We just returned from a five-day trip to Mauna Kea along with four days next door at Hapuna. This was about our tenth trip to Mauna Kea during the last several years as it's been our favorite place on earth. My wife loves the tennis facilities and my daughter and I love to play on the beach. The overall location and beach are probably one of the top three in Hawaii. The rooms and resort are starting to show their age and neglect. Hallways were dirty, we weren't afforded daily maid service despite the high room prices. Management is using Covid as an excuse to save money on maid services and maintaining the property. Some of the framed quilt artwork had cockroaches stuck in them our entire stay. The Hau Tree and Manta for breakfast both took about an hour a day for the food to come out. The servers were short-staffed and overworked. Guests were going down at 4:30 in the morning to save beach chairs so there weren't any for those of us who tried to play by the rules and show class. Anyway, this resort used to be known for its aloha spirit or service which has fallen by the wayside and is no more.…
My grandparents vacationed here in the 70’s and 80’s and we’ve been lucky to return a couple of times. We had a great stay last week with our three teens. Last time we were upgraded to their biggest suite, but they were pretty full last week so we got a smaller upgrade - but an upgrade is better than nothing! Beachfront with two queens and a rollaway - it worked out fine. Service was awesome - our bellman Jeffrey was great. Marguerite really accommodated us at checkin. Tips: if you want a good beach chair, go between 5-6am - they go quick. If you want one of the 4 Peloton bikes at the gym (they’ve moved some equipment to an open air area) go early! Buy boogie boards at Costco and leave them with another family - cheaper than renting. Book restaurant reservations in advance. It was refreshing to go to a hotel where you weren’t CONSTANTLY reminded of the pandemic with signs, locked bathroom stalls, closed water fountains, and spaced out seating. The Mauna Kea did it right - common sense. Yes, people wear masks indoors in enclosed spaces where necessary, but the beauty of MK is everything is open air (walkways, lobby, stairs, etc). We stayed at another property before this and had to wear masks at the pool. …
We spent 9 nights and could not have had a better time. It was our first time staying at the Mauna Kea and for the most part everything was excellent. Our room was nice and while they have removed some items because of covid we did have coffee, hair dryer etc. Just no pen or paper. Housekeeping came every 3 days and if you needed ice you had to call housekeeping and they would bring to your room. The beach is fantastic, probably the best we have been to in 7 trips to the different islands. Service was good and the resort became very busy with spring break. Staff was wonderful and would even remember you name; of course that may be a sign of ordering too many drinks! It was a perfect place to enjoy a beautiful sunset each night. We had several really good meals at Manta and Copper Bar. Copper bars pizza and sushi were great and easy to get to go. They played live music at both restaurants which was nice as we have not heard much live music in the last year. Manta also had a good breakfast. The beach restaurant was not our favorite but that may have just been personal preference. You can also use the Westin which is an easy walk or they have a shuttle. We enjoyed the Westin's pool bar/restaurant a couple of times for lunch and had a fantastic dinner at Meridia. If you play golf or tennis this is a perfect place. While outside of the resort there is not much very close you are a reasonable drive away from a lot of amenities. We would definitely stay here again on our next trip to the big Island!…
My wife and I have been coming to the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel for the past 19 years since our honeymoon. Now we come with our children and it is always a magical experience, or has been until this year. With the recent re-opening after the pandemic, it was wonderful to return. I’m sure staff felt the same way. It was bustling and the restaurants packed but it seemed terribly understaffed. Servers looked exhausted. That being said, The food, setting, music and hula were all what we love about this place and enjoy every night. Down on the beach we had our biggest disappointment. People were hoarding chairs as early as 7:45 AM I was told by the staff. They told us if we needed a chair or two that was what we needed to do ourselves. They seem indifferent to the fact that people leave towels and personal items for nearly five or six hours as we witnessed without ever coming and claiming the chairs, leaving other guest to sit in the sand. Terrible selfishness and the beach attendants were very indifferent to it. This was a departure from past years’ experience where the staff assisted you in finding chairs and if they appeared abandoned, would clear them off for you and help you spread fresh towels. That is the spirit of aloha that we have enjoyed year after year but missed this time around. We might avoid the resort for spring break and try another place next year.…
In response to the CDC guidelines, they removed traditional guest room items. Room barren. "Should you wish to have any delivered to your room, please call housekeeping." Extensive list: coffee, tea, tea kettle and cups, creamers, sugar, hair dryer, stationary, laundry bag and a form. Iron and ironing board. Check out the photo of the amenities not included because of CDC. But other resorts were fine and stocked with the full array of amenities. At check in had to open the Hawaii travel app, show QR code that we had been tested and uploaded our results. Got wrist band. Took two hours to get luggage delivered to the room. Tired property. Needs refurbishing. Beachfront rooms stained tile on the shower floor. Tub and shower. Came back from dinner at 8 PM and no housekeeping. Room not cleaned. Called. They said they could send somebody now. The housekeeping cart was two doors from our room when we left for dinner. They will come in the morning at 10, they said when we called again. The beach front wing is great for families with kids. Easy access to an expansive lawn area, then the beach. Excellent service. Breakfast and dinner at Manta, with views of the beach and bay. At night, walk down the stars to see manta rays circle near a light. You can also swim with the mantas at night from boats.…
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