Daily Resort Charge includes: WiFi; cultural activities; fitness & yoga classes; DVD player with movie rentals; portrait & photo keepsake; children's pool activities; 20% off Lagoon toy rental; $10 off Hawaii Nautical Sailings; pool toy inflation; reusable bottles refillable throughout resort.
Situated along a nine-mile stretch of the sunny Kohala coast shoreline, Hilton Waikoloa Village is a unique resort like no other in Hawaii. Nestled on the Pacific Ocean around Waiulua Bay, our Big Island Hawaii hotel features exclusive attractions such as a four-acre swimming and snorkeling lagoon with protected, sun-drenched beach, the largest pools on the island, air-conditioned monorails, canal boats and more than 1,800 pieces of art along a museum walkway. Offering breathtaking tropical gardens, tranquil waterways and impeccable Hilton service, our Waikoloa Hawaii resort is truly a destination in itself.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
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The Hilton Waikoloa Village hotel receives a mixed bag of feedback, with guests praising the friendly service, though others have faced slow tram services and lackluster room upkeep. The serene pools and snorkeling opportunities are highlights, despite criticisms of overpricing and underwhelming features.
While some guests enjoy the location's beauty, others find it too removed from local dining and attractions. Room conditions vary, with many requiring updates and improved cleanliness, and construction noise has been a notable disturbance for many visitors.
Location
Inconvenient
Atmosphere
Outdated
Rooms
Dated
Value
Expensive
Cleanliness
Mixed
Noise level
Mixed
Service
Inconsistent
Amenities
Abundant
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The Hilton is as massive as they say. We stayed at the Palace Tower on the northern side, which is about a quarter mile from the largest pool area, about 0.4 miles to the parking lot. They do provide a tram that comes every 10 min to assist in transporting you when you don’t want to do the walk. There is also a boat that comes less frequently and is a slower ride if you’re not in a hurry. However, if you are up for walking, the halls connecting the various areas of the property are dripping with Asian artwork. It does keep you fascinated and distracted from the distance. The grounds are also meticulously kept. Each area has its own intrigue - the south pool is the largest with a big slide and 2 hot tubs (but also the most crowded). The dolphin habitat is open for viewing even if you don’t indulge in a paid “dolphin encounter”. We watched the trainers tend to them and have them practicing their “tricks” each morning. They have a dolphin demonstration every Tues, Thurs, and Saturday for about 10 minutes in the large lagoon area. The lagoon area is open to the ocean, and is brimming with activity. This quickly became a favorite of our kids as you can rent paddleboards, snorkel, kayaks, paddleboats, or just swim to the waterfall. There seem to be resident turtles that love frolicking near the waterfall and sunbathing on the rocks in the lagoon. There was also a resident monk seal who napped each day on the sand of the lagoon. (They roped off an area so people cannot get too close to the monk seal). The wildlife here seemed very comfortable with the crowds of people around and they seem to love this lagoon as their home. There is a smaller pool and slide on the northern side, which was also fun. We did miss having a sandy beach on site but the property was so much fun otherwise, we didn’t seem to notice. The sunsets by the lagoon were quite beautiful and peaceful.
The room was much nicer than expected. The reviews mentioned an older Palace tower but our room appeared to be renovated. We had an ocean view room and lucked out to be on the top floor. It was next to the construction noise next door at the ocean villas but it didn’t bother us too much. The room was quite large, had a convenient walk in closet area, and separate sink and shower area. The beds and pillows were quite comfortable. While we didn’t spend a lot of time in the room, I did enjoy some peaceful moments on the balcony with a morning coffee, or watching the sunset over the lagoon.
Most meals were from the Island Gourmet Market at Queens Marketplace for convenient and tasty take out - we didn’t try the resort food so cannot comment.
We only stayed 3 nights but the kids didn’t want to leave. They are begging to come back for a longer stay in the future. Despite the massive feel of the resort, it was grand and impressive, well maintained, and equipped with plenty of fun and entertainment for the whole family. We will definitely stay again.
