Pros:
- amazing location and view - watch some of the most beautiful sunrises from the lanai, even have slight ocean view, walk to everything you need in waikiki, one of the most convenient streets to be located on
- Beach chairs, towels, umbrella provided which was very helpful! We loved that. Also, tons of other beach items ex. snorkel gear, floats, sandcastle items etc that we didn't use but might be interesting for other guests!
- fast wifi for work from home, and fold away table is very convenient as a workstation.
- comfortable stay - mini kitchen amenities very helpful for cooking and saving at home, bed /mattress was really comfortable as well. Large bathroom counter space.
- Most comfortable couch ever - very good for curling up with a movie or book.
- shop in building very convenient for last minute purchases, lovely area on the 6th floor for barbecue, swim, and sauna.
Cons:
- Roaches: Discovered 10+ roaches during the stay, dead and alive, despite pest control coming in during our first week. Host again contacted pest control, who came again, but unfortunately, it didn't seem to help. The amt of coordination around letting pest control in and out, coordinating with the host, cleaning up the dead roaches, and treatment not really working was exasperating and really took away from my stay.
- Communication & coordination: Lots of phone calls and texts before the trip and during the trip from the host, unlike any other airbnb host I've worked with (where we've usually stuck to very few, if any, airbnb messages during the stay). Was a bit stressful managing so much communication. Host requires lots of personal documentation and verification prior to the stay (due to building requirements). You also need to coordinate separately with the in city contact, who is often late vs promised time (once by 2 hours) or reschedules often (which if you're on a holiday, isn't convenient). Our check in was delayed by >1.5 hours as the cleaner was still working.
- Cleaner is not thorough: Despite the cleaner leaving in front of us, it was not very clean: we found a dusty raisin on the ground next to the bed, a lot of hair in the shower drain, and shower curtain railing was very dusty. To avoid additional coordination, we just cleaned it ourselves (quicker).
- Lacking supplies - There wasn't any bathing soap in the bathroom (luckily we brought our own), or cleaning supplies for kitchen / bathroom sink/counter areas. When we asked for the latter, it was immediately provided, and you might be ok without any of these.
Hopefully, the pest issues are a one time thing, so if you are comfortable with lots of communication, this could be a great fit for you, as it is a well located place, and with great amenities.