Have you ever wondered which hotel room category you should choose? Planning a trip to Hawaii requires a lot of decisions, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Do you ever wonder if you’re choosing the optimal travel dates, or the Hawaiian island that best suits you? Even picking a hotel can be daunting, but once you do – you’ll then need to decide on a room category. Time and time again, we talk to people who are confused about the different categories, and don’t know what to expect. We don’t want you to be disappointed when you walk into your hotel room, but unfortunately it does happen. Therefore, we’re breaking down the most common Hawaii hotel room categories to help you make the right choice.

What Are Hawaii Hotel Room Categories?

A hotel room category describes the type of room you’re getting. The most common ones you’ll find in Hawaii hotels are:

Standard

Partial Ocean View

Ocean View

Ocean Front

There are even variations and subcategories within these too. Generally speaking, the room size and decor is the same across the board. The biggest difference between hotel room categories is usually the view from your balcony (lanai). Furthermore, while we’re on the subject of lanais, most rooms have one, but occasionally they don’t. This should be specified under the room description. If a room doesn’t have a lanai, the room category is mainly based on the view from the room’s primary window.

Occasionally, hotels will also categorize room categories by the bedding. For example, they may offer two Ocean View room options. An Ocean View Room with a King bed, and an Ocean View Room with two double beds. In these situations, the view is the same, but since the bedding is part of the room type, your bedding is guaranteed. Usually bedding preferences are only a request, not a guarantee.

To help you understand better, try this. Imagine your hotel in the shape of a rectangle. Next, picture the hotel on the beach, with one of the short ends of the rectangle facing the ocean. These are the Ocean Front rooms. The rooms on the opposite short end are the Standard rooms. Those are the easy ones. The two long sides of the rectangle contain Ocean View and Partial Ocean View rooms. The rooms on the long rectangle sides closest to the ocean are Ocean View, whereas the rooms closest to the Standard Room end are the Partial Ocean View rooms. Of course, this is a simplification, but it’s a good way to understand a hotel room category’s position.

Standard Room

Depending on the hotel, standard rooms may be called different things. In general, rooms classified as Garden View, Waikiki View, Mountain View or City View all fall under the “Standard Room” moniker. It boils down to one thing – there isn’t a view of the ocean from your room. The view can be literally anthing but the ocean. Hotel’s parking lot? Standard room. Unsightly air conditioning units? Standard room. Glittering evening city skyline? Standard room. Lovely view of mountains behind resort? Standard room. View of manicured resort grounds? You guessed it, Standard room. It all depends on the hotel.

Subsequently, Standard rooms are usually the most affordable hotel room category option. They are perfect for visitors who don’t plan on spending a lot of time on their balcony. If you want a beachfront hotel with lots of amenities, you can still stay on budget by choosing a Standard Room.

Partial Ocean View Hotel Room Category

A Partial Ocean View hotel room category is probably the most misunderstood of all of them. Most of the time, when a room has a “partial” view of the ocean it translates into a sliver of an ocean view. Unfortunately, a lot of people find this out the hard way. In fact, the only reason we offer Partial Ocean View rooms in our Hawaii All-Inclusive Vacation Packages is in case the Standard room category is sold out, and the Ocean View room is out of their budget. To be fair, some people may be fine with an extremely partial view of the ocean, and in that case, we’re happy to oblige them. Just make sure you’re not thinking you’re getting an Ocean View when you book a Partial Ocean View.

Ocean View Room

One of the most popular hotel room categories, an Ocean View Room is a classic choice. However, be careful not to confuse ocean view with ocean front. An Ocean View Room simply means you will have a view of the ocean from your lanai. How big that view is depends on a few factors.

• Is it a beachfront hotel?
• Does the hotel offer different categories of ocean view rooms, such as Deluxe Ocean View?
• What floor are you on?
• Is there a hotel right next to your resort?

Let’s dive deeper.

Is it a beachfront hotel?

