We visited the Orchid in late May, 2001. After having wandered around most of the nearby resort hotels, we decided we had picked the right place.


The beach:
The hotel has two somewhat small sandy beaches, only one seemingly maintained. They are in small man made coves. The coves provide for good, safe swimming, especially for children. They open out to a rocky shoreline that is populated by about a half a dozen giant turtles that reside in the vicinity. One of them, "Sandy" rests at night on the beach in area cordoned off by the staff. The turtles and a good variety of fish can be fairly easily viewed with snorkel equipment. Much of the boundary with the ocean is covered with lava rock and not suitable for swimming from.


The climate:
Water temperature was 75 degrees F. Air temperature was very comfortable with a day time high of 85 F and lows in the low 70s, with relatively low humidity. The temperature was very suitable for both my wife and myself, which is a rarity.


The grounds:
The grounds are fairly exceptional and give you a feeling you are in paradise. There is a well designed mix of lawn, shrubbery, and trees that work well together. Different area are separated by the vegetation and small landscaped hills. As night falls torches are ceremonially lit throughout the main grounds. Overall, an excellent balance between the more spartan landscaping of the Outrigger and the Disneyland/Las Vegas like excesses of the Hilton.


The pool:
There is a fairly large pool with several different lagoon like areas. One area is setup with a volleyball net. Lava rock is used in some places and reminds you of the volcanic origins of the island. A lot of deck space surrounds to pool allowing you to find your spot without being too crowded. The lounge chairs were in good condition and had pads on them that had sleeves you could stuff your towel into to keep it from falling down. That was a nice touch.
There are two jacuzzi's, one secluded in the midst of tropical vegetation, the other near the ocean with a sandy beach entry. There is food and cocktail service to both the pool and the beach area, though one day we had a very challenging time flagging down the waitress.

There is a nice bar near the pool with stools and a sandy area with tables. We never sat at the tables because during the day we preferred to be on the beach or by the pool, and in the evening we were wearing shoes. You can catch a spectacular sunset at this pool bar by the beach. Drinks were interesting and tasty, though pricey at about $7 for fairly small tropical cocktails.

Dining:
Browns. Outdoor or open air seating facing the beach and the ocean. A reasonable selection of American fare, prepared with an island flair and taste. Very pricey at around $40 or more for most entrees. A very good mushroom soup was $9. Food was very good though not overly unique. Service was flawless, which is extremely rare. Our waiter was very attentive, though not doting, and quite cordial without being improper. Well worth it for one evening, but prepare your pocket book for it.

The Grill. Open only Friday and Saturday. A fancy steak house situated off a wing of the lobby. May be worth a try, but we passed.

The Orchid Court. This is more along the lines of your standard hotel restaurant. Burgers and more. We ate here one evening and had sandwiches. Decent food. Great fries! About par for what you would expect. We didn't have reservations and had to wait about 15 minutes to be seated for dinner even though the place was pretty empty.
They also serve a breakfast buffet for around $22, with a decent selection of items. Worth it one day.


The room:
Our room was attractive and spacious enough. There's a TV, a small table with chairs, three phones (one in the bathroom). The bed was comfortable and the bedding of good quality. A mix of foam and feather pillows. We had a mini bar fridge, but the door kept falling off! One of phones would sometimes fail and disconnect the call.

The bathroom was huge. The floor and walls were marble and nice. There was a tub shower combo with retractable clothes line. There was also a separate shower and toilet area with a door. There was a wall mounted hair. The bathroom was supplied with Aveda rosemary mint shampoo, conditioner, body wash, and lotion. A real treat for my wife.

Housekeeping was great, with service twice a day. Towels were abundant and always fresh. The room was kept clean, but without disturbing out items. The ice bucket was filled daily at turn down and a morning paper (usually the Wall Street Journal) every day except Sunday. Saturday we got a local paper.


Facilities:
The hotel had a health club, a "spa without walls", and an abundant number of tennis courts. We did not use any of these. They also offer daily activities such as hikes or outrigger canoe rides. These were mostly extra cost options at a fairly steep price.

A mandatory $10/day facilities fee was charged beyond the quoted room rate.

Valet parking at $10/day was the norm. We opted for self park, which may be the first time they had ever seen anyone do that. Since they reserve the prime spots for valet parked cars, it was a few hundred yard walk to our car from our room.


Location:
The hotel is well situated near the ocean. However it is about a 30 minute drive to Kona. We had hoped to have a little more flexibility in our dining options, especially once we realized how pricey the dining options at the hotel were. We managed to go out to a luau at the Outrigger and a couple of other restaurants for lunch and dinner. But the lack of proximity to a town made that less convenient than we would have liked.


Overall:
If you can get a good package that includes some food or activities, go for it!





Recommended: Yes