VlVE HOTEL WAIKIKI — Hotel in Honolulu

Vive Hotel in Waikiki is in a great walking distance from the beach, convience stores, shopping centers, many restraunts, and even bus lines. Now, the hotel is right at the cusp of all the busy streets, so I did see a few homeless lingering around late at night since there was less foot trafic in the area. They did not cause any issues. The hotel does lock the doors at night, so there are no homeless people inside the hotel.

During check-in, Jorge was very cordial and gave us complimentary juices with a local flower. A pleasant touch. He explained everything we needed to know and was very polite and thorough.

When we got to the room, we were welcome to what I guess is the Vive Hotel Vibe with the TV playing music. Remember this music as you will not forget. The room was clean and organized. There were some wine, liquor, and snacks available for purchase. The water ran hot at all times of the day. There is also a mini fridge and safe in the room. Iron is given upon request along with extra pillows. My room was serviced daily where we got new sheets and linen. If they came by when we were in the room, they would come by later.

Breakfast in the morning is great compared to other free meals at hotels. This consisted of scrambled eggs, bacon, hard-boiled eggs, an oatmeal station, coffee, a variety of tea, pastries, bread, fresh fruits like papayas, pineapple, assorted melons. The common area is always very clean, even the microwave. There is also a room where you can use beach towels, umbrellas, stand-up umbrellas you put into the sand, matts to lay on, boogie boards, and more. In short, the hotel it very accommodating

Now, what makes this a four star instead of a five-star was a shower head that streamed almost in a straight line but then misted on the edges, which made it slightly uncomfortable. I like to connect my computer to the TV so we can watch movies. But the TV's welcoming theme song is always on, and the UI is very finicky with high latency. Basically, I would turn the TV on at night and hear that song every night at 40+ volume. It took maybe a whole minute for the remote to respond. With the walls being a little more than paper thin, I'm sure people around heard. Also, on sound, you can hear the whole city through the closed window. Since we are in an almost central part of waikiki, you can hear lots of police, yelling and drunk people during holidays late at night. I'm a heavy sleeper, so this was not an issue for me, but I feel like it needs to be stated in case someone looks for a room here. (I'm on the eighteenth floor.)

During my stay, there were constant issues with the elevators. They seem to run fast, make lots of noise, small, and just are overall kind of janky. One of the elevators would make this loud scrapping sound passing level 8, and I thought "wow that doesn't sound right." That same elevator was being serviced and shut down the next day. It was nice to see the timely response to fix it. So I rode it up to floor 18 when it was open. That was fine until I rode it back down. The elevator started making more noise than usual, and right when it hit floor 8, it stopped suddenly and completely. That got me all spooked, and I was not comfortable riding it anymore. I was stuck for about 30 seconds before it continued back down, where I told a front desk agent, and they said they were aware, but that's it. In my mind, I'm saying, "You should shut down the elevator." A couple of days passed, and that same elevator had a note posted on it stating it was not operational. About two hours later, it was gone. So there is basically an ongoing issue with the elevator, which I don't trust. I hope no one gets stuck or falls from the sky.

TLDR: Very clean and accommodating to the guests and is in a great spot in Waikiki compared to other hotel pricing. The free breakfast and amenities are wonderfully, but the place feels like it was poorly constructed with the elevators being the evidence. You can hear the streets from the room and hear into the hallways perfectly. The...

I stayed at the hotel in April 2025 in the room 1802 and left with mixed impressions. Let’s start with the positive points.

The staff were friendly and helpful. One standout feature was the room stocked with beach equipment, which guests could borrow at any time just by scanning their room key — no need to involve the staff. It’s a trust-based system, and I really appreciated that. The location is excellent - just a 7-minute walk to the beach, with bus stops located nearby as well. At check-in, I received a printed guide listing major free activities and important local information, which was a nice touch. The TV in the room supported login to streaming services like YouTube. Downstairs in the hall, there was a microwave, oven, and other kitchen appliances available. I also liked the fact that I could open the window in my room and let in fresh air during the night.

Now for the less pleasant aspects.

On Booking.com, the breakfast is rated as “very good,” and the hotel’s website lists what's included. What I didn’t realize was that this list is all-inclusive—there is nothing more than what’s listed. The breakfast offerings include: several types of coffee, a wide selection of tea bags, hot and cold water, five kinds of creamers, cold drinks like mango tea and lemon water (all these drinks also available 24/7), boiled eggs or pre-made industrial omelets (the porous kind), one hot meat dish, four kinds of sweet pastries, two meat-based pastries, three kinds of fruit including pineapple, oatmeal, three types of mini muffins, two types of white bread, and pineapple juice.

