This article outlines the hotels in Waikiki, Oahu, that offer club or executive lounges to guests. When deciding which hotel to choose in Waikiki, it is sensible to consider the added extras a hotel club lounge provides. Offerings usually include complimentary drinks and snacks throughout the day, breakfast in the morning, and evening cocktails with canapés. The evening food and drink offering is often more than enough to replace the need to go out for the evening.
Club guestrooms are often a little bigger and offer more luxurious facilities than standard rooms, with more space. They are often on higher floors with better views.
Finally, executive and club benefits are great for early check-in or late check-out, as you can often stay in the club lounge room with all the benefits in the afternoon if you have a late flight. Conversely, you can use the club lounge and executive facilities from early in the morning if you arrive early and your room isn’t ready.
I have compiled a list below containing the club lounges available across best luxury hotels in Waikiki. I list the ones I consider to be the best at the top.
1. Moana Surfrider Hotel, A Westin Resort
The last time I stayed in this hotel was just before Christmas, and there was a charming Christmas train set in the foyer with sparkling snow and a train making its way around tiny mountains and through petite tunnels. It is one of the three main memories of my stay here. The other two moments that stick with me are sitting on the rocking chairs on the balcony at the front of the hotel, looking out to the main street, watching people walk by, and just relaxing in the heat.
And my third memorable moment was sipping a cocktail in the gardens overlooking the beach on the first night. The sunsets quite early here, so we continued to sip as the stars came out. I had terrible jet lag, but the swishing of the waves on the shore and the distant Hawaiian tunes made that particular evening rather lovely.
It is the historic setting and the old-fashioned architecture that makes the Moana Surfrider such a special choice in Waikiki. The hotel was actually built in 1901, and the lobby is in the original colonial building. You enter, bypassing the decked front porch lined with white wooden rocking chairs, and you step into the perfectly restored lobby. Enormous tropical flower displays scent the lobby, and guests are greeted with a lei and a glass of fruit juice. Rooms are, unfortunately, less noteworthy.
The historic and diamond rooms lack a balcony, and although pleasant, they don’t enable you to sit out and enjoy the views. The best rooms here are the more modern Tower Ocean Front and Ocean View Rooms with incredible vistas. If you are not bothered about a balcony, the Historic Banyan Ocean rooms are also cute.
A couple of points worth noting for the luxury traveler. The base rooms here are small and can be musty. You really need to upgrade to a room with a balcony and views for a luxury experience. Many “City View” rooms overlook the International Marketplace to the right of the hotel from the back. The view is great, but the music can be loud and can continue well past midnight.
The location, right in the center of Waikiki Beach with direct beach access, means that you couldn’t be more central. The pool is small, but the location and overall upkeep of the hotel is superb, making it a great hotel choice in Waikiki.
Access to the beach club lounge may actually save you cash even though there is a steep price tag of around $100 USD per room per night. This is actually the going rate for club lounge access on Waikiki, and as this lounge is so nice, we think this offers a great deal.
Although we have placed this lounge in position two, it is less restrictive on opening times, meaning that the all-day snacks and drinks may well be preferable to the Outrigger lounge above. This lounge does actually feel a bit like a beach club, and in my opinion, this is the second-best Club Lounge of any hotel in Waikiki.
The lounge is on the ground floor and has an outdoor seating area, which is great for breakfast and alfresco or drinks in the evening. You are just a few feet above the beach! What more could you want in Hawaii?
The Moana has a popular popcorn machine. There tend to be fewer children at this hotel than at the Sheraton Waikiki up the beach. Usually, this lounge is the more peaceful lounge of the two if your loyalty sits with the Marriott/Westin/Sheraton brand and you collect Bonvoy points.
There is a great selection at breakfast: scrambled eggs, fruit, cheese, and porridge, a nice variety along with coffee, espresso, and bottled water (bottled water is not available at the equivalent club lounge at the Hyatt across the road, so the Moana beach club lounge offers a much better choice if the hotel lounge is a deal-breaker at your hotel). There are also soft drinks available throughout the day.
In the evening, they serve free wine or beer, and your glass will never be empty. There is also a decent spread of food and excellent service.
