The Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows

This past week I stayed at both the Auberge and the Fairmont at Mauna Lani. Both are high end, superior resorts but we found differences between the two and The Fairmont is our preference and here is why: o At the Fairmont parking is free, the Auberge charges $40/day. o Fairmont has ice machines where at Auberge you have to request ice from Room Service and as was often the case, call multiple times o The Fairmont offers free laundry and laundry pods, The Auberge does no such thing o The Auberge is more expensive. I mean why pay $165 for a steak, really? o The Fairmont offers free golf clubs that you can sign out for the day. Auberge no. For two of us this saved us over $120/day o Snorkeling is slightly better at the Auberge because you can walk over to the Beach Club. However from the Fairmont you snorkel right off their beach and at the Fairmont we swam with turtles o The rooms were slightly superior at the Auberge but this positive was more than offset by having to call multiple times to request ice, extra pillows, etc o Both hotels offer expresso coffee in the room, but neither offer free American coffee. Well the Fairmont does from 5:00-6:30am but we were asleep then. Even Holiday Inn Express offers free coffee and ice machines I hope this helps

The Auberge does a pretty good job, but not close to the quality, service and management of Mauna Kea or Kona Village. After reopening it was a very well designed place that seemed to want to do a great job. Lately, It seems they've got a bit more focused on nickels and dimes. On my most recent stay, the reservationist said that she would request complimentary breakfast because I'm a regular customer (something the Mauna Kea and Kona Village do without request). When I checked in they refused to acknowledge the request-- when pressed they admitted that the reservationist had made th request. They said they would review the request with management and get back to me. I never heard from the staff again. Our room was overlooking the parking lot and traffic circle (not the mountain view that was marketed). This made the veranda a no-go zone. The air conditioner kept tripping off despite the veranda being locked. So we would wake up in the middle of the night in a stuffy room. My daughter ended up having a very rough two nights of sleep. The beach is great. The adult pool is nice. The food on property is marginal. Napua beach club is nice. Canoe House is good. Saving a nickel on a breakfast experience for a repeat customer leaves a bad taste in the mouth for the entire experience.

The rooms are incredible, the resort is pristine! I had been before in 2022 and the trip was pure magic. This go around - much different . We are from Texas and while our Spring Break is in March, I was disappointed to learn it was East Coast's Spring Break in April. VERY busy and overcrowded with over-extended , tired staff. This is not the experience I had before where I felt as though I was waited on by hand and foot. Every team member we had encountered was memorable and excellent. This time, only 3 stood out from our 5 day, 4 night stay. It is a beautiful resort but I would recommend going during off season. Not sure the price to value was there this time.

Property was nice. WAY too many loud screaming children. I am a physician and got food poisoning at Canoe House from the British Columbia oysters. Valet staff was rude and obnoxious and threatened to "have my car towed" if I did not let them park my rental car and give me a ticket and charge me $40 even though I was returning the car.

Kimberly was absolutely amazing! She was great with our kids and was able to capture them in their true element. All of our pictures came out beautifully and are some of the best family photos we have taken. Whenever we are back on the big island we will be reaching out to Kimberly and Coral Photography to capture amazing moments with the family.