While that may sound like a lot, it’s mostly carbohydrates. As a vegetarian, the only source of protein for me was the eggs. There were no baked beans, no potato-based dishes, and no soy or lactose-free milk. There’s plenty of variety within certain categories (like bakery items and fruit), but overall the range of food types is quite limited. You certainly won’t leave breakfast hungry - it’s virtually impossible - but you may still feel like something is missing.

On my first morning, the omelets were missing, even though the website said they were always included. I asked a staff member if they’d be served later and was told that only boiled eggs were available that day. Oddly enough, about 30 minutes later, omelets did appear and replaced the boiled eggs. It left me wondering whether the breakfast staff were fully informed about what was being served.

And drinks are served in paper cups, which probably aren’t very eco-friendly, as they appear to have a plastic lining.

The room itself was… a story. Some might call it “vintage”; I’d say it had an '80s feel. The furniture and amenities (except for the bathroom) worked well, but were clearly outdated.

The bathroom was especially memorable. The shower head was old and partially clogged with hard water deposits. It tool time to understand how to operate it, and when I turned it on, water sprayed not only from the head but also from the connection to the wall-mounted metal pipe. Lowering the shower head only made it spray more. It wasn’t a deal-breaker, since the main water stream still worked, and I could shower effectively. I reported the issue the next morning and it was fixed by the end of the day.

A stranger issue was the bath base. When I stepped on it, it flexed and moved under my feet—something I’d never experienced before. I was worried it might collapse and trap my leg. After about 10 minutes, I got used to it. I reported this as well and was offered a room change, so I appreciated the staff’s effort to address problems promptly.

Lastly, there was a plastic exhaust grid on the wall that had a noticeable buildup of dust - clearly overdue for a cleaning.

All in all, if you're not too picky, you’ll likely enjoy staying at this hotel. For the price and location, it...

ZERO STARS — Absolutely Disgusting and unsanitary.

stayed at Vive Hotel Waikiki from July 24–27, 2025, and it was hands down the worst hotel experience —a disgusting, stressful, sleep-deprived disaster that ruined the final leg of my Hawaii trip.

I checked in around 10:30 p.m., expecting a clean, relaxing space. Instead, I walked into a room that was absolutely filthy. The very first thing I saw? A giant, wet sneaker print across the top of the toilet seat. Then I lifted the lid—and things got worse.

There was visible grime and fecal matter under the rim, along with long hairs stuck to the seat. I had to put on gloves and clean the toilet myself using my own Clorox wipes and fingers... Thank God I was provided gloves. And keep in mind—check-in is at 3 p.m., so they had plenty of time to prepare this room. There is no excuse for what I walked into.

The shower head was black with thick grime. I had to dig into the nozzle with my pinky just to clean it properly because there was no way I would let water touch me coming through that.

The bathtub has a stain on it and it had a left over product from previous guest.

The light switches were so dirty—I wiped one and the cloth turned black.

Ants were crawling on the table, and the carpet looked questionable, I had to keep my flip-flops on.

The walls had visible scuffs and stains.

I was given a rag to clean with—and inside that rag was a dead bug. I'm not exaggerating—I have photos.

The fire alarm was beeping non stop that they had to take it down! Like how on earth was this room "rented"???

When a staff member came up and saw the condition of the room, they even said, "That’s weird... a supervisor is supposed to inspect every room before it gets rented out."

Really? If a supervisor saw that room and approved it for a paying guest, it tells me this hotel has zero integrity and no standards for cleanliness, safety, or basic human decency.

It was abundantly clear: this room had not been cleaned. And yet, when I went to the front desk? No manager. No housekeeping. No available room to switch to that night. I was told the hotel was fully booked and there was nothing they could do. Although, the receptionist did feel bad, I was left trying to figure this out on my own.

So instead of relaxing, I had to clean the entire hotel room, after being out all day and exhausted--on vacation--just to feel safe sleeping in it. Thank god I travel with wipes!! There was no other place to go in such short notice and i felt stuck because i needed to sleep asap for my scheduled plans the next day at 5 am. I got 3 hours of sleep felt like a zombie the next day. Unacceptable.

Also, someone entered my room without permission. That alone is unacceptable. I had very intimate things lying around that i didn't want anyone to see. I didn't expect anyone would enter, considering I had the "Do Not Disturb" sign on, and no one communicated anything to me. I don’t care what the reason was—you don’t enter someone’s room without their knowledge or consent. Period.

The breakfast buffet—which so many people rave about—was totally overhyped. The only thing I really ate was the oatmeal, which I dressed up with some chocolate bits. The eggs were clearly the frozen, folded kind, the fruit was good, although the papaya was sliced paper-thin, it was good and sweet. Everything else was forgettable.Not worth the price or praise.

And it wasn’t just me—I spoke with other guests who also seemed unhappy with the condition of their rooms. So i don't understand the 5 star reviews. I guess the location is great. But not worth it, considering what i...