This matters because the closer you are to the beach, the better the ocean views. This may surprise you, but there are hotels over a block from the beach that have limited ocean views!

Does the hotel offer different categories of ocean view rooms, such as Deluxe Ocean View?

Over the years, hotels began classifying Ocean View rooms into subcategories, such as Deluxe Ocean View. If you’ll go back to the rectangle metaphor, the Deluxe Ocean View rooms are the rooms closest to the corner where the Ocean Front rooms begin. In other words, Deluxe Ocean View rooms offer a more premium ocean view.

What floor are you on?

In general, the higher the floor, the better the view. Although high floor rooms aren’t guaranteed, we are able to request it. Please remember a request is just that – a request. The hotel has no obligation to fulfill it.

Is there a hotel right next to your resort?

If there are other hotels in close proximity to your hotel, such as in Waikiki Beach, it may limit the scope of your view. This isn’t an issue as much on the neighboring islands, since there isn’t a specific area that’s in high demand like Waikiki is.

Ocean Front Hotel Room Category

Undoubtedly the most desired hotel room category is an Ocean Front room. To put it quite simply, when you look out from your lanai, the ocean is directly in front of you, hence the name. These rooms are on the “short end of the rectangle” that face the sea. Ocean Front rooms offer creme de la creme ocean views. Of course, these rooms come at a cost, but if you plan on relaxing on your balcony often, the splurge may be well worth it.

Additional Hotel Room Categories

Suites

We’ve covered the main hotel room categories, but there are still more to choose from. Many resorts offer suite rooms, in many of the same “views” we’ve already covered. Typically, these rooms have a separate living area from the bedroom. Pay close attention to this, however, because some properties use the word suite without it being what most people consider a suite. There are Jr. Suites, which are often just oversized hotel rooms – not a separate sleeping area. There are also one and two bedroom suites. Two-bedroom suites can be outrageously costly, so our advice is to check the price difference between the suite and two adjoining hotel rooms. Furthermore, pay attention to the number of bathrooms a two-bedroom suite has. If it’s only one, you may be a lot happier with two separate hotel rooms (and restrooms) instead.

Bungalow Rooms

Some resorts, such as the Royal Lahaina Resort in Maui, offer bungalow rooms. The Wayfinder Waikiki has villa rooms. These rooms offer a more intimate, boutique experience. However, you aren’t getting an entire bungalow or villa to yourself. You will still get an independent hotel room, such as in a traditional hotel tower, but they will be part of smaller building on site.

Traditional vs Deluxe Rooms

When it’s time for hotels to begin refreshing or renovating rooms, often times they will spread the project out over several months, or even years. A primary reason is so they can accommodate guests and remain operational during the project. Unlike some vacation destinations, Hawaii is desirable year-round, so there’s never a “good time” to have rooms out of commission. Therefore, many resorts have updated and rooms that haven’t been refreshed. Many times hotels will label rooms not yet renovated as Traditional, and the renovated rooms as Deluxe. There may be a Traditional and Deluxe version of every available room category, such as at the Outrigger Kaanapali Beach Resort in our All-Inclusive Maui Premier Vacation. This allows you to stay at a beachfront resort that otherwise might be out of your travel budget.

What Is Hotel Room Occupancy?

This can be a little confusing, so we dedicated an entire blog article to this. You can read it here.

Summary

As we wrap it up, one of our biggest pieces of advice is to rationally evaluate how much time you actually plan on being in your room – or even on the lanai. No matter the room or the view, the most breathtaking sights in Hawaii are out of your hotel. If an Ocean Front room isn’t in the budget, don’t let that discourage you. There’s still plenty  to see!

Hopefully this has been helpful as you decide which hotel room category is right for your vacation. Our Hawaii All-Inclusive Vacation Packages offer a wide array of hotels and resorts to choose from, and our friendly team of Hawaii specialists are available to walk you through the different hotel and room category options. Contact us today to start planning an adventure of a lifetime in enchanting Hawaii!