31 Oct 2013

TBT - Ala Moana Hotel

On our last six nights in Hawaii, we stayed at Ala Moana Hotel. You can book this hotel directly through the hotel web site, various accommodation booking sites or privately through the apartment owners via an agent. We booked it through an agent so I was able to negotiate the room rate as well as avoid paying the daily hotel fee.

We booked apartment 807 which ended up being a corner 1 bedroom suite. It had a separate bedroom, living room, kitchenette and bathroom. 

Positives:
  • The room was relatively spacious. There was ample areas for us to move around in.
  • The kitchenette was equipped with basic utensils and cooking equipment. There was an electric oven, a microwave oven, a few pots and pans, kettle, toaster and two mini fridges for when you want to buy and cook your own meals.
  • The hotel was right across the road from the Ala Moana Shopping Centre. There was even a ramp from the hotel to the shops for easier access for guests. 
  • Room rates included use of the room internet/wifi although the hotel had free wifi for guests staying that we could also access.     
  • Although we booked room through a private agent we could still utilise the hotel's facilities such as the gym and pool. 
Negatives:
  • Because we booked the apartment through a private agent, house keeping did not service our room. This meant we had to maintain the apartment ourselves therefore we had to clean up after ourselves, replenish any basic stock and remove any rubbish ourselves. 
  • The room had that used "wear and tear" look to it. Not sure if its because it's not cleaned regularly but the bathroom had mould and cracks as well as a damp smell. It could certainly do with an exhaust fan as well, so steam had somewhere to escape to.
  • The bed was hard, pillows flat and we found a blond hair underneath the cover on our first day. So we changed the sheets ourselves just to be safe.
  • The shower taps were not easy to use and the water pressure was not very strong. 
  • The owners do not provide anything. You're lucky to get whatever you find there when you first arrive but going forward you replenish everything yourself at your own expense. We had to purchase our own dish washing detergent, plastic bags for the garbage bin and toilet paper. 
  • The apartment did have a dishwasher but had a sign stuck on it stating it was not currently in use. 
  • The apartment did not have very good noise protection, as we could hear everything from cars leaving the next door car park, kids laughing from the upstairs apartment and the general traffic from a nearby busy road.
  • The hotel was further away from the busy Waikiki Beach strip. This was our first time in Hawaii so we would have preferred to be closer to the touristy part of Waikiki.    
Overall, it was a comfortable stay at Ala Moana Hotel. The apartment fulfilled our comfort needs from an accommodation perspective. I would recommend staying here if you want direct access to Ala Moana Shopping Centre. 

Would I stay here again? It depends on whom I'm travelling with and the purpose of the holiday. If it's with my family I'd rather stay closer to the beach but if I was travelling with friends this place would be a perfect option for something clean, spacious and reasonably priced. 

 Kitchenette and Dining area

 Bedroom

 The view from our bedroom balcony

Bathroom

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