Visit Hawaii: Hilton Waikoloa Village

1. Location

Hilton Waikoloa occupies 62 acres of tropical jungle, cascading waterfalls and exotic wildlife. Tropical fish and friendly Atlantic bottlenose dolphins fill the 4-acre man-made lagoon. You can always walk right to the dolphin area and see the dolphins up close.

At night, take a romantic stroll through the resort's winding walkways lined with flaming tiki torches. Every walk you take will mean new discoveries along the way, like turtles and colorful fish in the lagoon, a cozy hammock, a piece of art, or a beatiful marble statue. The layout and beauty of this place are outstanding.

Getting around Hilton Waikoloa is quite an adventure! The resort has its own transportation system, something you won't find at any other resort in Hawaii. Swift silver-bullet traing or gliding mahogany boat will transport you to any place you want. All you have to do is relax and enjoy an amazing view of art pieces, lush greenery and flowers.

2. Rooms

Rooms at Hilton Waikoloa are upscale but not luxurious. Your room will be decorated with lauhala wallcoverings, Hawaiian artwork, new carpet and bed covers in soothing earth tones.

1,240 rooms are located in 3 towers (Lagoon, Ocean and Palace Tower). Each tower has a fulll room categories, from garden to deluxe ocean view.

Ocean Tower - Exotic garden, boatlaboatlanding food pavilion and adults-only pool make this building a perfect place for couples. This tower also has Executive Rooms that feature upgraded amenities and concierge service.

Palace Tower - This most central tower has a beautiful entrance that leads to the lobby accented with art treasures from around the world. If you are looking for a quiet building, this tower is the best because there are no large pools around it.

Lagoon Tower - This tower always has the most activity, so it's great for families with children. Here you will find several galleries and boutiques, Kohala Center, Kohala Spa and Cafe. Kona Pool with waterslides and Dolphin Quest (swimming with dolphins program) are closeby.

Each room has:

530 sq ft
Beds: 1 king or 2 doubles
Air-conditioning
Private lanai
Built-in platform bed
Color cable TV
Minibar
Spacious dressing area with walk-in closet
Comfy bathrobes
Hair dryer
Iron and board
2 phone lines
In-room safe (fee)
Room service (fee)
In-room massage (fee)

3. Restaurants

With 9 restaurants and 8 bars to choose from (everything from Japanese to family style buffets), you'll never lack for culinary choices. Here are our 6 favorite places:

1) Donatoni's

This is one of the most romantic restaurants in Hawaii, known for its old Italian ambiance. Donatoni’s has welcomed superstars like Clint Eastwood, Tom Cruise, Kevin Costner, John Glenn, and many others.

Designed as an Italian villa, Donatoni’s offers lanai front seating along the waterway with beautiful sunset views. You can enjoy intimate dining in one of four separate dining rooms that offer comfortable seating and beautiful floral arrangements.

Some of their best entrees are:

Filleto Mediterraneo
Beef tenderloin, marinated and grilled, topped with artichokes, arugula and sun dried tomatoes, served with mashed potatoes and porcini truffle aioli.
Agnello Marchigiano
Pan roasted rack of lamb with figs, mint saffron infusion, served with mashed potatoes.
Pescespada Del Ponente
Grilled swordfish with cannellini beans and asparagus salad.

2) Kamuela Provision Company

Start your evening by sipping a tropical cocktail while viewing the breathtaking Pacific sunset, or order a glass of wine from the new wine bar. Between 6 and 9pm, you can listen to contemporary island guitar music which sets a perfect mood for the evening.

Menu at Kamuela Provision Company includes charbroiled steaks, fresh seafood and Hawaiian delicacies like:

Tahitian Curried Crab Soup
Garnished with crab crostini, leeks and carrots.
Volcano Seared Blue Pacific Ahi
Mildly spiced seared sashimi grade ahi on three bean rice salad with shoyu lime and creamy mustard sauce.
Mild Red Thai Shrimp Curry
Served in a pineapple half, with roasted pineapple and steamed white rice.

3) Imari

This Japanese restaurant offers several dining styles: Teppanyaki, where chefs expertly prepare your meal before you; Shabu-Shabu, a traditional Japanese dining experience served table-side, or Sushi Bar, where you will enjoy a variety of fresh Japanese delicacies.

Open for dinner.

4) Kohala Spa Cafe

Here you will find organically grown foods specially prepared to maintain their nutritional value.

For breakfast, you can sample muffins, fruits, French Pressed Coffee, herbal teas and smoothies. Lunch entrees include Poached Salmon with Dilled Cucumbers and Potatoes, Buckwheat Soba Noodles with Nori and Soba Sauce and Oriental Chicken Salad.

