Roberts Hawaii — Attraction in Honolulu

I go to Hawaii about once a year to 18 months. I've been using Roberts for about a decade now, but our most recent trip and experience with them has soured us on using their services.

Bottom line: in the past when we have booked, we book the option to have a shuttle waiting for us and to take us to the hotel once we have our luggage. They apparently have changed their process (without disclosing it at time of booking or any communications to let us know the change) at HLN. This time no one was waiting for us per usual. I called and was told we had to check in with a booth. Okay, different than what I was used to and I was a little irritated that this wasn't communicated before hand, but not an issue (yet). At the booth, after being ignored and/or having to start over trying to check in because the people working the booth were much more interested in their own conversations and/or helping someone else, I was told that it could take up to an hour to get on a shuttle. That is not what I booked and to what was contractually obligated. Then they didn't know. Then it was only a few minutes. Then we had to walk across the street to catch the shuttle, only to have the shuttle return to the original place where we were waiting (this is important later). In all, it was indeed about an hour before we were off.

Honestly the staff at the booth were at best incompetent and at worst, really didn't care. Despite me explaining multiple times the type of shuttle I had booked, they either weren't understanding or just didn't want to try and bother to try and fix the situation. We kept being told "traffic" was the reason we had to wait. We've arrived at HLN plenty of times during the afternoon and yes, Honolulu will always have traffic jams that time of day. That's not the point: the point is that their obligation was to plan ahead to have a shuttle waiting for us so we could head to our hotel immediately.

Normally we're pretty easy-going travelers. Things happen. But the lack of understanding/will to fix the situation was appalling. And why all these things were especially important this trip: my elderly mom just beat not one but two cancers a few months ago. This was a celebratory trip, but after a nine hour flight she absolutely needed to get to the hotel and rest and not be jerked around all over arrivals in the airport. And she's still recovering from having part of her lung and colon removed, so extra walking at that time with her exhaustion was not helpful. And while I'm reasonably healthy, having to drag around to 50 pound suitcases (because she cannot pull her own right now) all over the place during this obscene confusion/incompetence certainly was not the easiest for me after a nine hour flight. In addition, she got wheelchair service at the airport who dropped her off where we were originally supposed to pick up the shuttle. From where we walked away to cross a street to catch the shuttle only to have the shuttle drive right to the very place we were waiting. Un-freaking-believable.

The only reason they are getting two stars from me is a credit to the drivers themselves who were kind and helpful (and were very confused/upset for us when we told them the situation).

Next time we go I'm just going to suck up the extra money and take a...

UPDATE: When I called for a refund, I was told someone would call me back. I got a call back very quickly. The man was extremely nice and apologetic. He said he had credited my money back to my card. And he was very upset that the incident had happened.

We discussed the access to my building - FedEx trucks, Large HandiVans, and garbage trucks come down the street. The shuttle that Robert's Had put me on was more like a short bus than a van. After asking me for my upcoming flight, the man said they would pick me up at 11:35. And they did. Actually, they were early.

The van driver was very friendly. And he was upset when he heard about the other driver refusing to go down my street. He's driven that bus and said he would have gotten it down my street no problem. When he got me to the airport he was even going to get a wheelchair and attendant for me, but I told him no thanks I could manage. He asked again and I said no, but it was really nice knowing he was willing.

I am going to reserve a return ride in September.

I showed up at their counter in an airport wheelchair with an attendant. I asked the woman behind the desk if they go to Waikiki Lanai on Tusitala St. She checked and said yes. She brought me to the shuttle and loaded my luggage on.

After all the other passengers were offloaded, the driver took me to the corner of Kaiulani and Tusitala, a very long block away from my building. Apparently the shuttle could not fit down that street, and they opened the door to let me out.

Now remember, I had luggage and no wheelchair because the one I was in belonged to the airport and mine was at the condo. I had a cane so I could get from the vehicle to my door. I'm 71, disabled, and have 2 bags, a small cooler bag for my insulin, and a cloth shopping bag with my purse and other things.

I was able to get the dispatcher to have the driver circle around and go down a different street leaving me a slightly shorter walk, still a block though. Keep in mind that I only had one hand to carry/pull everything because I had to have the cane in the other hand. And the wheels on the one bag didn't roll over the broken up pavement and sidewalk very well. I had to keep stopping and switching everything to the other side. It was awful!

Had they been HONEST in the first place, telling me that they could NOT take me to Waikiki Lanai, I would never have given them the $26. I would have called a friend or a taxi.

They took my money and left me stranded! If possible I would give...

I booked the Road to Hana tour with Roberts Hawai’i expecting the full, scenic experience that so many others raved about. I had high hopes for this tour based on the glowing reviews, but unfortunately, my experience was quite underwhelming. While the guide did share some historical background and insights, the tour itself felt rushed, poorly timed, and incomplete.

Although these tours typically start early, ours didn’t begin until around 9 AM. There was quite a bit of confusion regarding the pick-up time, as I received multiple email notifications from Roberts Hawai’i with different timings. On the day itself, the guide was late for pick-up as he was waiting for another group who had just flown in. This late start set the tone for the entire trip, and as a result, it did not feel like a full Road to Hana tour.

Throughout the journey, we skipped many key locations, as the guide discouraged us from spending time at waterfalls or scenic points, warning that it might cause accidents or make us late. It felt like we were constantly being rushed, and we missed out on many of the highlights that make the Road to Hana special.

With only two groups on the tour (mine and another family), it seemed clear that the schedule was cut short to accommodate the other group's flight. Given the high price point of this tour, I expected much more than a mere “touch and go” experience.

To make things more uncomfortable, the guide made remarks that implied we were expected to give him tips, which I found unprofessional and unnecessary, especially considering the overall quality of the tour.

I wouldn’t recommend Robert Hawaii for this tour unless the company seriously reconsiders its scheduling practices and commits to delivering the full experience that guests are promised...