2. Sheraton Waikiki
This hotel is right on the beach with a fantastic pool, beachfront with super beach, and a great if slightly soul-less club lounge (if you are after a character beach club-style club lounge, head over to the Moana Surfrider for a more child-free experience with outdoor seating).
The downside of this hotel is that it is massive, so don’t expect the personal touch. It’s too big for that! But with huge and enormously high blocks come incredible views! The view from the club lounge is also excellent, although it is just a crowded room (often full of kids) with a decent breakfast and light dinner with snacks and free-flowing self-service wine and beer in the evening. A great spread but lacking in much of a Hawaiian feel.
If you come here to enjoy the pools and beach right on your doorstep and a location right in the center of the action, this hotel is a great choice!
For me, the Moana Surfrider Club Lounge always wins over the Sheraton club lounge. The fact that the Moana Surfrider Lounge is outdoor with mainly covered seating is fabulous. The Sheraton Waikiki club lounge offers great views but views from an enclosed room 30 floors up. You may prefer the pool at the Sheraton Waikiki, but if the club lounge is the dealbreaker, this Moana lounge is easily the best for Bonvoy fans.
3. Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort: Voyager 47
The Outrigger Waikiki offers a Voyager 47 club lounge which is on the second floor of this beachfront hotel (pictured above). This is the newest and the best club lounge in Waikiki. It only opened on July 1, 2018. The first voyagers to the Islands of Aloha sailed there aboard the catamaran canoes. The club lounge apparently sits on the site of the original Outrigger Canoe Club.
Worth knowing: The pool at Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort is nice but has limited sunlight due to the high-rise buildings on either side. You get direct access to the beach from the hotel. Just bear in mind that this is the center of Waikiki, and, as such, it can be quite busy! The pier or break, which juts out from the beach nearby, is a real asset and the perfect place to watch the fireworks from the Hilton on Friday nights.
They say, “In the morning, experience sunrise over Diamond Head with a delicious island-style breakfast. And, of course, premium Kona coffee.
Early evening pupu (appetizers) are served at sunset, with daily specialty sangria, wine, and local craft beer. Best of all, both menus include an unmatched view of the world-famous “Canoes” surf break—the focus of Waikiki’s surf culture for generations.
You can access the exclusive Voyager 47 Club when you reserve a suite or Voyager 47 Club room. Both room types are located on high floors and feature stunning views of the white sand beach and crystal blue ocean. These rooms also have enhanced bath amenities. A dedicated concierge is also in the lounge for planning and vacation tips.
The club itself is at the end of a corridor, and the lounge is a covered area with floor-to-ceiling windows on three sides. These windows look out upon outdoor decking with more seating. The food is a step above all the other club lounge food in Waikiki, so we have positioned this lounge at the top. Expect plates of delicious fruits and salads, omelets, sausages, pastries, crepes with maple syrup and homemade jam, smoked salmon, and more for a breakfast buffet. Teas and coffee are brought to your table by the lovely staff. The decking looks right down at Waikiki Beach, and the stylish rattan furnishings with sea blue soft cushions bring the outside in.
In the evening, you can grab a complimentary glass of wine or beer out on the veranda with delicious charcuterie meats, cheeses, and little pottery bowls of marinated salmon, meats, and vegetables. They describe the evening food and drinks as a “locally inspired tasting menu with pupu platters and specialty draft beer bar, featuring seasonal brews plus local wines.”
The Voyager 47 Club Lounge at Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort is available exclusively to guests staying in Club Level Rooms on the dedicated 14th-16th floors, with 104 rebranded rooms in total. Hours of operation for the Voyager 47 Club Lounge are from 6:00 – 9:30 am and 5:00 – 7:00 pm. This is the only disadvantage of this lounge. You are restricted to using it at the allocated times and cannot drink until 11:00 pm in the lounge.
4. Hyatt Regency Waikiki Regency
The best feature of this property is the Hyatt Regency Waikiki Regency Club lounge. The lounge and, in fact, the hotel is populated largely by Asian visitors, particularly Japanese, giving it a fabulous international feel.