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Date of stay: April 2024Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from General Manager, General Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 08 Apr 2024
Thank you for your kind words. We're so pleased our beautiful lagoon, fun pools, and relaxing sunset views helped make your stay with us memorable. It's great to hear how much you enjoyed exploring our property. Please come see us again soon at Hilton Waikoloa Village! Kind regards, Hotel Manager
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This hotel is fantastic as a destination all in itself, but if you plan on touring the island a lot during your stay, you will not be able to utilize the hotel amenities enough to justify the prices - especially including the resort fee. However, if you plan on staying at the hotel, using the pools, the lagoons, the restaurants and bars, this is a great place to visit.
If you are planning on driving around the island a lot during your stay, as we did, there are other less expensive alternatives.
We did enjoy the balcony and the room amenities, although the large room and walk in closet was juxtaposed to a very small bathtub/shower combination. The HHonors free breakfast was limited to continental cereal, fruit and breads with the upgrade being $19 per person! There are definitely multiple local restaurants that provide excellent food for less than the upgrade cost! The buffet is very crowded so expect a wait time of 15 to 20 minutes to get a table during the busy hours.
The grounds and lagoon area are immaculately groomed with lots of walking paths to the various venues, beaches, pools, restaurants and things to see and do. The lagoon area is very clean water with rental water toys (not included in the resort fee), fish and even a turtle.
There are three main lodging buildings. Lagoon Tower is the main 'hotel' portion of the resort. We were upgraded to the Palace Tower for views of the ocean and pool areas. Ocean Tower is the main Hilton Grand Vacations time share area - although when booking hotel rooms via the hilton website, the Grand Vacation rooms are bookable as well.
There is a tram to reach the various areas, sidewalks are available as well. There is a boat as well, but it runs less frequently than the tram.
Recommended as a destination, not recommended as lodging for a touring trip of the island.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip:Ocean view rooms are very expensive, and not that ocean viewy. Recommend resort views as those...
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Response from HiltonWaikoloa, General Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 25 Jan 2020
Aloha, Charles! From our gorgeous rooms to our lagoon to our many amenities, we're happy to see that, overall, you enjoyed your stay at our resort. And while we are proud to offer so much to make our place the ultimate destination, we love to hear when our guests get out to explore all that the Big Island has to share, just like you did. Mahalo for all your feedback and lovely comments -- if you're ever traveling back to the island, we'd love to host you once more. Take care, Simon, tripadvisor@hiltonwaikoloavillage.com
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We were at a conference at the Fairmont Orchid for a week and wanted something with a kitchen so we decided to stay at a different hotel. We are so glad we did. It was a beautiful condo-like set up. A bedroom and separate living area with a great kitchen. It had everything you need to cook a meal or just make some toast for breakfast! It was decorated nicely. We had a nice view of the golf course. The room had a washer and a dryer and they supplied laundry soap twice during our stay. The people working there are wonderful. The pools are gorgeous. There is a little shopping area right near the property and one further over in Waikoloa that is a little less expensive. We will stay there again if we come back. I wish they had a little restaurant and convenience store right at the hotel but they only served breakfast at their bistro (I think).
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Date of stay: January 2020
Value
Rooms
Service
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Response from HiltonWaikoloa, General Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 09 Feb 2020
Aloha! We're thrilled we could be your home base while you attended that conference over at the Fairmont Orchid! Great to see you enjoyed all the amenities, the beautiful views, and our staff's aloha spirit. Mahalo for all your kind words and suggestions here -- we'd gladly welcome you back to our little oasis anytime. Take care, Simon, tripadvisor@hiltonwaikoloavillage.com
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We upgraded the room by two ranks (price) but did not have a sleeper sofa bed listed on their homepage. They put in an extra bed. However, the room was small and there was no space to walk. Shelf everywhere was covered with dust. The Chinese in the next room were noisy from 5 in the morning and couldn't sleep.Room is far from reception.Shampoo, rinse and coffee are not enough. Three people cannot shampoo with one small shampoo. Of course, I contacted room service but didn't bring it. There is only one boat and one monorail in the building, so you have to wait a long time to get on. We stayed in January so the pools and lagoons were too cold to swim. There was no explanation at the reception about the nearby shuttle bus and we could not use it. Not very kind about the monorail driver and reception in the hall. To the total amount of the payment, the room charge and the tax + the resort fee and the tax + the parking lot $ 33 are added. I lived on this island and stayed at this facility for the first time, but it was expensive.
