Priceline Hotel: 3* Kauai (Kapaa-Lihue-Koloa) ResortQuest Kauai Beach at Makaiwa

[onedayatatime]

Using the SB Link, I tried the following:

Kapaa-Lihue RESORT $115 REJECTED

Kapaa-Lihue RESORT $125 REJECTED

Kapaa-Lihue RESORT $135 REJECTED

added Princeville $142 REJECTED

I am willing to go up to $160 (maybe a little more) for the RESORT but wondered for those of you with Kauai experiences if the 3* for less money is a better buy? I'm also considering dropping down to the 2* for the Kauai Sands because I've heard decent things even knowing it is very budget oriented. For those who have stayed at the Kauai Sands, did you have a decent room or were you stuck looking at the parking lot? Same question for those who got the Radisson? Obviously every experience is different but I just wondered.

I've read Lonestar's comments about the card discount for the plantation and I will consider doing that.

Do you think that I need to split up my bid dates?

Thanks for any advice you can offer :)

[thereuare]

I think the BIG question is: "What do you want from this trip/stay"?

Kauai is a relatively small island, but due to a lack of major infrastructure, there is one major road which goes 270 degrees around the island... so getting from point A to point B, although it may be only 20 miles, can take a considerable amount of time. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, unless you are staying in the North and want to spend most of your time in the South (or vice-versa).

We stayed in the Kaapa-Lihue and thought it was a great location since it enabled us to easily head North or South to explore the island... although neither was "right there" and both are a car ride away. It was also nice to have the 'city' nearby as it made picking up groceries/snacks/food/drinks for our hotel (we had a kitchen in the suite at the Kauai Coast at the Beachboy) very easy... although there's not much nightlife in the area and most things (including restaurants) are closed by 10pm.

While at the Kauai Coast i toured the other hotels in the "Coconut Marketplace" area and the nearby Courtyard (now a ResortQuest property) looked very nice (we almost stayed there... but when i asked advice from some more experienced than I regarding Hawaii they advised not staying a "business hotel" while in the islands... however, it didn't appear at all to be a business hotel (had been recently renovated) and there are picture at our sister site: RealHotelPhotos.com (still listed as the Courtyard). This property appears to be available on HOTWIRE for your dates, if that interests you at all... but again, it comes down to: What do you want to do during this stay?

[kohalasunset]

Using BetterChecker, I see Sheraton has availability at 179. Hilton also 179, with internet direct (no refund) at 161. Marriott starts at 419, so I think PL may not have access to rooms. You can use the resources HERE to book, if you want a Resort. Sorry I can't help with 3* options, but look at Tripadvisor before bidding.

[LoneStar]

I guess it's buried in a Honolulu thread, but THE value place to stay right now on Kauai is the Hilton Kauai Beach Resort available thru 1-800-HILTONS at the Entertainment Card rate of $90 (some room types are a few dollars more). As long as you can get this deal -- and I think it's wide open -- it's pretty much nuts to bid on priceline for Kauai.

The other good deal is the Waimea Plantation Cottages (WPC) also available using the Entertainment Card. Right now, I'd really only recommend that to families -- you'll get a small house instead of a hotel room -- or lovers of "Old Hawaii." Don't get me wrong. WPC is a great place to stay, but it will cost you twice what the Hilton is going for and -- for most folks -- has worse location.

As the OP has found, Priceline is currently useless in Kauai. I wouldn't bother. The deals just aren't there right now.

[kohalasunset]

If none of these suggetions work out, try Hotwire--there is a 3.5*hotel for 127. LoneStar always has some great deals! Hated to see anyone frustrated bidding. FWIW, I don't think Hilton has resort fees, but call and check. I do think Sheraton charges 15/day and ResortQuest Kauai Beach at Makaiwa (think it's 3* on PL) charges 12/day. If this makes a difference to anyone planning a trip--nice to know the fees in advance.

[onedayatatime]

Thank you for all of your replies. All of the advice is incredibly helpful and I appreciate it very much. :)

I'm going to try to get my hands on that card and go for the Hilton at $90 -- I couldn't be more excited and hope I can make it all work! If I don't have luck finding a card then I'll probably go with the Hotwire 3.5*. Ultimately spending $90 - $130 makes me more comfortable anyways.

We honeymooned in Kauai 10 years ago and loved it -- stayed at the Cliffs Club Resort in Princeville (timeshare gift from my parents). It was a great location because we were close to so many different beaches but it was quite isolated from any other activities and the resort had absolutely nothing to offer. Obviously that didn't bother us because we were honeymooning! Now I think we want to be somewhere in the middle -- probably along the Coconut Coast.

I'll keep you all posted on my progress and thanks again very much for all of the input! :)

[onedayatatime]

Sad news :) I phoned the 1-800 HILTON number and they do not have an entertainment rate available for their Kauai location. Best rate available is $179/night + tax. I'm going to keep working other angles and will let you know what I end up doing.

Any thoughts as to which hotel the 3.5* is on Hotwire? I'm thinking it's the Radisson by what I can tell from the amenities. If it is the Radisson, I think I would be better off to Priceline the 3* instead because I have seen bid wins ranging from $100 -$180/night. I'd better check the dates for those wins though because I could have really old information.

[kohalasunset]

I could easily be wrong about this, but I thought Hilton took over the Radisson. You could check.

[onedayatatime]

Brilliant -- you are right! I Google'd Radisson Beach Resort Kauai and it sent me to the Hilton Beach Resort site. Thanks very much for the tip.

