Hanalei Bay Resort — Hotel in Kauai

Disappointing Stay – Not Worth the Price or the Hassle

I had high hopes for Hanalei Bay Resort given its scenic location, but unfortunately, the experience was far from relaxing — and definitely not what you’d expect from a "resort" in Kauai.

First, the lack of basic hospitality services was shocking. There is no towel service for the rooms, and you’re expected to wash and reuse your towels during your entire stay. Likewise, there is no housekeeping — you’re on your own to clean your unit, take out your trash, and do laundry. For the price of a resort stay, this is completely unacceptable and feels more like renting a condo than staying at a vacation property.

The parking situation is an absolute nightmare. The lot is completely full by 7:00 p.m. and gets chaotic by 9:00 p.m. as they begin double-parking cars beyond the lot’s capacity to accommodate visitors heading to the onsite pizza place or entertainment venues. You'll likely be told to just leave your keys in the rental car and park it “somewhere.” That “somewhere” may mean tight, cramped spots with zero buffer — our rental was nearly door-dinged multiple times, and some spots are so overgrown with bushes and trees that your car may end up scratched or pressed against plant life. Not ideal, especially when you're paying for a car you’ll be responsible for returning in good condition. You should also realize while this parking is a nightmare you will be paying everyday to park there as you stay at their resort.

Getting to and from your room is another ordeal. Most rooms are located down a steep hill far from the parking lot, and there’s only one guest services golf cart to shuttle people — there was word that there were two carts to be used but only one was ever seen because of the same driver driving it... despite the resort owning multiple carts for landscaping and maintenance crews zipping around all day. If you miss that one guest cart or don’t feel like waiting, you’re in for a 10- to 15-minute uphill walk — hauling luggage, groceries, beach gear, etc. It’s not convenient or accessible, and it was one of the top complaints I overheard from other guests during our stay. Our parents which needed the cart had to wait for the cart and waited a total of 4 hours for the cart through the week stay. That's a lot of time wasted. There needs to be at least five or six of those carts with the demand of people needing rides because the parking lot is so small and does not accommodate half of the resorts population. The problem isn't just the amount of space for parking but the proximity of the parking lot to where you will stay in your room. If this is an issue for you, you need to book a room very close to the parking lot. Otherwise you will have a very long walk or a very long wait. Your choice. How fun right? If that's not enough, you will definitely get to witness the staff complaining about having to drive you to your room and make faces as you tell them you need rides. Saw that many times as well.

Adding to the discomfort, I later discovered numerous reports online of rat and roach infestations — complete with photos of rats eating food from storage in the rooms while guests were out. While we didn’t experience this directly, it’s deeply concerning and would have been a deal-breaker if I had known in advance. Read through the reviews here. You will see pictures.

I wish I had done more research before booking. This is not a true resort experience — more like a self-service vacation rental with major inconveniences and a premium price tag. There are much better lodging options on the island that offer actual service, easier access, and a more relaxing experience. Sadly, this was one of the least relaxing parts of our vacation, and I would not recommend...

Overall we had a decent stay at this location but I wouldn’t recommend it. We had some rather frustrating moments that I feel could have been completely avoided.

The first issue was all of the fees (taxes, parking and resort). On top of paying for our weeks stay we had an additional $500 bill that we were surprised with when checking into the resort. I’m sorry but $17 a day to park your car yourself is insane.

Our second issue that we had was with some of the staff. The receptionists aren’t the most friendly, they make it seem like everything is a big hassle and aren’t welcoming. If you want to go to the beach the walk can be very daunting and unsafe for elderly, so to avoid the problem the resort has staff running guests back and forth on a golf cart. This would have been a good expierence although we felt that the employees were very moody and angry/frustrated when we would get a ride. To make matters worse it didn’t make a difference even when we gave the driver a tip (don’t worry about forgetting the tip, they have a very tacky sign posted right on the golf cart dashboard). This got to be exhausting after a few days since we used the service quite a few times to get to and from the beach.

One other issue I found to be a VERY big problem. I had called the front to ask when our mid week room service would take place. The cleaning crew comes into your room, replaces towels, makes the bed and other simple duties much like a housemaid does at hotels. I had requested some new linens/towels prior to the day that they were to come into the room so I wasn’t in need of any service and put the door hanger outside on both doors (we had two front doors to our unit). After being at the beach all day we came home to the maids completely ignoring the door hanger that asked that for privacy and noticed that they were in our unit. I felt completely violated and felt that I had no privacy or trust in the facility. I was worried about my belongings that I had in my room and felt like I needed to either secure my personal things in the safe every time I left or bring it with me. This isn’t how you should feel at a resort or hotel. Ever. What’s the point of a privacy sign if it’s completely ignored?

During our stay the temperature was around 77-82 degrees outside, so it wasn’t too warm although I feel that it was pretty average. The weather wasn’t ideal for the week that we were in Princeville but we made the best of it. We enjoyed the hot tub and used it everyday but the pool was extremely cold and I only saw two people swim in the pool the entire week of our stay. The pool was way colder than the ocean and I just don’t feel like this should have been the case.

The grounds at this facility were very well kept and the plants and trees were enjoyable to look at.

The king bed was to our comfort level but the pullout couch was a complete disaster as it was broken and hard to pull out every night when turning it into a bed.

The kitchen had most of everything that we needed. The only two things we called to have requested was a coffee pot (the machine was provided but we were missing the pot) and a rice cooker. We also had to call to get more dishwasher soap and trash bags because they only provided two for the entire week. The website states that the facility has a grill, however we never saw one and if they do have one it’s not accessible for everyone to use.

Overall I wouldn’t recommend this resort unless you are only going to be using it in the evenings...

My last visit was 2011 and the resort was in a whole world of pain with lack of amenities and maintenance. I was happy to see it has mostly returned to its former glory, it really is a special piece of paradise. ||The staff are lovely, the guests are friendly, it’s like we are all in on the secret of this special gem. ||However, there is still work to be done. As everyone comments- the fees! Why not build it in to your price rather than turning people’s attitudes to sour the moment they arrive? We dined at the Westin and I noted they advertise “no resort fee” I wasn’t charged for parking either.||As soon as you slap a resort fee people judge what they are getting for it, which is very little at HBR. At one hotel we stayed on Oahu we got rental of 3 items each day from a selection of beach chairs , umbrella, SUP, body board. Why don’t you utilise the closed pool cave for that? Or put a screen and show movies, the activities offered are boring- koi feeding? ||Not enough shade at the pool, pool bar closed, spa not working which is a constant problem- replace it! ||Our room allocation on the ground floor in Bougainvillea didn’t see sun at any time of the day. On arrival the musty / damp smell was overwhelming but disappeared once every door was opened. This carried on for the entire week, and we did mention it to staff, they offered to put a loud machine in there for a day which we declined. I think they would be aware of some rooms having this issue at all times, so they need to add freshener or smelling reeds in these rooms to combat the smell. We didn’t use the aircon at all and just used the fans. ||For a location as wet as the north shore, the rooms don’t have rain umbrellas. The coat hangers in the closet are attached like we are going to steal them. The bathrooms need motion sensor lights under the vanity as they are very dark. The makeup face cloth was a great addition to the towel selection and the welcome basket of coffee, popcorn was generous. An addition of a towel rack for wet swimmers that can be placed on the lanai would be good. ||Lastly as a HBR time share owner for nearly twenty years, there is no personal welcome from the manager / general manager by way of a note in the room. As a member of a hotel chain loyalty program I get acknowledged on every stay which puts a personal touch on things and isn’t HBR supposed to be different and offer...