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Date of stay: January 2020
Value
Location
Service
Room Tip:Where to choose? A big room would be nice. But the price is double. Downtown hotels are more...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from HiltonWaikoloa, Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 24 Jan 2020
Thank you for your recent stay at our resort. I'm sorry to hear that this vacation did not live up to your expectations, and I apologize for the frustrations you encountered. We strive to provide the best in service and amenities to all of our guests, and I’m sorry that this stay was not perfect for you. Your input is appreciated, and your concerns have been shared with the departments mentioned. I hope that your family did enjoy your time together here in Waikoloa, and will choose to stay with us again on a future vacation. Best regards, Simon at Hilton Waikoloa Village tripadvisor@hiltonwaikoloavillage.com
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This is a beautiful resort and the grounds are very well kept up. It is in a large planned community that has a very Stepford feel to it. While the check in person was less than polite or informative, the rest of our interactions with the staff was friendly. As others have mentioned it is a very large resort, but it is walkable and they have done a great job of decorating the walkways so we didn't mind the 10 min walk to the main lobby and parking from our room in the palace tower.
So why the 3 star rather than 5 stars... I've never felt less like a valued customer than a piggy bank than at this resort. Starting with the $45/day resort fee and $33/day self parking they never stop trying to get every dime they can. $5 for drip coffee and $7 for an ice cream cone. Even sticking to cheapest options for breakfast will result in a $60 bill for breakfast. I'm okay with resort prices being higher, it's the price of convenience, but they take it to a whole new level. The operators will comment below on my review and say what a beautiful place it is and the pools are indeed fantastic, but that is part of the hotel, not an optional thing that needs to be paid for with a ridiculous mandatory resort fee so they can lure you in with lower nightly rates. That's simply trickery. The real nightly rate is $80 higher than they list after you pay for the fees.
Their activity coordinators do not offer any concierge services, nor do they actually help with activities. They are simply paid to sell you on the vacation club and get you into a sales presentation by offering discounts on certain tour vendors. We asked about night time snorkeling with the manta rays and they really tried to push us into certain vendors down south without even mentioning the local operator that offers trips just 10 minutes north of the resort. We booked direct with them and had a fantastic experience.
I would happily return to this beautiful resort when they end the deceptive BS to compensate for offering a low nightly rate. I would have a much better experience if they charged $100 more a night and treated guests like they were valued rather than like they needed to get every dime out of their pockets possible.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Rooms
Location
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Response from HiltonWaikoloa, Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 18 Feb 2020
Thank you for your recent stay with us and for taking the time to provide your feedback. I’m sorry to hear that your vacation did not fully live up to your expectations, and apologize for the frustrations you encountered. We strive to provide a memorable experience for all of our guests, and I’m sorry that this stay was not perfect for you. The satisfaction of our guests is very important to us, and your input on what can be improved is definitely appreciated. On the positive side, I’m glad to hear that you did find our resort and grounds to be beautiful, and our team members to be friendly! I hope you made many good memories while here on our island to take back home with you, and will consider staying with us again whenever your travels bring you back to Hawaii. Best regards, Simon at Hilton Waikoloa Village tripadvisor@hiltonwaikoloavillage.com
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They are still trying to re-invent some things due to COVID. They font always get it right.
