Overall: I had a great stay here and would recommend this place. The picture are pretty accurate although as other have stated, the unit has fairly dated furnishing and carpeting.
Pros:
- Amazing views. I loved waking up and seeing Honolulu light up and sunset is also spectacular. You get a good view of the city skyline along with view of the ocean. The lanai/balcony was really nice to hang out at and I made sure I went outside at least once every day.
-Location location location- This apartment is in a great location in Waikiki. Beach is 2 blocks away, and 1 block away from all the shops, restaurants, etc. Pretty much the heart of Waikiki.
-Full kitchen - it was really well stocked with everything you need to cook (Rice cooker, coffee maker, pots and pans, dishes, utensils, full refrigerator, etc). I cooked most of the time and didn't need to get anything extra.
-Good sized apartment - since you get one full room + living room, it really felt like home.
-Laundry facilities - right in the building, you need to bring some extra quarters. The price was cheap ($5 for wash and dry) and the machines were pretty new and there were a lot of them!
-Gym - I didn't use this too much but it was one of the draws that made me book this unit. More on this later.
-Air conditioning - there are ceiling fans along with air conditioning for both the living room and the bedroom. Kinda noisy but hey just glad it was available.
-Internet - Wifi was a bit hit/miss for me, however you can just hardwire straight into the router. I was hitting around 150mbps for downloads and about the same for uploads. I was working remotely and it was more than adequate. Wifi cut in and out though, so heads up.
-smart tv - I was able to cast from my phone, use youtube, Netflix, etc.
-Parking/Close to rental car companies - although parking is not free ($16 for 24 hour period) you can reserve it just for the days you need right in the building. I only rented during the weekend since I was working on weekdays, it was nice not having to worry about parking, etc since Waikiki parking is dicey. Avis/Budget/Hertz/National etc rental is available at International Market Place or a hotel near by around 2 blocks away, and was really convenient.
-Check in - Check in was pretty easy breezy, you just get it straight from the lock box at the 1st floor of the building. So you do not have to be at the location by a certain time.
-Extra details - had plenty of towels to rotate around and extra pillows/sheets in the closet. Also the vacuum stopped working and the host got me a new one the next day. Also a lot of closet space.
- Host communication - the host responded usually within 30 minutes to couple of hours, was always available and responded quickly.
Cons:
- Dated furnishing - Bed was hard and a bit uncomfortable and everything in the apartment looked dated over all.
- LOUD - Pretty loud in the unit esp at night since you are right in middle of the city despite the unit being upon the 23rd floor. This is caused by jalousie windows (slat windows) that were popular in the 1960 - 1970s when this building was built. It's inefficient at keeping noise out of the unit, and it's also not good at keeping cold air in. It's unfortunate because it's something that can be prevented by updating the windows. Also you can't have screens with these windows, although most bugs don't make it up to 23rd floor anyways.
- Extra fees/rules/communication - There were a lot of extra rules and extra fees that the host warns you about. It was a bit odd since I've never seen so many reasons to charge a guest (if your electric bill goes over $100, if you don't clean the unit, if you clog the drain, etc). I sparingly used the electricity to test if as a baseline, electricity bill goes over $100, so we'll see. Someone else mentioned that the communication was passive aggressive, and I agree. The host is not a native English speaker so that might be the main reason.
- Cleanliness - I did see little bugs here and there, but nothing major, the host took care of it immediately (this coming from someone who's deathly afraid of bugs).
- Gym/pool - if you are a workout junkie, the gym only has some weight machines and cardio machines. No free weights (mostly the reason I didn't end up using it) or mirrors to check your form. I ended up walking around Waikiki or working out in the living room, but it was still cool that it was available! Also pool is closed for renovation so didn't end up using much of any guest amenities since guest deck is pretty sad looking.
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So overall, I would recommend the unit, didn't really have major complaints during my month stay and found it quite comfortable. The view alone for me was worth it, would stay again and recommend it for someone looking for a place to work remotely.