[onedayatatime]

I have a conclusion to my Kauai search -- will start a new thread with the details. I am very satisfied and did have success with Priceline in the end. Thanks again to everyone for all of their help and advice. Most of all thanks to Thereuare for this site!

[onedayatatime]

Using the SB Link, I was successful in booking the ResortQuest Kauai Beach at Makaiwa for $100/night. This was my strategy:

Kapaa-Lihue-Koloa RESORT $115 REJECTED

Kapaa-Lihue-Koloa RESORT $125 REJECTED

Kapaa-Lihue-Koloa RESORT $135 REJECTED

add Princeville $142 REJECTED

Kapaa-Lihue-Koloa RESORT $155 REJECTED

add Princeville $160 REJECTED

add 3* with RESORT $100 ACCEPTED

Lowest average nightly rate that I could find for this hotel was $172/night so I have a savings of $72/night. Over the 6 days, that amounts to $432 in savings. Wonderful!

I checked into the hotel and am pleased with the location, reviews and amenities. I had been considering booking this particular resort directly. Thanks again Priceline and also to this site for all of the help on my bidding. :) I'm one very satisfied customer!

[LoneStar]

Glad you had success on Kauai.

I am surprised the Entertainment rate did not work. I know a couple of people who have recently booked it for April and May. I guess they could have pulled it, or some days are not available. We'll see what sort of luck other folks have.

[LoneStar]

I did call Hilton to see what was going on and it turns out your nights ARE available on the Entertainment Card rate for $90. I guess you reached an incompetent agent. Unfortunately, given the non-changability of priceline reservations, there's not much you can do at this point.

I guess this is a lesson in double-checking when a telephone sales agent says "no." People are human, and they make mistakes.

On the positive side, I think the hotel you received is somewhat similar and your Hawaiian experience should be comparable.

For others, call back if the first agent says "no." I find the Hilton rez staff to be only marginally trained. Be prepared to spell "Kauai" for them.

[LoneStar]

I've got more on your hotel, thanks to my Kauai bible, "Ultimate Kauai Handbook" (I'd urge you to buy a copy before you go -- about 12 bucks on line). It turns out I've stayed at this ResortQuest hotel when it was the Coconut Beach Resort (I think I even wrote a review in the hotel reviews section!). The Handbook says it was a "tired, neglected property" (true), but the new owners "pumped $24 million into it." They now say it's OK, but feel the room decor is "dark," they don't like the $7 self-parking charge, "the property could use some more plants," and the "their beach isn't very swimmable."

From my own experience and what I can tell from the photos, this is a 3 star property while the Hilton would be 4 star. I do think it's a more than pleasant property, however.

[thereuare]

I believe this hotel went from:

Coconut Beach Resort --> Courtyard --> ResortQuest

The Courtyard was the brand which put all the money into it. The renovation was complete shortly before took the pictures which are viewable at RealHotelPhotos). It is unlike any Courytard property i've ever seen (in a good way :) )

I actually liked this area, as even though i was in Hawaii, i'm still a 'city person' and like to be able to walk to different areas... Coconut Marketplace provided easy access to a few different shops (mostly tourist stuff i wasn't interested in) but a great breakfast place "Eggberts" as well as a small conveniece store with soda, beer/wine, snacks, etc. As well, a central location to go into "town" or head North or South (do note that if heading to the Canyon, it's further than you expect, so get an early start). As well, on the "main street" (taking a right out of the parking lot onto the main Highway), across the street from the Italian Restaurant there is a little hut that serves some really good food, i think it's called Mermaids if i'm not mistaken.

Thanks for using the SavingsBarn.com links to begin your bidding.

Enjoy your stay.

[onedayatatime]

It is too funny that you said to be prepared to ask the Hilton reservation agent to spell Kauai because that is exactly what I had to do, twice --- and then I had to correct her more than once on the location I was trying to get because she kept talking about Waikiki. :) In the end, she did confirm that we were talking about the same location and said she couldn't find any available entertainment rate. Incompetent is all I can say and too bad because they lost my business and I lost the opportunity to stay there. Sigh, we live and learn.

No matter the outcome, I am still pleased with the Priceline results. Obviously I could have done better with the Hilton at $90 but :) who knew that the Hilton agent would give me incorrect information.

In the end, I'm not a terribly fussy traveller. I like getting a good deal which I still think I did and I can have a good time whether at a 5* or 1* as long as the accommodations are clean and safe. :)

Besides, I'm goin to Kauai.... how could I complain when we have 5' snow drifts outside and another 3-4 ft. expected over the next two weeks! :o

Hopefully all of this information ends up helping someone else out there. I'll make sure to write a review when I return.

[LoneStar]

You have the right attitude, oneday! Enjoy your trip. :)

[easydoesit20]

Unfortunately the Kauai Sands was sold in December (google kauai sands sold ) to a timeshare company and is closed until they renovate and sell the units. This is a tragedy as I stayed there many times and had oceanview/front for $125. Now the cheapest is probably the Islander On The Beach- The Sands was truly one of the last bastions of affordable Kauai. Dam sellouts.

[onedayatatime]

I wondered what was going on with the Kauai Sands because it appeared on our Timeshare Interval List as a getaway week. I figured it had been sold to the timeshare company but the star rating isn't the normal timeshare quality so I wondered if it was a name mistake. Thanks for the explanation.