They seal the doors to your room with stickers that proclaim the room has been sanitized. Uh, the stickers rip the paint off the door when you break them. My room may have been sanitized, but there was still hair in the tub. So much for the “Amazing New COVID Fighting Experience.” Seriously, just clean things not all and cut the pretense.
I stayed in the Palace Tower one week, and the Lagoon Tower the next. Rooms were similar in quality. Very nice ocean and Mountain View’s.
This resort is big: expect a lot of walking. There is a train/tram, but you never really know where it is, or if it’s coming.
Pools are awesome, with lots of nooks and crannies for kids.
There is a man-made beach that they have added to a lagoon. The actual beach is too rocky to swim.
Post-COVID, they had only one restaurant open (Nui). Food is standard hotel fare. They need to bite the billet and open more.
Most shops are also still closed.
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Date of stay: February 2021Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Simon Amos, General Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 02 Mar 2021
Dear daverF7235CR, Glad that you saw some of the efforts we are making to provide a cleaner, more sanitized experience for our guests. Besides the door sticker, we are using a thorough disinfection process with Lysol in every room, along with extra attention to buttons, switches, handles, counters and areas where hands might touch. We are sorry to hear you discovered a hair in your tub and will share this with our Housekeeping team. The tram features a display at each stop with a map showing the location of the tram as a red dot along the track, to help locate the tram and know when it will be heading to your stop. We appreciate your feedback on the dining options. Lagoon Grill will be opening this week as an extra option for lunch and dinner and we are actively working to open more as business allows. Thank you for staying with us and sharing your experience. We would love to welcome you back again one day. Kind regards, Simon Hilton Waikoloa Village
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We chose this hotel because of the beautiful pictures and amenities. Upon arrival we learned that the majority of the amenities were not available. There were very few restaurants open. The ones that were open were open for very short hours. All of the food was poor quality, frozen then heated up. That being said.... you could not feed a family of four for breakfast, lunch, or dinner for less then $200. They charge you for refills on coffee at the only breakfast place open Nui Italian. The only other place for coffee was $9 a cup. A cup of ice tea was $10. Service staff were few and far between. There was no room service. Which was still advertised as available to people booking the entire time we stayed which was 12 days. When we addressed our unhappiness with the front desk they blamed everything on Covid. When addressing the fact they are still advertising all the amenities as available when clearly they are not we were told , "they will be". We were looking forward to the salon, spa, multiple restaurants. No expense was spared as we saved for two years as a final trip for our dying mother. Who ended up spending most of the 22 days in her room because the only thing to do was swim at the pool. While at the pool drinks were $15 for an 8ounce cup. That is when you could find a server. The only way to get any quality food was to take a taxi out of the resort.... which was very difficult because there are very few taxi’s available. Especially if you have more then four people. The hotel shuttle service was not available as we were told it was on the website. So we paid premium prices and only had access to 20 % of the amenities. Very very unhappy with our stay. I addition if you want your room cleaned or housekeeping you need to give them a 24 hour notice. We do not recommend this hotel. Stay somewhere else 🙁
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Date of stay: May 2021Trip type: Travelled with family
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We are here right now and it has been nothing short of amazing! The Makai is super close to the parking lot making it really convenient. The rooms are great but our ocean front view is nothing short of spectacular! The spa that comes with the makai rooms is also incredible! Not to mention a makai only pool with comfy chairs available at no extra cost.
Not sure why the previous reviewer commented about lack of water. They give you a free refillable bottle and there is filtered water available for free 24/7. There is also a safe in every room in the dresser. The food prices on the resort are reasonable for Hawaii and the food is all good.
Last year was a five star resort on Maui and this year at Waikoloa Hilton beats that! By far this has been a dream vacation and we will surely come back! Loved every single thing about this resort and the location!
