Posted by If you are visiting Oahu in Hawaii, the typical place to stay for visitors is Waikiki. With a stunning beach, various luxury hotels and a vibrant city to explore, it makes sense that many tourists choose to stay in this area. However, on our last trip we traveled further West to check out what is potentially the best hotel in Oahu — The Four Seasons Resort at Ko Olina. Read on to find out our thoughts.
Ratings rundown
| Accessibility | 8/10 |
| Ambiance | 8.5/10 |
| Accommodation | 9/10 |
| Pool(s) | 8/10 |
| Food and drink | 7.5/10 |
| Beach | 9/10 |
| Facilities | 9/10 |
| Service | 9/10 |
| Overall % | 85% |
Accessibility
Ko Olina is a little off the beaten path compared to Waikiki, and the most convenient way to get here is by car / taxi. Depending on traffic, it takes around 40 minutes to get here from Waikiki and 25 minutes from Daniel K. Inouye International Airport.
There isn’t the same hustling & bustling atmosphere of shops & restaurants here as in Waikiki, so expect to spend most of your time in the resort and enjoying the lagoons Ko Olina is most well-known for.
Accessibility rating: 8/10
Ambiance
The hotel is expansive, elegant and luxurious but, at the same time, is able to blend in seamlessly with its natural surroundings.
We loved how open & airy the hotel felt and also enjoyed discovering calm & serene pockets of the property — whether this was the koi ponds, its separate spa/wellness building or quiet paths by the beach.
Ambiance rating: 8.5/10
Accommodation
There is a choice of various rooms & suites at this hotel — we stayed in their ocean-front suite.
Accommodation highlights
- Space: one of the key luxuries of having a suite was the amount of space available to us — the place was expansive, with a walk-in-wardrobe, living space, desk, full-bathroom with double sinks, balcony etc.
- View: the ocean view was incredible, with our room also overlooking the lush vegetation and ponds underneath
- Amenities: the amenities provided in the room were superb; not only are the toiletries, bathrobes etc. super luxurious but additional items could be ordered easily from the in-room tablet
Accommodation lowlights
- Shower: there were very few faults with this hotel room, but if we were to be picky it would be the shower — the handles were difficult to turn and the water pressure was super weak which was not ideal after a long day in the sand at the beach
Accommodation rating: 9/10
Pool(s)
The hotel has four different pools available — a family pool, adult infinity pool , Keiki Pool and lap pool in the spa & wellness area.
The family pool is located in a very central area of the hotel between restaurants, so perfect if you want to stay in the heart of the action with your children.
The infinity pool is more secluded and has a swim-up bar, creating more of a beach club feel. While the views are stunning here, it can get quite crowded so do keep this in mind.
Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to check out the Keiki and spa pools during our stay.
Pool rating: 8/10
Food and Drink
The hotel has quite a few different restaurants on-site: Mina’s Fish House (more refined dining, with focus on seafood), La Hiki (casual dining) and Noe (Italian).
Breakfast
For breakfast we visited La Hiki, where they offer a choice between a breakfast buffet or à la carte items.
We chose the breakfast buffet which had a fairly good range of Western & Asian dishes, including an egg station, dim sum, fresh fruit selection and assortment of pastries / cakes. The food was fairly good and the fresh fruit juice super refreshing.
Lunch / Dinner
For dinner on the first night we visited Mina’s Fish House. We chose their set menu which started with a variety of fresh fish, followed by their iconic lobster pot pie, then mains of more fish with garlic rice and finished with malasadas (Portuguese donuts).
We loved the lobster pot pie in particular, and would recommend making a reservation if you are planning to stay at the Four Seasons. The portions are super generous though, so do keep this in mind before going.
On the second night, we visited Noe. Instead of being ocean-side like Mina’s Fish House, this restaurant is located in the garden section of the hotel, with the koi pond close-by.
We chose seafood starters to begin (fish / squid) which were good, but the highlight of the night were the mains of lobster pasta & veal milanese. Again, the portions are pretty huge, so we didn’t manage to finish everything.
Later on in our stay we also stopped by the Mānalo Lounge which was the perfect place to unwind and relax with drinks and some nibbles. We also loved the location of this lounge, with comfy sofa seats overlooking the beautiful lagoons. Here were ordered a some of the best ice cream of our trip which was their toasted rice ice cream sundae, which is an absolute must-order if you ever stop by.
Food and drink rating: 7.5/10
Beach
One of the real stand-out features of this hotel is its direct access to the Ko Olina lagoons. The lagoons make for super calm & peaceful waters (although it can be a little cold at times!), and the shallow areas are sandy, so no need to worry about standing on uneven rock.
The hotel has multiple loungers by the beach, with staff on hand to set these up for you and provide drinks / refreshments.
There is also a variety of complementary beach equipment provided by the hotel e.g. paddle boards, snorkels etc. to keep you entertained for longer.
Beach rating: 9/10
Facilities
We were pretty amazed by the extensive health & wellness facilities available at the hotel. There is a whole building dedicated to the spa, multiple fitness rooms (including an outdoor gym) and tennis / basketball courts.
The hotel also has a packed schedule during the day, if you ever find yourself with downtime, offering activities like flower crown making, yoga, meditation etc. There are also various paid-for activities that the hotel offers including a sunset sail, an ocean sailing & paddling experience and a Pearl Harbor Warbird Legacy Flight experience.
Facilities rating: 9/10
Service
On the whole, the service at the hotel was excellent. We were greeted with leis (Hawaiian garlands) upon arrival, received welcome gifts in our room (chocolate covered strawberries, Hawaiian shortbread, fruit & champagne) and were allocated prime tables in restaurants etc. We also found the concierge to be particularly helpful in organizing our transfer back to the airport on our last day.
We will say that the service in the restaurants could be quite slow at times, given the sheer number of guests dining at one time, but this was not too much of an issue.
Service rating: 9/10
Summary
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina. Our stay meant we could truly unwind and relax, with everything we needed provided for by the hotel. For the perfect trip to Hawaii we recommend spending a couple nights here, in addition to a few more nights in Waikiki (the Halekulani Hotel is the place to stay there) to get a true taste of the luxury this island can offer.
Luxury Jetsetter 