Know Before You Go: Mauna Lani, An Auberge Resort (Hawaii)
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After several previous nice stays at other Auberge properties, we chose Mauna Lani for a family celebration trip over a long weekend. While we were impressed with the room setup for families, the beach location, and the kids club, the overall facility, dining, and service experience left us feeling more “meh” than “wow” — so much so that we opted to spend our last day on the island at another resort. We would love to come back to the Big Island, but at that price point, will stay elsewhere next time (Four Seasons Resort Hualalai or Kona Village, a Rosewood Resort).
View Trip Report here with our daily itinerary and activities while in Hawaii.
OVERALL RATING
💛💛💛
Standard
Overview
At-a-Glance
Date of stay: October 2024
Length of stay: 3 nights / 3 days
Trip type: Family short break for a celebration trip
Property type: Family-friendly beach resort
Tailor-made for: Families, honeymooners, events
Highlights
Newly-remodeled Ocean View One-Bedroom Suite - great setup for families with sofabed and complimentary rollaway on request
Holoholo Kids Crew — supervised, complimentary kids club (kids age 5-12) with a great facility and programming
Outdoor activities — beach, pool, water sports, etc.
Biking to and around Kalāhuipua'a, a charming historical area on the property with petroglyphs, lava tube dwellings, and extensive fishponds
Lovely design and decor throughout the interior spaces of the hotel
Generous breakfast buffet spread featuring local products with a wide variety of high quality items and a la carte hot dishes
Good to Know
The building is dated and shows its wear from exterior views, in hallways and common spaces
While Holoholo Kids Crew is complimentary, it has a strict reservation, cancellation, and arrival policy — review carefully or risk steep fines
The service was warm and friendly, but the service was hit and miss here and service touches were much sparer than you will find at many 5-star resorts — it felt more like being at a 4-star conference hotel
The dining and wine program was okay but not stellar, and our celebratory dinner at CanoeHouse dragged on for so long due to the service team attending to a wedding group that it soured the evening
Rating Detail
OVERALL RATING 💛💛💛
LOCATION & SETTING 💛💛💛💛+
ROOM 💛💛💛💛+
SERVICE 💛💛
DINING 💛💛
ACTIVITIES 💛💛💛💛
FAMILY SERVICES & AMENITIES 💛💛💛💛+
WELLNESS 💛💛💛💛
WOW FACTOR 💛💛💛
VALUE 💛💛💛
Rating Legend*
💛💛💛💛💛 Exceptional
💛💛💛💛 Notable
💛💛💛 Standard
💛💛 Substandard
💛 Unsatisfactory
*All ratings are relative to similar-class properties
