Royal Kona Resort

hotel is fine... kinda old thou.. location is great, stuff too...

Check-in was smooth. They charge for parking but there was plenty of room. This hotel is centrally located for shopping and recreation. Near-by beaches were small, crowded, and rocky but we saw turtles every day. The harbor is close so surfing and fishing are easy to get to. Good restaurants within walking distance. Hotel restaurant overpriced. Friendly, efficient staff. They have a touristy Luau that was loud and close to the hotel, but ended by around 10:30. Great view of the the ocean! Surf pounding below our windows all night. We would definitely go back.

The luaus at night were so loud that we had to turn our TV up to a ridiculous level just to hear it. The bathroom was so small that you had to know how to play the game of twister just to shut the door. Also, the shower was painful. It was an old showerhead that spit out the water in tiny pricks. Ouch! The outside looks very glamourous but deceiving since the room wasn't that great. You would think a hotel this size would have a jacuzzi but it didn't. Very surprising.

Great location and plenty of food options within walking distance. Our favorite was LA CALA Mexican food just a couple blocks away on Ali'i Drive(try the house margerita). The hotel staff were friendly but the room was not as clean as it should have been (being 6'4" I can see places that had not been dusted/wiped in years maybe). The room was in some disrepair (damaged/hole in bathroom door not patched very well, missing baseboard trim, sliding balcony doors rough to open, tacky restoration in bathroom). We stayed in the Ali'i tower that was supposed to have been updated maybe they just missed our room? Minor stuff to some maybe but overall the room could have used a good spring cleaning. If we go back to Kona I think we would stay here again, as the other options off Ali'i Dr. did not look much better from the outside. Staying on Ali'i Dr. cut out having to find parking in the area which can be hard to find when busy. The hotel had a nice little lagoon to hang at however we did not use the lagoon as we were busy snorkeling other areas. Snorkel Bobs rents and sells snorkel/beach gear and is less than a block away from the hotel.

The hotel has an amazing view of the bay and you can fall asleep to waves crashing against the shore, that is, if you can hear them over neighboring rooms slamming doors. The rooms need updated and are also in need of disrepair having some cracks in the walls and ceilings. There was also a smell that lingered in the room.

The hotel was clean and non smoking like all of Hawaii now. The room was big and most of the rooms are ocean front. The pool was a bit small, but they made up for it with a lagoon to swim in and a beach. The location was great and we could walk to tons of breakfast, lunch and dinner locations as well as local shopping places. On the bad side the Luau that we went to at the Hotel was overcrowded with one bartender. The show was good but not worth having to deal with always standing in line for drinks and waiting for food forever.

I traveled around the island & saw some fantastic sites. The hotel has an amazing view of the ocean, But the hotel rooms are avaerage & the bathrooms need a little TLC.

I enjoyed that if you wanted anything it was just a walk away.

I used this hotel with my friend from Japan. Of course I am also Japanese, but we were ver satisfied with this hotel. I could see the ocean from the room. It's nice for me!!

Well our flight had mechanical trouble, and we couldn't even get to the island till the following day. I called the Royal Kona Resort, upon arriving in Honolulu and told them we couldn't get over to Kona until the next day, and asked if they would refund all or part of the money we paid. But they said, sorry we can't do that and you have to speak with Orbitz. So I am now finnally able to contact you, and tell you I will never prepay for a hotel again, as I am out $165. I even asked if I could just get a day room maybe for the last day here on the island instead. they didn't even look to see if there were openings, just said No. I have discovered that the real Aloha Spirit out here is very negetive. Amazing how rude people are here, and especcially since it is like paradise. If you are willing or can refund my money, I would be grateful, as things have been alot tougher since the ecomony has had such a down turn. Either way, thanks for you help, and lesson learned. Randall Joe McGlaun!