Despite the review below, Bano is a responsive host. I am
hoping this review could help this unit evolve as I believe there is potential for a better stay for others. I would describe the overall stay as “basic”. There was one, dingy closet that served more as a utility closet than anywhere you would want to hang your clothes. This unit desperately needs curtains. The roller shades are sheer and do not block light. As a result, we were all awakened with sunrise every morning and it was not private at night.
One bed was right up against the glass of the slider so anyone sleeping on that side had the noise of the outside air conditioning unit and the light from outside. That bed was super hard, like sleeping on the floor. The other was comfortable but squeaked with every turn.
The kitchen was not “well” stocked as some have described. Missing simple items like bowls for salad and pasta. Some cabinets were out of reach. Elements on cooking surface did not heat well. Non-stick pans needed replacement, they were very worn. As a result we did not use the kitchen as much as we would have.
Linens for the pull out couch were poor, one was stained with a questionable substance (we’ll leave it at that). We paid extra to have a 4th person (our daughter) stay a few days and she slept on the pull out which was not at all comfortable, she could feel the metal bar under her- and she’s only 105 pounds.
The WiFi was very slow/weak for the entirety of our stay. This caused issues for us as we needed to work and for when kids were watching programs on the computer because there were issues with the TV after a power outage. Owner made efforts to try to resolve this with carrier but we still had problems and just decided to just forget watching tv.
There were also other issues beyond the owner’s control: a power outage for several hours one morning, and one night the building had a water shut of for maintenance.
We were surprised that we could not use the gym facilities. Front desk said our unit did not include access.
Parking is valet only in the building (we knew that). Many times however, we had to wait 15 minutes or more for our vehicle. It was chaotic out in front of the building. Since we were moving our daughter into the dorms at UH and had a lot of stuff to transport from store to unit and from unit to dorm this situation made it even more difficult. It was $28 a day to park which seemed ok but every time you needed your car you felt the need to tip the valet people. In the end it would have cost the same as the parking in other condos in Waikiki and we chose this one for the reasonable parking. The valet drivers did work hard to service everyone and were super nice and professional.
Overall for our purposes this unit fell short of what we hoped/needed. The price at average $270/night probably reflects the basic amenities.
I do believe owners will take care of certain things, they seem like reasonable people.