeared very busy. The second night was a struggle though. My friend ate her entire meal before mine even arrived, it was difficult to get drinks, 30-40 minutes to get a bill to pay. It appeared as if it took 5 employees to figure out how to get a glass of wine. There is often more employees than customers.

Just stayed at Coral Sea three different times this month, as a hub between flights to different places. And it was a welcome respite from some of the basic places I stayed in Vanuatu and then in the Western Provinces. ||I’ve had a couple of previous trips to Guadalcanal… and have stayed in some of the OTHER, much older, well-known hotels back down the road closer to Tulagi Dive which I found dated, run-down, over-rated, and very over-priced. Then I discovered Coral Sea Resort on my December 2018 trip when it was quite new and stayed a week and couldn’t believe the difference - new, modern, well-appointed, clean and very much to 1st world, western standards which the other places I’d stayed and inspected were not. Especially for the price (some charged about the same or even more than Coral Sea but for much lower quality, I couldn’t understand it). |Not an entire surprise, I’ve heard it’s Australians behind Coral Sea Honiara, same company as Coral Sea Airlie beach in QLD, so that would explain it (I didn’t corroborate that claim but it’s logical… also heard the casino is run separately by local Chinese interests which is also no surprise, and perfectly fine). ||Fast forward six years and Coral Sea still feels like an oasis in an otherwise… uninspiring town that you’d only go to for the diving, or for business - not a city you’d normally take the wife and kids. The staff are still very friendly and helpful, I certainly didn’t experience any of the issues a small minority of reviews mention. They still do the bush lime welcome drink on arrival, and staff still help you with your luggage (bit strange they didn’t add a lift/elevator for the 3-story block when building less than 10yrs ago but probably very expensive to install and maintain in such countries). ||The pool was definitely in action this month but I never had time to use it, Solomon Airlines flights being customarily delayed so arriving hours later than planned, only to check out next day to fly again. Agree with others commenting it’s sometimes full of “non-guests” paying a day rate - but that’s standard practice elsewhere, and it’s a little elitist to say locals shouldn’t be allowed.||I didn’t have time for breakfasts though had two good dinners - but one average dinner (the “imported chicken breast” was tough as rubber - I wondered if it had been frozen and thawed quickly to cook for me, or just overcooked - but that’s better than being undercooked, and nothing I’ve ever eaten there has made me sick so they seem to have good food hygiene and use filtered water etc. ||I did find the main restaurant service was a bit slow… they took ages to take my order and then the food took longer than you’d expect for the number of diners. Not as attentive as the front desk staff. ||But today was a real treat - being Xmas day they did a huge Christmas buffet I just had time to enjoy before dashing back to the airport. Looked like every expat in Guadalcanal and their families were there. Very impressive. The duty manager (I wish I got his name, young chap with glasses) made sure I could partake before my airport transfer which I appreciated. Oh and some complain about the airport transfer service - I think it’s great. New air conditioned vans, my driver waited for my 45min late flight from Gizo last night. And SB$150 is less than the $200 I paid a non-air conditioned taxi last week after the driver gave up waiting for my 2-hour+ late flight from Santo which was fair enough! (You’d think they’d check latest arrival times given Solomon Airlines are routinely late?). But yes if it’s per head I guess if more than one of you it’s cheaper to split a taxi - but less comfortable! ||I still think ALL accommodation in the Solomons and all over the Pacific is overpriced including Coral Sea, considering local wages, local prices of basic foodstuffs etc. - for example the hotel I’m sitting in now in Brisbane is much nicer and much cheaper, but I’ve had it explained to me that the cost of building materials is even more insane in such countries than in NZ, AU etc., and that the cost of supplying basics like running water, Wi-Fi and especially electricity to hotel rooms far higher than in our countries. I heard the same in Vanuatu. So that said I’m surprised Coral Sea doesn’t have the key-card slots inside the door to your room you need to put your card into to turn on the power to your room (as common in many countries including the west for decades) - to stop unthinking guests going out for the day leaving their a/c, fans, and lights blasting. Cut the hotel’s power bill and you can make the room rates more realistic for the developing world, right? Even the much more basic hotel I stayed at in Santo had that system, of sorts, so power only on when you’re in the room. ||But overall I still rate Coral Sea Resort, Honiara.

Very poor cocktail choice at their water front bar. No normal cocktails available. They only allow very poorly designed signature cocktails to be ordered. None of which are whiskey based cocktails. Their restaurant does decent Old Fashioneds. But they made it an ordeal to try to get cocktails from the restaurant. We had to walk to the restaurant and order and pay there, rather than just pay there after we had eaten at the waterfront. Seems silly by management when we just want to spend money at their resort on a very normal order. Train your staff properly and serve your guests normal cocktails if they want them. Thanks to the restaurant staff for making them for us.

