New Otani vs. HHV

We%26#39;re trying to decide where to stay in early June and are considering these two hotels. I like price availability at both. We will need two rooms or a suite (but no sofa bed for sleeping, must be beds)an in room refrigerator and high speed internet. We will have our 3.5 year old and her auntie along. Cons on New Otani - no pool, rooms look kind of funky and outdated. Cons on HHV - maybe way too many people there for our comfort level. I%26#39;m sure it comes down to preference, but can anyone give me pros/cons to consider for either or both? Thanks!

New Otani vs. HHV

I like the location of the New Otani much better. Just a little more peaceful in general.

New Otani vs. HHV

HHV is large but it really didn%26#39;t fell overwhelming when we were there. I love the facility and beach area.

It%26#39;s been about eight years since I%26#39;ve been to the New Otani, but we found it perfect. Perfect price, perfect location.

Rooms were simple, but had a fridge for storing snacks and guava juice! Restaurant was...fine. Nice, calm little beach in front of the hotel. But the best part was you could literally walk down to Waikiki beach; less than a mile. You are there but away from it all. Don%26#39;t stay on the Waikiki beach strip; yech! There%26#39;s a fellow tourist on either side of you on the beach, without about a six inch space in between.

DO rent a car (jeep or convertible), get snorkeling gear and boogie boards, get OUT of Waikiki and travel to the windward parts of the island. You can stop along beaches of your choice, all beautiful. Snorkeling in that famous bay on an excursion was fun (forgot the name, starts with an H); saw two reef shark.

Oahu is among my favorite destinations because it%26#39;s got its tropical paradise side and its fine dining, nightlife side (visited 3 times).

One more think, ThisNThat...in all fairness I know nothing of HHV; never stayed there.

Funny -- I asked the exact same question here last year!

We ended up picking HHV and I%26#39;m glad we did because of the location. We didn%26#39;t have a car the three nights in Waikiki and there are a lot more restaurants within easy walking distance, especially at night. Also convenient was shops and the ABC store on site.

We thought the beach at HHV was very nice and not that crowded. This was a couple of weeks ago so it could be different in June. Also, for our dates, ocean front in Rainbow tower was less expensive than the New Otani.

Regardless of where you decide to stay, I also highly recommend renting a car and getting out of Waikiki. I found the rest of Oahu to be absolutely beautiful.

We will definitely be renting a car and seeing places other than Waikiki! We%26#39;ve been to Oahu many times. We like to stay in Waikiki, but usually tour around during the day. My husband will be doing some work on this trip so I thought it would be really nice to stay right on the beach so our 3 year old could conveniently play. On the other hand, since auntie is coming along as well I am agonizing over wether it would be better to stay somewhere closer to some ';action'; where we could leave our child with her auntie at night and go out to dinner or walk around and shop. I guess we can still do that from the N.O. It will probably all come down to the almighty $$. If I can get an ocean view/front in the Rainbow tower at HHV cheaper than at New Otani, I%26#39;ll probably take it.

Enjoy! I miss Oahu. We%26#39;re on the other side of the country now so we%26#39;re going to try the Caribbean this year, but the decision process is hard...so many islands, and I%26#39;m not familiar with any of them.

Also, if you end up at New Otani, re room request: there are some cheaper rooms on the side of the building toward Waikiki that catch a bit of the sunset and water from the lanai. Much better than the street facing rooms, of course, and much cheaper than the water facing rooms.

These hotels are almost complete opposites of each other. For big, busy, sanitized experience..go to the HHV. FOr a quieter, little rough around the edges, more intimate experience...try the Otani. My choice.....Otani all the way.

Thanks for the opinions everybody. As you can probably tell, I%26#39;ve been having a hard time deciding just what kind of experience we want on this trip! I think I%26#39;ve been dreaming of a resort kind of trip like we would usually take to the Big Island, but my husband needs to do some business in Honolulu. I%26#39;d been dreaming of staying at the Kahala, but since we%26#39;re now taking my sister and need two rooms, that%26#39;s out of the budget.

I think my intruige with HHV is because it is more resort-y. I looked at the aerial photos of both on Oahu Revealed%26#39;s webpage and that sealed the deal. We are looking to book at New Otani. I think I might have a panic attack from the crowds at HHV. I found some great internet rates on N.O. for a deluxe ocean view for the same rate as a no-view room at HHV. So it%26#39;s New Otani, here we come (unless I can somehow magically find discounted rooms at the Kahala!!!!) Thanks again for all the posts.