On Thursday, well-regarded Outrigger Hotels announced its acquisition of another Hawaii hotel. The new property expands Outrigger’s presence in Hawaii to yet another island and, hopefully with it, brings improvement to a once highly regarded hotel that has slipped into disrepair and mostly unreliable reviews.
The new property is the Kauai Beach Resort and Spa, located just north of Kauai’s airport in Lihue. The deal is still pending and is expected to close within 60 days on undisclosed terms. It may seem like deja vu to some of you long-time Hawaii aficionados since a quarter century ago, Outrigger managed the same property. On that note, Outrigger said, “This transition feels like a welcome home.”
Outrigger said that its “Legacy in Hawaii spans 75 years; we remain committed to being exceptional stewards of this special place and its rich cultural heritage while contributing to the prosperity of the local community.” — Jeff Wagoner, Outrigger Resorts.
There was no mention thus far of plans for improvements of the large 350-room property, which sits on 25 oceanfront acres. With this addition, Outrigger will have a resort presence again on all four major islands. The deal comes just after its acquisition of the Kaanapali Beach Resort on Maui. Following the Maui property’s recent $75M refresh, that deal will close next month. Outrigger has been on a Hawaii buying jag, with many new hotel deals consummated in the past 24 months.
Suspect TripAdvisor reviews of a tired old property.
We know that the hotel is run down. It was shocking to find that Fakespot, the AI review-checking website, says that of the 3,068 reviews on TripAdvisor, just “40.0% of the reviews are reliable. Our engine has profiled the reviewer patterns and has determined that there is high deception involved.” That’s the worst result we can remember seeing when checking Hawaii hotel reviews.
We went to booking.com to check reviews there since its reviewers theoretically have stayed at the property, which is not the case with TripAdvisor. Here are a few booking.com review excerpts from just this month alone:
Old musty carpets. Rooms need serious revamping. Housekeeping just threw the toiletries on bathroom counter. Reception staff does not smile.
The price was very high compared to the quality…The photos do not reveal the reality!
It is deceptive to call this property a “Beach Resort.” No inhabitable beach… The oceanfront does not have a walkway… There are no beach services, no chairs… Our expectations of a “Beach Resort” include a beach. And chairs… I feel like we were scammed.
Nice pools and a jacuzzi. The rooms were comfortable and clean. Restaurant fine dining, far from it, way overpriced and minimalist, food not cooked great. Rooms and food are very expensive. The shower was broken for two days before it was fixed, no apologies or offer to move us. Apart from two receptionists, most were abrupt and unfriendly.
A negative TripAdvisor review even managed to slip in between what Fakespot says are predominantly fake reviews: Very disappointing…reserved a 1 bedroom suite. It was not a 1 bedroom suite. It was one large room with back to back tv’s dividing it. There was no privacy… The room next door was under construction with lots of noise. The staff was aloof and didn’t seem to care about much, only blamed someone or something else. Never again!
History of Kauai Beach Resort.
The Kauai Beach Resort opened nearly half a century ago and has seen many iterations and better days. It was once a lovely Kauai hotel and was previously managed by Hilton Hotels, Radisson, and Hawaii-centric Aqua/Aston, among others. Upgrades have been modest; the last one we’re aware of was $18M more than 15 years ago, which is very little for such a large property. The hotel previously faced possible foreclosure, among other problems. About half of the units are individually owned and managed as vacation rentals.
Outrigger, please give this old resort a hand.
Outrigger properties generally fare far better than the Kauai Beach Resort, which leaves us very hopeful that under their wing, the Kauai Beach Resort may again be restored to something closer to what we remember fondly from decades ago.
We compared some Outrigger property reviews on TripAdvisor, starting first with the Outrigger Waikiki Beach Resort. For that property, Fakespot reports that only 30% of the 6,257 reviews are questionable and that “Our engine has analyzed and discovered that 70.0% of the reviews are reliable.” We also checked the Outrigger Reef Waikiki Beach Resort reviews on Fakespot and found that 70% of those 7,096 reviews are also reliable.
As a brand, Outrigger has a long-standing reputation for seeking authentic experiences highlighting Hawaii’s natural beauty and local culture. They also have resorts in Fiji, Guam, the Maldives, and Mauritius.
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Hello,
This question is not related to this specific property, but to Outrigger: does anyone know why they closed the Outrigger in Kona? Was it torn down, as I have heard? I was there for my brother’s wedding and remember it being a lovely property, but that was a long time ago. Since then, I have been curious about Outrigger’s operations in the islands over the years, and wonder if they have torn down any other properties that they have built or acquired.
Mahalo
The pools and the slide have also just been redone at the Kauai Beach Resort. The Villas are not part of the KBR, but they are allowed at the pools at the resort. Until now, I personally have never heard of any problems at the Villas. If you decide to change to the resort, most of the rooms there are remodeled, some within the last month or so.
Hi Kathy.
Here is one of the search results about that location that appears from a timeshare forum. Since you are an agent for condos there, you must have seen this. https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/kbv-news-letter-the-resort-is-in-bad-shape.338006/.
Aloha.