The lounge breakfast offers a nice selection of pastries, a charcuterie of meats and cheeses, and fruit, including strawberries and melon, salads, salmon, and miso. If you are still hungry, there is toast and loads of fresh buns with various jams and spreads. Although this breakfast is not a patch on what you would expect from somewhere like the Four Seasons hotels, it still offers a fresh and expansive free buffet to fill you up in the morning.
Soft drinks are available from a fridge during the day, including Pepsi and cans of other soft fizzy drinks like Schweppes. Plus, you can pick up yogurt, and there are loads of fruit juices but no bottled water to take away.
The evening food and beverage offering includes, once again, a charcuterie of meats and cheeses, along with cold salad items and soups. Deserts are available later in the evening. I can quite easily munch my way through strips of cucumber celery, carrots, peppers, and dips to keep me going, but to be honest. You may feel you still want to eat out after finishing in the lounge. Interestingly, drinks containing alcohol are at extra cost, with beer coming in at around four dollars, a glass of wine at five dollars, and cocktails at six dollars. If you are still hungry, there are plenty of eateries on the doorstep, including things like Subway and McDonald’s, to fill you up.
There is no kids club at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki, and, for me, the rather concrete pool area and the fact that you are across the road from the beach means that this Hyatt Regency is not the best hotel in Waikiki. Still, it is one of the few hotels with a club lounge on Waikiki, so it is worth considering. That said, the Hyatt on Maui and the Hyatt on Kauai are much better Hyatt hotels. They are proper resorts, and both are on the beach. This Hyatt is more of a city hotel and consequently is not such a relaxing place to beach or to bring kids.
5. Prince Waikiki
The Prince Waikiki club lounge is excellent. It is located in the busy Ala Moana area, walking distance from the large mall and harbor, and it consequently doesn’t have direct beach access, making it feel more like a city than a resort hotel.
Book into their Club Suites, and you will be given access to the club level, located on the top floors of the Prince Waikiki. Your room will also be higher up with a better view. Most guests pay around $100 USD extra to use the club lounge.
All hotel rooms and suites here offer an ocean view, either over the harbor or out to sea. Club Suites are on higher floors to offer “sweeping vistas” as well as private access to the Club Lounge, which is only available for those staying on the highest floors of the resort. Interestingly, even rooms 32 floors up have operable windows for fresh air.
The club lounge is perfectly positioned to overlook both pools on the deck. It has small, comfy seating areas both indoors and outdoors (nice rattan furniture outside with lots of comfy cushions). The infinity pool is really nice, with a view of the harbor and ocean, while the main pool is lovely. Just don’t expect a beach here.
Usefully, there is complimentary all-day beer and wine on tap. Yes, the wine is ON TAP! But it’s nice to have for free nonetheless! It is described as “red” or “white”!
Prince Waikiki is at the far end of Waikiki, so to get to the center, you need to catch the complimentary shuttle from/to the hotel, which stops at Ala Moana Center, T Galleria by DFS, and Duke’s Statue. There’s also a golf shuttle to Hawaii Prince Golf Club.
This is a decent club lounge, but the hotel’s location is too far from the center of Waikiki, in my opinion, to give it a top slot.
It is worth mentioning that the Hilton Hawaiian Village, which is near the Prince with its enormous size, does not offer a club lounge. The Marriott, which is situated across from the beach quite close to the Moana Surfrider, doesn’t have a club lounge either. Still, elite reward members get vouchers upon check-in for the complete breakfast in the newly refurbished and expanded dining room. It’s a good breakfast, but there is no club lounge here.
Of course, the best hotel on Oahu is probably the Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina which is not in Waikiki but is a short drive away. Stay here, and you can enjoy the best of Waikiki by taxiing or Uber-ing into town. This is also probably the most convenient of all the Four Seasons hotels on the Hawaiian Islands. It is located in Oahu, which is around a half-hour drive from Honolulu Airport (HNL). You can fly directly into HNL from mainland USA and Canada.
I reviewed the best way to get deals and special offers at Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina, Hawaii. The key is to book your next Four Seasons stay via our luxury travel concierge, and we can give you free loyalty-style benefits, room upgrades, and perks at no extra cost.
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