We stayed at Hilton Waikoloa Village on the Kohala Coast of Hawaii’s Big Island in 2021, during the Covid era, and filmed enough of it to cover a good part of the resort: the room, the lagoon, the pools, the aqua cycles and the luau. This review is meant to help you decide whether a resort this big is the right kind of Hawaii stay for you: how much walking it involves, what the lagoon and the pools are really like, what our suite was like, and what eating there looked like when we visited.
How this stay came about matters, so here it is up front. We had contacted Hilton’s marketing department about our YouTube channel, and they agreed to a limited collaboration. We had booked the cheapest room possible and did not expect an upgrade, but we arrived at a suite behind double doors at the end of a hallway. Hilton also invited us to the luau, gave us a cabana for one day, and gave us a late check-out after the luau. So this is not a review of what a standard paid stay feels like, and I can’t tell you whether the room is worth its price: our videos don’t state a rate, and I haven’t included any prices.
Everything below describes 2021. A lot of the resort was closed because of Covid, the luau was running at reduced capacity, and I can’t tell you what is open or how things run today. For current operations, check with the resort directly.
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The short answer
- Worth a look if you want one enormous, self-contained resort where a saltwater lagoon where we saw a sea turtle, a huge pool with a waterfall cave, a quieter second pool and a tram are all part of the stay, and you are happy to treat the resort itself as the destination.
- Look elsewhere if you want a small, walkable base with plenty of restaurants outside your door. When we visited, only one restaurant on the resort was open, and getting to Kona town meant a long trip on a single road.
- The biggest trade-off: size. We joked that the resort was so big it needed a tram, then spent plenty of time waiting for the tram or walking instead.
- The biggest surprise: a sea turtle that popped its head up in the resort lagoon while we walked past, on a path that also takes you underneath a waterfall.
If that sounds like your kind of Hawaii stay, you can check current rates and availability for Hilton Waikoloa Village now, and read on for the details that decide it.
What our stay looked like
| When | 2021, during the Covid era. Our videos don’t state the number of nights |
| Room | What Kelly called our royal suite, a surprise upgrade from the cheapest room we had booked |
| How it came about | A limited collaboration with Hilton: the upgrade, a luau invitation, a cabana for a day and a late check-out. Breakfast was free because of our Hilton Honors Gold status |
| What our footage shows | Arrival, a full tour of the suite, the lagoon, the Kona pool, an evening in the hot tub, the aqua cycles and the luau |
| What this review can’t cover | A standard room, most of the restaurants, anything not in our footage, and how the resort runs today |
How big it is, and how you get around
We described the property on camera as about 65 acres; other sources put it closer to 62. Either way, you feel the size. On arrival day we said the resort was so big it needed a tram to get around, and we checked in to a room at the very end of a hallway, behind double doors. That first evening we walked to the far side of the resort to watch the sunset, which we swore was about a mile. On our second evening, after the hot tub, we made what she called a two-mile trek back to the room. Those are our estimates, not measured distances.
A tram goes around the property, and to us it looked like a dead ringer for the monorail at Disneyland or Disney World. One afternoon we decided the wait would be too long and walked back to our room, and later that day we waited roughly seven or eight minutes for it to take us to the other side of the resort for the pool. Kelly also pointed out a canal with boats running around the property; our videos don’t show us riding one. If walking long distances in the heat is a problem for anyone in your group, think about that before you book a resort of this scale.
The lagoon, the pools and the day beds
We thought the lagoon was really cool. It is salt water fed by the ocean, so fish and other critters come and go, and on our walk around it we saw lots of small fish and a sea turtle that came up and stuck its head out of the water while we watched. The path around the lagoon takes you underneath a waterfall; as Kelly put it, it is the back side of the water. The ocean right beside it is lava rock, which we said you can’t really swim in.
The Kona pool is the main pool, and it is gigantic. It has bridges over it and a waterfall cave area that you can swim into. Kelly said that if she were a kid she would have freaked out over it. There is also a pool with a sandy bottom that feels like a beach and a pool combined, so we said there is something for everyone. The resort has a second pool, the Kohala pool, which we thought was smaller and quieter. On our second evening we found a hot tub by the big pool area with nobody else in it, which Kelly called extra special: it helped with Covid, and she doesn’t like sharing a hot tub with strangers.
Day beds were available to rent by the lagoon when we visited, and on our second day Hilton gave us a cabana with one of the luxury day beds. On our last day we spent a little time lying on a day bed doing nothing, which we said is completely out of character for us; we could only stand it for about half an hour before we went for a change of scenery.
The suite, and why you shouldn’t count on one
Because this was an upgrade, treat this section as a look at what the top of the range can be like, not what a booking will get you. Kelly called the five balconies (lanai, in Hawaii) the best thing about the room, each with a view in a different direction, including the mountains, the village, the ocean and the resort.
