Kahala Mandarin Oriental Hawaii Hotel |
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5000 Kahala Avenue,
Honolulu HI96816
Oahu
Hawaii
U.S.A.
Telephone 1 808 739 8888
Facsimile 1 808 739 8800
Email: mohnl-reservations@mohg.com
Web site: www.mandarin-oriental.com
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| This 5 star resort hotel is about 10 minutes drive from Waikiki, around from Diamond Head. The hotel was the Kahala Hilton, until bought by the Mandarin group in 1995. It is an old hotel dating back to the 1960s. The exterior of the buildings reflect this. The hotel from the outside has a tired look about it. On arriving at the porte corche it is an impressive site. Through the reception and lobby you can see a waterfall in the background, and a huge lagoon below. The lobby was attended by 3 receptionists, and check-in was fast enough and cordial. The booking, which had only been made an hour or two before was in the hotel's system. I had requested a king bed non-smoking room, but was told as the hotel could not meet the request I would be upgraded to a room with a balcony. The attendant then took me to the second floor. Immediately adjacent to the lift lobby was room 202. I was directed in to a large room overlooking the mountain ridge. The room had two queen beds. I was taken through to the bathroom, and was then advised this was a disabled room. I then saw the attendant off and noticed the room was also a smoking room. Not that there was a smell, there simply was an ash tray and a book of matches on the desk. At check-in I was given a plastic tortoise toy and told it could be exchanged at the pool bar for a non-alcoholic cocktail. The room was very large, coming off a large hallway which also housed a mini-bar fridge, and freshly stocked ice bucket. There was a large comfy two-seater lounge, a work desk with lamp, phone with Internet data port, compendiums, and a lamp shade. There was no spare power point for a laptop, so I had to disconnect one of the lamps. There were two queen beds as noted previously, with large timber headboards and posters at the head. There was a large bedside dresser table in-between, with a CD and radio player, and two discs with Hawaiian music. The bed was fantastic, extremely comfortable. There were foot stools, large, at the end of each bed. Air-conditioning and lighting in the room was adequate. The bathroom was very large with railings all round to assist wheelchair-bound guests. The separate shower was twice the size of a normal shower. There was a separate toilet, open (no door) and a bathroom with full size bath, plenty of lighting, plenty of bench space, and luxurious guest amenities. The floor of the bedroom was timber tiled with a larget carpet rug over the top. The balcony was extremel;y large with outdoor table and two chairs. The view over the mountain range, and ridge was terrrific and there were glimpses of the lagoon and the waterfall. Half the rooms in the tower overlook the ocean, and the balance over the 'ridge'. There are also lagoon side rooms. A walk through the grounds was next. There was a major, deep blue coloured pool, a spa (whirlpool), forests and trees, and the lagoon, magnificent. In the pool there were at least three dolphins, lots of fish and tortoises. The grounds were really good, and the kids loved them. The beach ran along side and was fine. A great hotel, a little tired, but still with all the attributes that have charmed a great many famous people over the years. |
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