I am not an agent for any units at the KBV or the KBR. Actually, I am not an agent at all.
Hi Kathy.
Sorry if we got that wrong. The domain of your email address appears associated with a company with condo rentals there.
Aloha.
First stayed at Hilton Kauai Beach Resort 33 yrs ago and were totally thrilled!!
We returned last year and found the resort in very good condition, fine dining, still beautifully kept up, well serviced with very personable staff.
Don’t know where the bad reviews came from, but Grumpies should stay elsewhere!
Nancy – I would ask for a first floor unit in Bldg. D or E, facing the lagoon. I believe they have been remodeled.
hawaiiresortmaps.com/popup.html?maps/map-KauaiBeachVillas-Lihue.jpg
The writer here has not done any resesrch. I was there in 2022 and 2021 and both times had rooms that had been completely remodeled. In fact they were redoing one entire building while I was there. Not 15 years ago.
Looking for additional feedback. I have a reservation in about 3 weeks at Wyndham Kauai Beach Villas with hubby and 11yo granddaughter. It’s their first time and we weren’t looking for super fancy, we live & travel on our sailboat, so are minimalists.Our main appeal was the pools and slide. We reserved a car so we can really enjoy Kaua’i natural beauty.
Did I make a huge mistake? Are there any helpful tidbits of info? Are we walking into a nightmare condo situation? Any feedback is welcomed & appreciated
Hi Nancy.
Do a search for “Kauai Beach Villas problems” and you’ll find discussion about some of the problems. We don’t have any further information about the Wyndham condos.
Aloha.
Can’t speak for the condos (because they may be individually owned), but the hotel and pools are lovely (as of last July), and the service is very good.
” Kauai 1,000 Friends ”
formed to stop the debacle
Now, decades after
corruption in ballot Voter fraud
Resulting corporate speculation ‘this’ BEAUTY to turned into karmic continuum :
There are countless Iwi Kupuna here on this acred `Àina…it ought never been destroyed with concrete & etc.
Kaua`i is overrun with tourists, it holds highest statistics in U.S. for Youth Suicide.
Feces, (archaic Wailua Waste Treatment Facility ) flow into the sea & rubbish in Tsunami Zone is 120 feet above sea level –
Our Children continue to suffer here on the Playground of Billionaires & multinational consortia – which own All the resorts along the coastline of Kaua`i.
Infrastructure is in dire straits, hours to get into Lihu`e – if one is lucky
Doesn’t Outrigger also own the Waipouli Resort in Kapa’a? I’ve stayed there multiple times with my family and love it.
No. Waipouli Beach Resort condominiums are individually owned. Outrigger does maintain an office in the lobby and acts as rental agent for some owners.
Will be going to Hawaii for the first time in May 2024. Will be be hotel for 2 nights before getting on cruise ship. Looking for a nice hotel that’s not overpriced. Hopefully some of the veteran Hawaii goers can get me some ideas.
Aloha Mike,
I think you may enjoy a privately owned condo at the Ilikai on Waikiki Beach! Great location next to the Hilton Hawaiian Village Rainbow Towers and Lagoon. This end of the beach is less crowded with Tons of conveniences and restaurants close by…Staying on Oahu such a short time, you would get the nicest impression and positive vibes of “Waki Waki” staying here! Check out current rates for the hotel and private owner condos…👍🏻
🌴 I have been visiting the Islands since 1973. I have both family and friends that have made Hawaii their permanent home. Having seen so many changes over the years, some are not for the better! Gynormous, opulent luxury hotels and condos line almost every inch of coastline…The islands are a natural and beautiful gift to us all and if Outrigger Hotels’ mission is to preserve “Old Hawaii“ and promote it’s cultural history, I absolutely support and appreciate their efforts! 🤙🏻🌺
This is strange, because the timeshare resort (Wyndham Kauai Beach Villas) that shares the same property is about to go belly up due to years of poor maintenance and shoddy construction. I own 4 weeks there!
Hi Denise.
Yes, when you search for Kauai Beach Villas, you find all of those challenging issues.
Aloha.
The hotel they bought on Hawaii Island has gone downhill.
Employee issues could be a problem.
Not as good as before they bought it!
You live on the island of Kauai. When was the last time that you visited the resort? The building just completed a major spall repair and has been painted and the rooms that are in the hotel rental pool are in the process of being renovated. Most of them have been completed. Most importantly, you can’t find a friendlier staff with more genuine “Aloha” anywhere. Outrigger certainly has the capability of notching the resort up a step, but the most important part of any stay in Hawaii, real “Aloha” is already there.
We were happy to see Outrigger acquiring the Kauai Beach Resort. We have stayed there twice and the rooms by the beach have a great view. The last time we were there we were with friends and were subjected to racial profiling by the hotel restaurant staff. We ended up leaving and eating elsewhere and have never stayed there since. The hotel failed to respond to the complaint. Everywhere else we have had Aloha and always travel with Aloha!
The restaurant management may or may not change. Outrigger leases out their restaurants. They have not managed restaurants in the past.
And my sincere apologies from Maui, that your were treated horribly.
Aloha