Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii

We stayed here for 4 nights in June. I believe the room was 2246. This is a 3 star hotel at best pretending to be a 5 star and I travel quite often. The lobby and main areas were clean and check in was okay. Staff is nice. The years of poor cleaning was apparent in our room. The room appears clean from a distance when you walk in. The patio furniture hadn’t been cleaned in weeks or months. There was hair on the bathroom walls and walls of the shower, toilet base smelled of urine, and caked up dirt in places not being cleaned regularly. Bathtub was rusty and needs to be refinished. Shower tiles full of mildew, worse than a college dorm. Linen and towels are obviously laundered, but they are old, thin, and need to be replaced. There were 4 of us but every single day we had to call for towels because they would only stock a set for 3 people for some reason. The pool is nice. Use of the laundry facilities is included and was utilized by us. We appreciated that. They also charge $38 a day for self parking, but parking is included in the resort fee at Fairmont Kea Lani in Maui. That location is a true 5 star resort and a gem. If I visit Big Island again, I would not stay here. For the prices, rooms need to be overhauled asap. We bypassed the time by not spending a lot of down time in the room. The one and two star ratings are accurate.

We recently took our annual family trip, and this time, we opted to try a new island that we have never been to before. After going to Maui umpteenth times, and Oahu a few times as well, we decided to try the big island this time around. After scouring the internet for 5 star resorts that weren't crazily priced, I came upon the Fairmont Orchid. We stayed at the Fairmont Princess in Scottsdale, AZ last year and really enjoyed it, so we figured, why not? We know that the Fairmont on Maui is gorgeous, as we went for breakfast there a few years ago. I booked two (2) Gold premium ocean view rooms (one for me and my husband and one for our daughter and niece). You gotta go with the Gold rooms, as they come with access to the Gold Lounge which is 100% worth the up-charge for the rooms. A few days before our arrival, I received a call from Lora on the Gold floor, who, btw, was just wonderful! During our call, she informed me that the Gold lounge would be closed for 2 days while we were there to make some upgrades. She made sure to let us know that we would be receiving complimentary breakfast buffets for those 2 days, as well as a F&B credit for not having the canapes available. We were totally fine with that. Although, it was sad not being able to go grab snacks and drinks for those couple days...but not a big deal at all. Upon our arrival, we were greeted with fresh leis and taken to the Gold floor by the bellman and bellwoman (is that a word?). They were so nice and gave us a tour of the hotel on our way to our building. Once we hit floor 6, where the Gold rooms are, we were greeted by Lora and Samuel. Samuel offered us some champagne and they got us all checked in. We were taken to our rooms, which were very nice. They look just like the photos on the website. We had a beautiful view of the ocean and the pool with the waterfalls just outside of the window. We felt very at ease and glad to finally be there. We didn't really go to dinner that evening, since I passed out at 6pm (Hawaii time) from all the traveling that day. The next morning, we hit up the Orchid Court for the breakfast buffet since that was day 1 of the Gold lounge being closed. I gotta say, we weren't that impressed with the selection. After having the buffet at the Fairmont on Maui, we were excited to see if this one was just as great. It wasn't. It was about half the size of the Maui location, and the food wast just kinda warm, not hot. We definitely wouldn't pay $50 per person to eat there if it weren't being comped. We went back the next day, since that was day 2 of the lounge being closed, and it was still not very good. The service was also a bit non-existent that day as well. It was our last time going to the buffet for the rest of the trip. The pool area itself is nice, but the pool is a little dirty. My teenage daughter and niece both said it was dirty and had hair and garbage floating in it. They opted to go to the beach instead and go snorkeling. They enjoyed that very much. The beach is really pretty there. Not huge, but really nice and the water is so clear and blue. Fast forward to dinner time. We ventured outside of the hotel over to the Auberge to have dinner at the Canoe House, which BTW, you have to try! Amazing service and food. Anyway, they had weird desserts on the menu, so we said we were gonna go back to our hotel and grab dessert at Hale Kai, which is the restaurant by the pool. We walked up and asked for a table to grab some dessert. We were told we could order it to go, since they were too busy to have us sit there just to have dessert. So we left, and I was angry to be told that we, paying hotel guests, spending a lot of money on two rooms, couldn't sit down and have dessert. Nope. Wasn't having that. I told the concierge on the Gold floor what happened and explained that as a 5 star resort, that this was unacceptable. She agreed and put in a report. Next morning, the Gold Lounge was finally open again. Hallelujah! We went to grab breakfast when they opened and we're so happy to be able to go sit there and relax. When we were there, we were chatting with the 2 sweet ladies who worked there and told them how happy we were that they were open again, and told them about what happened the night before at Hale Kai and how we were so glad that we would be able to grab dessert at the Lounge again. Well, someone pretty important was there and overheard us and was just flabbergasted at what happened. He assured us that this matter would be taken care of immediately, and boy was it ever. My husband received a few phone calls from different folks apologizing for what happened and was told it was being handled and would not happen again. We appreciated the follow through and the efforts made to correct it. Anyway, the two of us decided to go have massages at the Spa Without Walls that day. Lora set those appointments up for us, and wow!!! I had such an amazing massage. They take you to these little huts that are around the pool area (sorta) and when you lay down, there is a glass viewing area to see the fish swim underneath you while you are having your massage. I fell asleep, because I was so relaxed. Literally one of the best massages I ever had. Hands down. Would definitely recommend! The luau was ok. Nothing mind blowing. Not sure if it was worth what they charge for it, but the girls had a nice time, so that's what was important. Overall, we had a really nice time at the Orchid. I think the Gold level really made the trip special. I don't know that we would have enjoyed the trip as much if we stayed in a regular room. The hotel definitely needs a bit of maintenance. Our building was down to 2 elevators, and at one point, only 1 elevator was working. That, to me, wasn't acceptable. But it was fixed in a pretty timely manner, so it wasn't that big of a deal. But there could be some touch ups here and there. Housekeeping was great. Super friendly and accommodating. Anyway, if you're looking for a reasonably priced 5 star resort, the Orchid is a great option.

What an amazing time we spent at Fairmont Orchid! I love the newly renovated suite. Laura and her team at Gold Lounge were amazing. I highly suggest booking the Gold Lounge if it is within one‘s budget. The morning buffet at Orchid Court was a great way to start the morning. We have gone to Orchid yearly and will continue to do so.

A truly amazing ocean resort in paradise. The gold level was truly a great experience worth experiencing. The staff amazing and helpful. Was hard to leave the resort for touring as you are trapped in the luxurious but natural tranquility of this place. A very well managed hotel to have such cleanliness, amazing gardens and such great staff always helping out. Resort was full for the Ironman event I met my family to support. Yet the resort was still quiet with great service.

The hotel is acceptable. The pool and beach area can be crowded. Most of the staff was pleasant. Food is expensive (a cheeseburger is $39) but fairly good. Room condition was OK. Sink drained slowly. Was unable to order room service due to lack of staffing. Called about 10 times before giving up. Biggest issue was the taxi scam upon departure. The hotel staff called a taxi for us. As time went by, they were insistent that the taxi was coming soon and that we should take the taxi. Upon arrival at the airport, the taxi driver claimed we owed a $105 flat fare and that she could not give us a receipt. The signs in the taxi clearly stated that, pursuant to local law, we were entitled to a receipt and our fare would be metered based on distance. When I previously took a legitimate taxi from the airport to the hotel, the total fare was less than $80. In summary, it’s a decent hotel. Our feeling were mixed until the point the hotel ordered us a scam taxi. At this point we would not return.