Royal Sonesta Kauai

Awesome vacation in paradise at a beautiful resort! All staff were nice especially the valet attendants and the Kukui’s restaurant staff. We stayed in the Ha’upu Tower on the 19th floor and had a beautiful view of the ocean. The room was modern with a large walk in shower. The bed was so comfortable and the air conditioning worked well. Loved having three restaurants on site (and sushi bar) as well as a grab and go breakfast bar. Sure the restaurant prices at the resort are high, but you’re at a resort on a tropical island, this shouldn’t come as a surprise. My husband and I frequently split meals as the portions were generous especially at Kukui’s for breakfast. Loved the BLTA sandwich with fries or side salad from the pool area. The pool was huge with plenty of room for everyone, including lounge chairs. Very nice restrooms available on both sides of the pool. On the cooler side, yet I’ve never found a heated pool on Hawaii. Loved renting a cabana, although a little pricey, it was so comfortable and added to the vacation vibe. Loved the gift shop. Beautiful items to buy as useful souvenirs and plenty of food options from chips, bread, sweets, nuts, lotions, candles, clothing, etc. For a week we were surrounded by beauty and are very grateful for the experience. Hopefully we can come back one day. Mahalo Nui Loa!

Amazing hotel, friendly and welcoming staff and beautiful grounds and pool. The beach at the front of the hotel is one of the best in Kauai. It's never crowded and has beautiful mountains view. The hotel was recently renovated. The room is very spacious, nicely decorated and very clean. The bathroom is great too. The location of the hotel is also great. There are a lot of restaurants and stores around. It's definitely one of the best hotels in Kauai. Can't wait to go there again.

I found this hotel to be beautiful and quite dreamy. It is an older hotel as a lot of them are in Hawaii but exceptionally maintained. I’m having a hard time understanding the poor reviews. We experienced phenomenal service from the front desk, bartenders, wait staff and housekeeping. The only con is the cost of food- I’m looking at you $17 kids chicken tenders-. This isn’t just a hotel issue it’s an island issue. Food is very expensive on the island and the hotel adds in the standard price padding that you will find at most resorts. Some of the other complaints I read were, parking and housekeeping. We did self parking and had zero issues finding a space. There was even a lot that connected to our Ha’pu tower. If you have mobility issues, you may want to request that tower. At checkin they are very clear about the every other day housekeeping policy. However if you need more they are happy to come. Everything was clean and well maintained from the ground to the spacious updated rooms. We booked a standard garden room (1802) but still had a partial ocean view which was a nice treat. There were a fair amount of kids here. It would be wonderful if the hotel offered some type of kids/teen club or kids activities. With that said, The beach is perfect for kids! Because it is in a bay, you don’t have to worry about large waves. At both the pool and the beach There are plenty of loungers to go around we were able to find 3-4 with ease. Side tip: walk over to jamming bananas (off resort) for breakfast they open at 6am. Wonderful service and more affordable.

We stayed here with a family with teenagers over Christmas break. Beach is public, but since it only runs the stretch of the hotel, it’s basically the hotel’s beach and not crowded. Most of beach is taken up by 3 volleyball courts which are usually filled with local leagues. They have to put up their own nets by law. So unless you bring your own net, hotel guests are out of luck on playing the high was frustrating for our teens. In general hotel design is a bit dated but the pool is nice and big and well maintained. Chairs and towels are fine. Rooms are larger than normal. We upgraded &50/day to get a slightly larger bathroom basically. 1 tower has basic rooms and 1 tower has the “upgraded” rooms. We were told we can get 1 basic room adjacent to 1 upgraded room. When we arrived our family was split into two separate towers. Very disappointed. And forced us to wait 2 nights until we paid $50 extra per night to upgrade the other room just so our family was on the same floor of the same tower. Sushi restaurant on site was good and would recommend . Other restaurant on site was over-priced and mid food - many other restaurants in area to choose from with a view so skip it. Bar had decent drinks but of course over priced at $20 each. The main issue with this hotel is the service. Sonesta bought the property from Marriott Club. But they let them keep 1 tower of the 3, and Marriott guests can “use” the Sonesta amenities. Perhaps because of this they don’t have employees - quality and quantity. I literally asked for something from 4 different workers each saying they would get it for me, each not doing anything. Seems many call out sick. Not sure what’s going on there. There are no resort activities going on. It’s basically BYO. Probably won’t return unless it’s cheaper.

My husband and I just returned from the Royal Sonesta for our honeymoon and it was a DREAM! We are already planning our next trip back to Hawaii. We had never been and were debating which islands to visit. Kaua'i was truly magical and the Sonesta was a perfect destination - if you are debating, we would highly recommend! From the second we arrived until we departed every staff member was so kind and welcoming. There was a beautiful view in our room of the pool, beach and mountain. We ate all of our meals on site and each restaurant offered a unique cuisine and was reasonably priced! Duke's had fun live music and famous hula pie, the sushi restaurant was delicious and fresh, and Kukui's had a pool side location that we visited each day. The concierge was also so helpful before our arrival and during our stay. Special thanks to Belinda who helped us create a well-balanced schedule that included a rental car to explore (which I recommend since ride share apps can get pricey), doors off helicopter tour (incredible), hike/kayak adventure, beach cabana, classic luau, spa services, complimentary yoga - even a Thanksgiving Meal on Thanksgiving! We are so glad that we chose Sonesta for our honeymoon. They went above and beyond to make it so special!