Tour My Hotel Room: Princeville Resort, Kauai, Hawaii, USA

The Princeville Resort knows exactly what their guests want to see: the lush, garden landscape of Kauai. That’s why all rooms have the view of Hanalei Bay. I spent nearly every moment taking pictures of the same view, whether from my room, the restaurant, the balcony, and so on. With a large pool, direct access to the beach and a tour operator desk onsite, the Princeville Resort has everything needed for a relaxing vacation. Staying at the Princeville can be pricey, ranging from $250 to $400 or higher, depending on the season.

I visited the resort in June 2019. The property recently switched owners from Marriott to Starwood. I heard that Starwood plans to renovate and expand the resort under its 1 Hotels brand, which makes sense considering Kauai’s reputation as the “Garden Island.”

Service during my time was touch and go. Overall, I received a lot friendly customer service around the hotel. My only complaint was how long it took for housekeeping to refresh my room. I don’t know if the hotel was short-staffed because of the recent change of ownership, and it wasn’t that big of a deal to me. But considering that Princeville Resort is promoted as a luxury resort, I was disappointed.

Although I thought my room could use an update on certain things, I liked the layout and structure of it. I thought, “it has good bones” if that makes any sense.  The room is very spacious, almost like a junior suite. And as I said before, nothing beats the view of Hanalei Bay!

Unfortunately, during my stay the dining options were limited. Aside from poolside service, there was a small restaurant near the pool serving pub food. Inside the hotel was another restaurant with a terrace that had gorgeous views of the bay. It was open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There was a second restaurant that was closed (again, possibly because of the change). To leave the resort to find other dining options, especially without a car, seemed difficult. I wished there were more dining options on site, and with different price points too. I hope this will be considered by Starwood during renovation planning. And, to add another two cents, I thought the pool could benefit from a swim-up bar. Just saying.

I look forward to Starwood’s plans for the Princeville Resort.

For more information, visit: https://www.princevilleresorthawaii.com/

~T~