When I was in Honolulu Tara and I had a free night before the cruise and I chose the Waikiki Marriott. When I was choosing the hotel I wanted something nice and with a view of the beach. I figured for only 1 night that we both wanted something nice and didn't worry about the price too much. The Marriott is on Waikiki beach and with the name Marriott I knew it would be good. There were also several Hiltons and Sheratons I considered, but the prices were more and I wasn't convinced there was much more behind the cost. The biggest downside was that it was at the far end of Waikiki beach which added to the cost of our taxi to and from the hotel.
Things started out very well, when I checked in we were given a complementary upgrade to junior suite with an ocean view. Our room had a huge bathroom, tons of closet space, two beds, a couch, flat screen tv and 2 balconies. I'm sorry we didn't have more time here! We both enjoyed the one balcony which had a fantastic view of the ocean, I enjoyed watching the surfers in the morning. The beds were also really comfortable. We did not eat at any of the restaurants here since we actually weren't hungry the night we arrived. The next morning we opted against spending $15 a person for breakfast and went to Burger King for food but ate it on the beach. We found that to be a good way to save a couple dollars while still enjoying the environment. It's not like the locals go to $15 buffet breakfasts either.
In the evening and in the morning we took a walk around Waikiki and I thought it was a nice beach area. Different spots of the water had a different set up to allow for different water conditions. There was a variety of shops within our hotel and if you can't find it there you can probably find it in within a block or two's walk. Overall the Waikiki Marriott and it's location met our expectations and with the upgrade we were both really happy with the hotel. Actually, my experience with hotels is fairly limited (i.e. I'm not an expert), but this was probably the nicest I've been to and would definitely consider staying here in the future.