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from HiltonWaikoloa, General Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 02 Feb 2020
Well, we feel nothing short of amazing reading your review! From that oceanfront room to our relaxing amenities to our pools, it sounds like you really got the most out of your time here, which is wonderful. Mahalo for all of your lovely comments here -- the next time you're looking to embark on the vacation of your dreams, we hope you'll consider booking another stay with us. Aloha, Simon, tripadvisor@hiltonwaikoloavillage.com
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Can’t tell you how much we disliked this place. Admittedly it’s just not a fit for us. If you like staying on property A LOT, it may be a fit for you. When we take those kind of trips we do all inclusives in the Caribbean because of the value. But on this trip, we wanted to be out and about hiking, biking and exploring in the mornings, back for some pool time and sunset then a nice dinner. The 20 minute walk to your car is insane. The monorail is about the same speed you walk and usually hot and stuffy. The boats only come every 20 minutes or so. Service was mediocre at best as was the overpriced food. We were in 3 different rooms. First was partial ocean view at best so they moved us to a great room but AC didn’t work. In final room we spent way too much vacation time on line with help desk trying to get functioning WiFi. After contacting Hilton corporate guest services we got out nightly resort fees waived but what a pain! Also note that gym is very disappointing. While nice places usually set you up with great view, cardio and weights were in 2 separate rooms that were like caves. Bikes were not good quality. I thought about a spin class but those bikes were also in a cave like room and a 15 minute walk across the resort. Won’t be back!
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Date of stay: February 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from HiltonWaikoloa, Manager at Hilton Waikoloa Village
Responded 22 Feb 2020
Thank you for your recent stay with us and for taking the time to provide your feedback. I’m sorry to hear that your vacation did not fully live up to your expectations, and apologize for the frustrations you encountered. We strive to provide a memorable experience for all of our guests, and I’m sorry that this stay was not perfect for you. The satisfaction of our guests is very important to us, and your input on what can be improved is definitely appreciated.
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With the trades blowing across the expansive and well kept landscaping and public Asian art in May we ventured out for a drink upon arrival. The only bar open was at the family Kona pool, opposite the Orchid Marketplace where you can get a snack for breakfast or lunch. At supper our only choice was the pasta/pizza restaurant across the large resort, where the food was mediocre and prices were exorbitant. Our clean room was above the dolphin pool with a beautiful ocean view, with a sit down breakfast offering another dining challenge. As an alternative to take and go options, we traversed again across the resort to the only sit down available in this land locked island. We found better options at Tropics Ale House, a 15 minute walk away, at the Kings Shops(25 minutes by foot), or the Lava Lava Club, a destination following a 30 minute beach trail walk.
We felt confined, limited by dining and bar options throughout our 7 night stay. Pricing here kept us cautious, food and drink quality kept us limiting our visits, at times feeling like Gilligan stuck on the island. My wife said it was like a cruise ship that did not leave port. Although great for the kids, this resort is not fully opened for the public, and seems more interested in selling time shares.
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Date of stay: May 2021
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip:Bring food and/or drink.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The dolphins are very well kept for. They are not isolated and enjoy meeting people. they are regularly fed and are not being over worked. In fact most of the dolphins there were born there as well.
No, there are still plenty of dolphins rest assured. I know it is sad but we do the same thing with zoos as well. All animals would have freedom in the wild. But some need to stay in captivity due to health reasons because in the wild they could die. You tell me which is worse. I am no dolphin expert but I have seen the dolphins being regularly fed and are not over worked.
There are more places to choose from in the Waikoloa area.
PRICE RANGE
R 7,322 - R 10,973 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
hilton waikoloa village hotel waikoloa, hawaii hilton waikoloa village, hilton village hotel waikoloa, hilton village waikoloa, waikoloa hilton, hilton waikoloa village resort
LOCATION
United StatesHawaiiIsland of HawaiiKohala CoastWaikoloa
NUMBER OF ROOMS
647
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect average nightly room rates, including taxes and fees that are fixed, known to our partners, and due at time of booking. Please see our partners for more details.
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