Best Western The Plaza Hotel Honolulu Airport — Hotel in Honolulu

I stayed here for a week for business. The hotel is a solid 3/5. There are significant room for improvement in the comfort of those staying here when paying $190+ a night.

Room: I stayed on the 12th floor over looking the airport. It was very quiet, spacious, and comfortable. The bed was nice and soft with 4 large pillows. The pillows were overly soft for my liking, nothing to do with the hotel. There was a 65" TV in the room which was absolutely perfect when watching football or Hockey. The chair that was there was very small and uncomfortable. I tried sitting in in, but opted not to use it. It was something I'd think should be sitting in my grandmas house circa 1950. Washroom was very tiny. It is not one for two people to share (one in the shower, one using the sink.) The door barely closed with how close it was to the toilet. The shower in my room had a tub, and the water pressure and temperature was good. The shower uses the three knob model, so getting the temperature just right almost required an engineering degree. The room AC worked very well, and cooled the room down quicker than I'd expected. It was so nice to have ice cold AC on a low 90's day walk from the airport. The rooms that face the H1 elevated freeway are EXTREMLY NOISY. In addition, the rooms that surround the pool area may be subject to loud traffic as well.

Distance to Airport. This deserves its' own mention. If you are flying in from the mainland on Hawaiian, American ect, the walk might be a bit to far. If you are interisland on Southwest or some international arrivals, the walk is decent. There is a very brightly lit sidewalk all the way from the terminal to the hotel. There was no safety concern, but you do see some homeless folks who were off to the side. I felt very safe with my backpack and a small suitcase.

Pool. This one I am very frustrated at. The pool hours are STRICT from 9am-dusk. 90% of the outdoor courtyard seating and tables is on the pool deck. Once the sun sets (550pm) Security comes by and locks the pool. Imagine coming all the way from the mainland, only to be essentially told you need to stay in your room after sundown because they don't provide any seating outside of the closed and locked pool area. I have kids, and I would have been rightly pi**ed if they traveled with me, and we were told you cannot be in, near or around the pool after dusk. Management needs a serious reevaluation of this position. Sunrise was at 615, and they refused to open the pool until 9am. This was very disappointing.

Hotel shuttle. The shuttle ONLY operates on the top of the hour, every hour from 5am-1am daily. You need to be in the lobby about 15 minutes prior to the top of the hour, or you will be left behind. They will not operate another shuttle for you until the top of the hour, unless there was no room on the shuttle. On pickup, you must call the hotel and explain where you area. Once again, you will only be picked up at the top of the hour, so expect to wait if you are longer than that. As a helpful tip, wear a seatbelt. The roads in Honolulu are very rough, and this bus feels like you are riding in a truck with no shocks and struts. Its a very bumpy ride. Hold on a buckle up.

Breakfast. The hotel has breakfast from 7am-9am only. Contrary to other reviews, the hotel ONLY offers breakfast. There is no restaurant on-site after those hours. There are SEVERAL areas to eat around the way, within walking distance, all explained on the welcome letter you receive at check-in. The menu changes daily, and is available to view next to the coffee shop.

Parking. $20 per night for Best Western members, $40 a night for non-members. Parking is very tight, so you may be on a high floor if you have a larger SUV/Truck.

Overall. This hotel needs a renovation and longer pool hours. I don't think I'll stay here again until those items are taken care of. If you have kids, beware of the EXTREMELY...

I read tons of reviews on hotels all over the island before I chose this one. It was the most affordable hotel in the most convenient location for my purpose. You have to understand what to expect before you come. Oahu is an island, everything in Honolulu is squished together so the hotels are all more expensive than the mainland and the rooms are smaller. Don’t expect mainland size, picturesque immediate surroundings, and quiet for the same price. If you want those things, be prepared to pay a hefty price. Also, every hotel that I read reviews on charges for parking. So you will likely pay for parking wherever you stay.

Here is what you need to know:

My room was clean and housekeeping took care of it every day. They brought me extra towels and bedding as soon as I requested it.

I was in an ADA room with a king sized bed and a “pull out”. The “pull out” is actually a chair that folds out to mostly flat but it does have a slight incline. My 20 year old slept on it and said it was fine for her, but older adults probabaly would not like that set up. It is low to the ground and awkward.

I had a microwave and mini fridge in my room.

Parking at this hotel is $40/night, but it is in a gated garage where your vehicle is safe and there were always parking spots available. I read reviews at other hotels where people paid for parking but there were never spots. If you sign up for a best western account when you check in, parking will be $20/night. If you are already a member it will be $40. The deal is for new members.

The rooms are smaller than other best westerns on the mainland, but larger than rooms in other hotels in the area for the same price.

Bring earplugs. The hotel is LITERALLY next to the highway. I look out my window and I am staring at an unattractive (and very loud) bridge. Even on an upper floor, the cars are loud. I knew this ahead of time and brought earplugs. I slept like a baby because I was prepared.

The immediate surroundings are not beautiful. But it is right by the airport and you can get anywhere you want on the island in under an hour and a half. If you want to be on the beach, or have incredible views from your hotel, be prepared to pay triple what this hotel costs.

Would I stay here again? Absolutely. I’m not prepared to pay the price of higher end hotels and I don’t feel like I need to. This hotel met all of our needs. The king sized bed was comfortable. My rooms were clean and maintained. My car and stuff was safe. I hopped right on the highway and traveled the island every day. It’s right next to the airport. I had zero issues. If I find unexpected charges on my card after checking out, I will update my review. But overall, my family was satisfied. If this hotel is your price range, you can feel good about staying here as long as your expectation of Honolulu...

After staying at "resorts" and paying their ridiculous fees, this hotel is a better alternative if you're out all day and you just need a clean place to sleep and shower. But keep in mind, this is not a resort.

The hotel is located in the business district right next to the airport (walking distance) with a free shuttle to and from the airport (~4min). I didn't hear any airplanes flying over, but, it is also located next to a highway/overpass that is VERRRY LOUD. We stayed on the second floor in the courtyard, which is separate from the main tower, where there are no elevators so keep that in mind if you have heavy luggage. The air con was also very loud in our room, we ended up sleeping with earplugs - thanks to the reviews of others who stayed here.

P: The beds and pillows were comfortable and very clean, as well as the furniture and bathroom. We had new towels everyday and new bedding was replaced when requested with the placard on the nightstand. The curtains are 100% blackout, I thought it was still night when the sun was already shining. In our room we had a mini fridge, microwave, and coffee maker that they kept stocked with coffee, sugar etc. C: The carpet is FILTHY, where they definitely need to change them for health reasons. We wore shoes the entire time inside. The air con also had mold/mildew on the inside, assuming from condensation, I couldn't tell if that's where the mildew smell was coming from or the carpet. We got a disinfectant spray which helped a lot.

P: We booked through priceline and got an amazing deal with breakfast included. The breakfast (7-9am) is very nice, has a lot of options, and the menu changes a little everyday. But if you don't get up in time, there is a McDonald's and Dunkin donuts literally next door.

C: Parking is an expensive $40 if you don't book through their site, and $20 if you do. But with the deal we got on priceline it would've evened out. We didn't use their garage. I joked the airport is so close you could park in their garage for cheaper.

The property is fully gated with access through the front door or by your room key card around the gate doors, with a pool in the middle of the courtyard.

I would stay here again, but they definitely NEED to change the carpets. Preferably to something hard, like tile or laminate flooring that's easier to clean. And maybe wiping down the inside of the air con before/after every booking should be included in their...