Local Update:
The 639-room Outrigger Reef on the Beach wrapped up a $110 million renovation. Enhancements include a conference room, two oceanfront boardrooms and several retail shops.
The 1,058-room Ala Moana Hotel is now offering a day meeting package for events of at least 30 people held on or before Dec. 31 of this year. The package includes full-day usage of a meeting room, with a continental breakfast, midmorning and midafternoon breaks, and a luncheon buffet, all starting at $43 per person. The hotel has a total of 14,000 square feet of conference space.
The 387-room JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa at Ko Olina unveiled its new 15,000-square-foot Hokulani Ballroom last year. The property also offers the 5,530-square-foot Ocean Ballroom, 3,100 square feet of prefunction space, three meeting rooms and the Ko Olina Golf Club.
The 1,636-room Sheraton Waikiki recently completed a $187 million renovation that included new guest-room furnishings, the addition of the 6,000-square-foot Spa Khakara and a revamping of the hotel's 45,000-square-foot conference facility.
Hilton Hawaiian Village has renovated all of its function space. In the Alii Tower, completely redone were the Alii and Mahele Presidential Suites, suitable for small receptions. In the Rainbow Tower, the remade Rainbow Suites offer views of the Duke Kahanamoku Lagoon and the Pacific, for groups of up to 180. The hotel also has a 27,000-square-foot lawn for receptions of up to 2,000.
The 887-foot Battleship Missouri Memorial, site of the formal surrender of Japan and the ending of World War II, reopened to visitors in January after undergoing an extensive preservation and refurbishment. The venue attracts some 400,000 visitors every year.
Early last year, the Royal Hawaiian, A Luxury Collection Resort, completed a major renovation that included all 529 guest rooms and the Abhasa Waikiki Spa.
The Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort, recently made improvements to its meeting space and created a new 3,600-square-foot banquet area that can hold up to 150 people. A 500-square-foot lanai complements the space, and high-speed Internet access is available. Also new: the 16,000-square-foot Moana Lani Spa, A Heavenly Spa by Westin.
The Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau will extend its Added Value Resource Center programs through 2011. Special hotel room rates, a list of free activities to add to attendees' itineraries, savings on retail goods and activities, and discounted rates on destination management services can be found at the bureau's website, businessaloha.com.
Meeting Hotels: Properties in the Waikiki Beach area include the 3,250-room Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa; 1,636-room Sheraton Waikiki; 1,310-room Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa; 1,230-room Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort & Spa; 1,058-room Ala Moana Hotel; 817-room Hale Koa; 799-room Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort; 601-room Hilton Waikiki Prince Kuhio; 524-room Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach; 450-room Ocean Resort Hotel Waikiki; 315-room Queen Kapiolani Hotel; 297-room Waikiki Parc Hotel, and 296-room Ilikai Hotel.
In the town of Kahuku, northeast of Honolulu, is the 443-room Turtle Bay Resort. To the southwest, in Kapolei, is the 387-room JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa at Ko Olina.
Convention
Center: Hawaii Convention Center; exhibit space, approximately 200,000 square feet; number of meeting rooms, 49, including two theaters with tiered seating; (808) 943-3500; hawaiiconvention.com
Airport Transit: Honolulu International Airport, nine miles west of Waikiki. Transfer cost by taxi, $27-$33; by shuttle, $10
Taxes: Room tax, 9.25%; sales tax, 4.712%; county surcharge, .5%; total tax on hotel rooms, 13.962%
Group
Venue: The beachfront
Tropics Bar & Grill at the Hilton Hawaiian Village recently completed an $11 million renovation that adorned the eatery in glass tiles, island florals and lots of wood. The venue now offers a 36-seat bar and a private dining room for small groups; live Hawaiian music is the nightly entertainment. Elsewhere at the property, the Mid-Pacific Conference Center offers 60,000 square feet of function space, while the Rainbow Suite accommodates 180 for a banquet and 270 for a reception. (808) 949-4321;
hiltonhawaiianvillage.comAcross the way from the Hawaii Convention Center at Century Center is the new
Apartm3nt Lounge and Restaurant (no, that's not a typo; it's pronounced "Apartment 3"). The 125-seat venue features comfort foods -- think fried chicken, mac and cheese, and meatloaf -- using sustainable and local ingredients. An eclectic wine selection, an urban-style lounge and inventive cocktails are all part of the package. A group of 225 can take over the restaurant on Sundays and Mondays, when the place is closed to the general public. (808) 955-9300;
apartmentthree.comThe
Royal Hawaiian Center offers a variety of meeting and events spaces, including the verdant 30,000-square-foot Royal Grove; the Royal Hawaiian Center Rooftop, which accommodates up to 100; and the Royal Hawaiian Center Lanai, which can host up to 200 people. (808) 922-0588;
royalhawaiiancenter.com
Golf: Hawaii is a sublime place for golf, and Oahu has more than its share of gorgeous greens. Following is a sampling of 18-hole courses.
The North Shore features the Arnold Palmer Course at Turtle Bay Resort and George Fazio Course at Turtle Bay.
The windward coast has the Bay Golf Park, Koolau Golf Club, Luana Hills Country Club, Olomana Golf Links and Pali Golf Course.
Honolulu offers the Ala Wai Golf Course, Championship and Executive Courses of the Hawaii Kai Golf Course, and Moanalua Golf Club.
Central Oahu offers the Hawaii Country Club, Pearl Country Club, Royal Kunia Country Club, Ted Makalena Golf Course and Waikele Country Club.
The leeward coast features the Coral Creek Gold Course, Ewa Beach Golf Club, Kapolei Golf Course, Ko Olina Golf Club, Makaha Resort Golf Club, and West Loch Golf Course.
CVB
Services: Oahu Visitors Bureau, (808) 524-0722; visit-oahu.com