5) Palm Terrace

Located in the courtyard of the Ocean Tower amidst lush, tropical foliage and cascading waterfalls, this open-air restaurant offers lavish breakfast and dinner buffets.

Breakfast will tempt you with freshly baked pastries, fresh island fruits, traditional American fare and a selection of Japanese specialty dishes. Themed dinner buffet is very popular. It is different every day, varying from Seafood to Hawaiian to Clambake to Southeast Asian to Italian cuisine.

6) Boat Landing Pavillion

This fast and simple eatery is perfect for people on-the-go. It offers high quality yet casual meals, snacks, or take-out orders. You can get a breakfast, creative sandwich, salad, pizza, or some delicious sushi rolls.

In the evening, Boat Landing Pavillion opens a full bar with live music. Come over to enjoy a cool drink with family and friends after a day of island activities.

4. Things to do

Beach activities
The beach in front is too rocky for swimming (that's very common for the Big Island because of its volcanic origins). The closest swimming beach, beautiful Anaehoomalu Beach, is half-mile down the road and well worth the trip.
Lagoon
Lagoon's calm waters, full of tropical fish, eels and turtles and perfect for swimming and snorkeling. It is not very big (4 acres), but if you have children, it couldn't be better. You can rent any water toy (even kayak or boogie board), or order lunch or drinks while lounging around.
Swimming with Dolphins
The official name of this adventure is Dolphin Quest. Every day, you can enter the lottery (one ticket per room) for a chance to get in the water with dolphins, pet their silky skin and learn about the animals from the resort's marine specialist.
Pools
Three huge outdoor pools and jacuzzi blend seamslessly with the resort's tropical theme. They are surrounded by interesting 10-ft-high Chinese zodiac sign statues and tents for comfortable lounging. Each pool has a lot of fun things like caves, lava-like slides and water fountains.
One-acre Kohala Pool is the largest. Attached sand-filled kiddie pool (with mini-beach and mini-lounge chairs), a hair-raising175-ft waterslide, waterfalls and 3 hot tubs make it fun for all ages.
Adults-only pool is located in a quiet place by the Ocean Tower.
18-hole Putting Course
Seaside Putting Course (30,000 sq ft) was designed by a renowned golf architect Robin Nelson. Challenging putting greens are scattered with sand traps and water features. The main pond is very picturesque: small waterfalls are surrounded by volcanic rocks, rainbow-colored lillies and bright orange koi (carp). Some of the most interesting Hawaiian plants grow all over the course.
Championship Golf
Hilton Waikoloa Village is home to two 18-hole championship courses: Beach Course (designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.) and King's Course (by Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish). Set among dramatic lava fields and adjacent to the ocean, these two are among Hawaii's most beautiful courses.
Spa
Kohala Spa is an amazing facility that blends Hawaiian traditions and European technology. This 25,000-sq-ft health spa offers whilpools, weight rooms, aerobics room, sauna, Finnish and Turkish steam baths. You will be impressed by the variety of treatments including popular seaweek body masques, baalneotherapy baths and unique massages.
Before you go home, stop at the Kohala Spa shop to stock up on Kohala's custom coco-mango line of bath and skin products. Their fragrant tropical scent will remind you of Hawaii for a long time.
Children's Program
Camp Menehune is open every day, and includes crafts, games and water activities geared toward the theme of the day (like Polynesian Pirate, Wacky Sports or Animal Safari). Full-day 9am to 4pm - $65 (in 2004), half-day - $50, including lunch.
Fri and Sat night 5:30pm to 9:30pm - $50 (in 2004), including dinner.
Free Tours
Hilton Waikoloa offers these free tours:
- Garden and wildlife tour
- Fish feeding
- Parrot talk
- Intro scuba lesson in the pool
- Sunday worship
- Tour of nearby petroglyph fields (every Sat morning)
- Stargazing astronomy tour ($15 per person in 2004)
Shopping
Shops at Hilton Waikoloa offer everything you would expect at a resort, from fine art to latest fashions to simple sundries. If you are looking for unusual souvenirs to take home, you may like exquisitely designed glassware, wood works of koa, mango and Norfolk pine, and unique feather leis.
Stores include: Na Hoku (upscale jewelry), Philip Rickard (hand-crafted Hawaiian jewelry), Reyn's (aloha-style clothes that actually look nice), Sandal Tree (all kinds of sandals, from jeweled and glitzy to naturally newutral).
A local shopping center, King's Shops, is only half-mile away.