Marina Tower Waikiki — Local services in Honolulu

I can't even begin to lie and say that the views from this hotel, if you can really call it that, were not very nice, because they were, but that is all they have to offer.

I checked in late Sunday night after performing my best man duties fro my two best friends wedding at Secret Beach and attending a luau at Paradise Cove.

The first red flag should have been all the trick photography, my friends showed after we had to book a last minute room for me. The next re flag should have been the fact that there is no such location. This place is more condos, than it is a hotel and some of the "rooms" they show are of condos that are rented by the owners of each condo, not the so called hotel.

Check in is crazy, because there is no check in desk for this location. You must check in at another hotel, which means lugging your bags up a flight of stairs, then back down to the very back of the lot. You're handed a door clicker that looks like a car alarm device.

It was late and I was tired, but there was only one elevator working with 11 people waiting in front of me. This is when i learned that these people lived in the building and they were more than happy to give me all the dirt on the place. Like "bed bugs" "mice" and having to wait long periods of time for the elevators. They even warned me about flooding.

I waited 15 minutes before I was finally able to get on the elevator to the 35 floor. When I walked into the rood it was hot as hell, so right away I looked for the air conditioner, I was shocked to see the old school square, accordion style unit mounted with wood in the corner of the window. I turned it on and right away I saw the light that says "service filter" come on. After 45 minutes at the lowest setting, the room was still like a sauna.

The toilet in the bathroom was filled with water and had human waste in it. I called the front desk and I was told it would be taken care of in the morning. There was only one towel in the room.

The bed was horrible, I could feel every single coil and wire in it. It was like sleeping on two stacked box springs. There were no cover on the bed, just sheets and no cover were located in the room

The next morning when "house keeping finally arrived they acted surprised that someone was in the room, telling me that were told i was moved to another room. This is when I called the front desk (other hotel) again. That was yet another problem. In most hotels you simply dial the front desk by pressing 0, but here I had to make a phone call. Again I was told it would be taken care of.

By the time I came back from a full day of exploring the counter was filled with water and the floor was soaked. the toilet had once again overflowed, but this time the wall had water running down it. You could actually here the water collecting and dripping in the space above the toilet. The shower only gave nearly cold water and again there were no toiletries left in the room. However there were plenty of towels which I had to use to soak up all the water on the floors.

By morning water was leaking from the ceiling in the main room and running down the counter near the microwave which also did not work and seeping from behind the mirror. Calling the front desk was no longer an option because now the phone in the room did not work.

I called my friends Tina and Andy who stayed at the Prince across the street and told them what was happening. I checked out two hours early to join them in their AWESOME hotel.

This place is a complete dive, the hotel manager would not come to the front desk to speak with me and they refused to give me a check out receipt. One of the guys was in such a hurry to get me out so others could not hear my complaints, but two couples checking in asked me and I was all too happy to tell and show them what took place my two nights.

If you find yourself in Waikiki, this place is not where you want to stay. No matter how cheap it is or even if they give it to you for free.

I will post the videos to my...

Waikiki Marina Tower is the worst Condo Hotel in Waikiki. Its an old dilapidated 40 story hotel at the head of Waikiki. Apparently the building has been in disrepairs for almost a decade. Not sure what happened but you can google the information for yourself.

Ive been living in the building since August of 2016. Its now December 2016. There are 2 elevators. Elevator 1 only worked for a few weeks after I moved in and had several break downs. I live on the 17th floor. Thank god I didn't get a hight floor. Imagine living on the 40th floor and having to walk up. Or if you are hands-capped or in a wheelchair. Even an elderly person. God knows they are plenty of those golden age people living in this building. I am nearly one of them.

From what I have been told and what I can find on the internet. The Waikiki Marina Tower has has this issue for 10 years with its elevators. They are not really trying to fix the problem. In late 2006 a citation was issued by the city of Honolulu directing Waikiki Marina to upgrade the elevators. They agreed. Then sold the property. The new owner took on the same responsibility. They posted a sign in the lobby and at each floor in 2007 stating that there was a major upgrade taking place in the elevators that would take approximately 3 years. The length of time the city gave to repair the issue. It never happened. In 2010 another sign was posted in the lobby and in the elevators stating that the building was doing a major upgrade on the elevators and it would take 3 years to complete. It never happened. In 2013 yet another sign was posted say that the building was doing a major upgrade on the elevators. It said the up grade will take until 2016. In 2016 yet another sign was posted in the lobby and in the elevators stating that the elevators were going through a major upgrade and that the work would continue until 2019. I moved in in August of 2016. I found this information out after I signed my lease. Unless you like walking up and down the stairs on random days and having only one elevator working which can take as long as 45 minutes to get to your room. I suggest that you stay away from Waikiki Marina Towers. I have several months left on my lease and will be speaking with the management company regarding moving and breaking my lease and also requesting a full refund on my deposit.

You have been warned. Rent at...

I am aware that there are many negative reviews about Waikiki Marina. Here I write my personal experience.

We have been here at Waikiki Marina for 4 days and we are going to stay 5 more days. So far My teen and I love this place. Our unit is very clean (I especially love the shower walls and nice water pressure), the A.C. works fine, beds are very comfortable, etc. I like the view from the windows–we can see both a partial ocean view and the beautiful greens alongside the Ala Wai canal. It is easy to throw away trash. The building staff is very friendly too. So far I have not seen any bugs in our room.

It is true that the elevator is slow, but we often just take stairs and it is actually a good experience for my teen and myself. I would not recommend Waikiki Marina, however, if you have a health problem like knee issues, etc.

What I really, really love is the location. Ala Moana Cetner is the hub for the public bus, and if you walk 5 min., you can pretty much can go anywhere in the island.

There are so many great places you can walk to from Waikiki Marina: ・Don Quijote for Japanese food, bento, grocery, and souvenir and everything is only 12 min. away. ・Walmart is only 12 min. away. ・Target is only 10 min. away. ・Mitsuwa market for Japanese food is only 30 min. away and the walk is fun. ・Nijiya for great Japanese bento is also only 8 min. away. ・Foodland for bento for good price is about 10 min. away. ・ABC Stores is only 1 min. away and is a great place to get a gallon of water. ・McDonald’s is also 1 min. away. ・Chart House, the local favorite steak & seafood place with amazing harbor view is only 3 min. away. ・SOHO Hawaii, a Japanese hairsalon with excellent cutting techniques (only $45!!!!!!!) is also 5 min. away.

There are other condo hotels like Ilikai or Discovery Bay in the same area, but they are more expensive. Other cheaper apartment hotels in the same area are, honestly, not looking very good (like people drinking at the condo lobby in the day time = not kid-friendly or the balconies not looking clean, etc.) I am a former Honolulu local resident and come back to the island every year to see my friends. I have stayed in a mansion in Kahala, a million-dollar house in Ewa Beach, a condo near Punahou, and here at the Waikiki Marina in the past. Having said that, I would come back to Waikiki Marina again for the future trip...