Came as a Dr to work at national referral hospital. Staff were lovery Food was excellent. Facilities were terrible. For $500 AUD a night there are way better spots to stay at in Honiara way way better i went and checked a few out like Heritage hotel and mendana hotel. Book there first. O and I was forced to checkout an hour early as cleaning staff basically came in and lied to me saying checkout was 10am when it was actually 11am . I showed them in the book it was 11am checkout but they didn't care. Front counter said they talk to them. Room was small and most of the things inside are broken. NOT WORTH $500 AUD a night. Go so where else don't stay here. Pic is to show you I really stayed there.

I get the feeling that for the Solomon Islands, this is a very good hotel. By international standards, however, it could be improved. The room was really nice - with a great view of the sea. The bathroom was large and the shower was great. The AC was quiet and kept the room cool when it was 35 degrees outside. There are two fairly good restaurants. And when it rained, they had umbrellas for us.||There were some minuses. The pool is small and is open to people outside of the hotel. There is a "boardwalk" but there are concrete pylons everywhere making it look more like a construction site. It is too bad that the area near the sea is not tended to in a meaningful way. Not that people would swim there, as it is too close to the harbor, but it would be nicer to sit and look at grass or trees, and not just concrete barricades.||Breakfast was a major disappointment. Although breakfast is "included" with the room - this is only a basic breakfast that includes cold tea, some fruit, and rather dodgy muffins. For two people to have eggs and a coffee was almost 50 USD - and took about 30 to 40 minutes to prepare. This was a disappointment, considering that the rooms are not inexpensive.||So, definitely the place to stay in Honiara. Some attention to the outdoor areas and breakfast would make it an even better hotel.

Stayed here for 3 nights recently whilst away for work. The hotel is a great place to stay, modern, clean & tidy. The staff were excellent and really friendly, easy check in. I prearranged collection from Honiara airport by the hotel shuttle bus which cost $150SBD per person per trip which is worth it as the hotel itself is a fair way from the airport. This journey can take anywhere from 30 mins to 2 hrs depending on traffic! The room I stayed in was on the 3rd floor of the main block and had a view of the sea, nice little balcony, really nice room, modern, comfortable, clean and well equipped. Comfy bed, large TV, desk to work at, A/C, nice big bathroom, fridge, tea & coffee making facilities, comfy chair and table. Wi-Fi worked pretty well although was temperamental at times. I ate in the restaurant for breakfast, lunch & dinner & all the meals I had were excellent, good value & high quality with good portion sizes. There is a pool but I did not use it & also a casino. There is a terrace bar/restaurant closer to the water and a small garden with a kids play area in. There is security on the main gate night & day and there was often evening entertainment in the open plan bar area which was good. Caught the shuttle bus back to airport at the end of my stay which again is recommended. Overall, a good stay at a nice venue, but Honiara itself is not a particularly nice place/area.

I stayed at Coral Sea Resort & Casino for 7 nights while traveling for business in October 2023. This was my second time staying at Coral Sea. The first time I stayed in one of their villas. This time, I had a smaller yet nice room with a garden view. In my opinion, this is where you should stay in Honiara. The hotel was nice and clean, the room had everything I needed, and the staff was pleasant. There is a choice of 2 restaurants and both are great. I ate brekfast at Haydn’s every morning and also ate lunch and dinner there a few times. I also dined at the other restaurant right by the sea twice. I didn't go in the pool, but it was open. I didn't go in the casino, but they have one. There is no gym/fitness centre. 5 stars for Coral Sea. No issues to report. I recommend this hotel to both business travellers and families. I will return.

We stayed in the luxury waterfront villa, it was very nice but a few things were not as they described. First off we had the unit that was closest to the ocean but when you looked straight out of your room what you actually saw is the side of the restaurant, you could also see the ocean but the restaurant being the first thing you see wasn’t ideal. We also were expected a working jacuzzi but it was empty of water and smelled because the lid was closed and with it being hot and humid it smelled bad. I asked the front desk and they said you have to tell them ahead of time if you want to use the jacuzzi, there wasn’t anything on the reservation that told us we needed to notify them beforehand. |The villa was very nice and had plenty of room, comfortable bed, beautiful bathroom plus it was very nice to have a fridge. The food at both restaurants was good and there is a casino but we never went there. Staff was very nice and helpful.|It is a nice place that I would stay at again!