The living area was huge, with a dining table that could seat six people, a wet bar with a mini fridge, a coffee maker, a desk, a couch we thought pulled out, and a big TV. The resort also had PS3 consoles and a DVD rental setup, so you could watch movies. There was a first bathroom off the living area, a balcony facing the mountains, and then the bedroom with a king bed we both slept hard in, a second TV, a chaise lounge, and a closet Kelly called gigantic. The master bath had his and her sinks, a walk-in shower, and a bathtub, which Kelly noted hotels are getting rid of these days.
The double doors at the end of the hallway were our first clue that something was up. Free breakfast, which Kevin brought back as a grab-and-go option because of Covid, was free with our Hilton Honors Gold status.
Things to do without leaving
At the beach shack by the lagoon you could rent kayaks, paddle boards and aqua cycles. The aqua cycle is a big pedal-powered tricycle for the water, and our verdict was that it’s the dumbest-looking thing you’ve ever seen. We took one out to find the turtles anyway, and managed to run over something before we’d gone far.
The luau was the other highlight, and as noted above Hilton invited us to it. Kevin was first in line, so we sat front and center, with a couple of mai tais. We guessed the luau grounds could fit around 700 people normally, but because of Covid it was more like 200, with every table at least six feet apart. The first thing to arrive was an appetizer of purple sweet potato chips with onion dip, and everything we were served looked really tasty. After the show our reaction on camera was simply “what a show”.
Eating, and getting off the resort
Food was where Covid showed most. On our first night only one restaurant on the resort was open, an Italian one, and since it was our first night in Hawaii Kevin said no to Italian. We ate at a restaurant in Waikoloa Village across from the Marriott instead. The next night we ordered in, which seemed to be the popular thing to do during Covid, and had chicken parmesan, which was actually pretty tasty. A lot of the resort was closed, and the bar was closed too, so there was no mai tai that night.
For one lunch we went into Kona for poke, from a spot we had loved on a previous Big Island trip. It turned into about a two-hour outing: there is one road from Waikoloa into Kona, construction added at least half an hour, and we first went to the old location, which had closed, before finding the new one. The poke was even better than Kelly remembered. If you plan a day like that, build in more time than the map suggests, and consider booking something for while you are there; the Kailua-Kona tours page on GetYourGuide lists what is bookable on that side of the island, including a night manta ray adventure.
Who it suits
This is our read, not a rule. A resort like this suits people who want to stay put: a lagoon and pools to rotate between, things to rent, a show in the evening, and a room big enough to spend a morning in. It is probably not the right pick if you want a small, quiet property or the option of walking to a lot of restaurants. When we visited, getting off the resort for a meal took real effort, though that was a Covid-era snapshot.
What our videos don’t cover
Our footage doesn’t cover a standard room, the resort’s restaurants other than the one Italian place, the resort’s other activities, or how any of it runs today. Kelly said on camera that we hadn’t been to the pool bar yet, and that we hadn’t done a very good job of showing the resort, so please read this as a partial picture and check the resort’s own pages for the rest.
Before you go
- Treat 2021 details as history. The closures, the reduced luau capacity and the grab-and-go breakfast all reflect Covid conditions in 2021.
- Budget extra time for Kona. We had a rental car, and a trip into Kona town took far longer than we expected.
- Think about walking. Between the size and the tram waits, comfortable shoes matter more than you might expect at a beach resort.
- Check the details with Hilton. Rates, fees, dining and activity hours change, so confirm them on the resort’s own page before you book around them.
Plan your trip
You can see Hilton Waikoloa Village on Booking.com to compare room types and current rates.
Frequently asked questions
Did Hilton sponsor this review?
It was a limited collaboration: we reached out, Hilton agreed, and we got an upgrade, a luau invitation, a cabana for a day and a late check-out. We had booked the cheapest room.
How big is Hilton Waikoloa Village?
We said about 65 acres on camera, and other sources put it at about 62. It is big enough to have a tram, and after one evening Kelly called the walk back to the room a two-mile trek.
Is there a sea turtle in the lagoon?
We saw one come up and stick its head out while we walked around the saltwater lagoon, which is fed by the ocean. Wildlife comes and goes, so there is no guarantee.
Can you eat on the resort?
In 2021 only one restaurant, an Italian one, was open on our first night, and a lot was closed because of Covid. Check with the resort for what is open now.
Final verdict
Hilton Waikoloa Village gave us a lagoon where we saw a sea turtle, a pool with a waterfall cave, an upgrade we never expected, and a luau where our reaction was simply “what a show”. It is also huge, and the size is the thing you will either love or resent. Because the room and several extras were part of a collaboration, I can’t tell you whether the price is worth it, only what the place was like to spend time in.
Read next: Conrad Bora Bora Nui: A Review and Planning International Travel: What to Research.
Image credits: the pool photo near the top is by Raita Futo, and the article’s featured image, a view of the lagoon bridge, is by Bill Ward. Both are licensed CC BY 2.0 and were found on Wikimedia Commons. All other images are stills from our own videos.
