100+ Hawai’i Hotels That Can Be Booked With Points

February 22, 2024

Hawai’i is a marvelous place that manages to combine terrific beaches, near-perfect year-round weather, great food and some of the best sunsets on the planet. It’s high on the bucket list for many travelers and an annual pilgrimage for others, making it a hot spot for family vacations, weddings, anniversaries and conferences. Its popularity comes at a (quite literal) price: nearly 10 million people visited last year and it has some of most expensive lodging costs in the United States. Luckily, those of us with Hawai’i in our sights have a great option to lighten the load on our wallets: points and miles.

This post aims to serve as a resource for folks looking for ways to book a Hawai’i vacation using hotel points; below you’ll find over 100 possibilities to whet your tropical whistle. You’ll find links to each one embedded in the name and our goal is to add short review snippets from folks who’ve actually stayed there. If you see properties that you’ve been to, please share your opinions in the comments section or as a reply to this post in our Frequent Milers Insiders group. I’ve linked FM’s Bottom Line Reviews as well, for those properties that have them. We will update this page regularly to include new opinions, bottom line reviews and additional properties as they become available.

Update 2/21/24: As of yesterday, there are ~15 Hyatt Destination Residences properties that have moved to Hyatt Homes and Hideaways and, as part of that move, they are no longer bookable via the regular Hyatt platform. Although they still can be booked with points through Home and Hideaways, the value proposition has dropped significantly, with award costs doubling or tripling in some cases. Because of that, they are no longer listed here.

List of Hawai’i Hotels Bookable with Points

A quick note about what’s include here and what’s not. This list is strictly limited to properties that can be booked with hotel points. There are many other places that can be booked through transferable currencies, such as the Chase Travel Portal or “luxury collections” such as Amex’s Fine Hotels and Resorts or Capital One’s Premier Collection. Citi’s new partnership with Leading Hotels of the World (LHW) is also not covered. The reason is twofold: the list would grow to include almost any hotel that’s bookable online and, since these sorts of redemptions are based on a fixed cash value, it’s really like cashing out points for a hotel stay. That doesn’t necessarily make it a bad option but, with hotel points, there’s still the possibility of getting outsized value when compared to the cash rate.

West Maui is almost completed reopened after the tragic fires that swept through Lahaina in August. The major exception is Lahaina itself and, because of that, I’ve left those properties off the list.

Each hotel has a link to the website included in the title and the points price is alongside. For those properties where pricing is dynamic, a general range is shown.

Accor Live Limitless

a resort with a body of water and a beach — Fairmont Orchid Hawai’i (Image courtesy of Fairmont)

Accor has three properties in the islands: two Fairmonts and a more modest Mantra in Honolulu that’s just across the Ala Wai Canal from Waikiki. Both of the Fairmonts are well-regarded. Accor points are worth a flat rate of 2 Euro cents each (currently 2.15 US cents) thus, while the prices listed below represent averages throughout the year, they can go higher or lower on occasion.

Best Western Rewards

a pool with orange chairs and a building in the background — The Plaza Hotel Honolulu (Image courtesy of Best Western)

Best Western has only one property in the entire state, located on the Nimitz Highway across from the Honolulu airport. It’s a fairly unappealing hotel and location, unless you’re staying the night before an early flight.

Oahu (1)

The Plaza Hotel (Honolulu) 30-35k

Choice Privileges

a sign on the side of a road — Ascend Kohea Kai

Choice is another program that only has one property in the state, an Ascend Collection member named Kohea Kai. It doesn’t have a terrible location, and the points price can often be a good value when compared to the cash price.

Maui (1)

Ascend Kohea Kai Maui (Kihei) 25k

Hilton Honors

a building with a pond and a large building — Hilton Waikoloa

Although Hilton has a total of 23 properties in Hawai’i, that number is a little misleading as it includes 12 Grand Vacations timeshare locations. These can all be booked with points, but almost always at terrible value. It’s better to get them on a cheap cash rate or through one of Hilton’s frequent timeshare presentation promotions than pay the astronomical points cost that they usually require.

The remaining 11 hotels are primarily big, older properties that are a bit past their heyday (with the possible exception of Maui’s Grand Wailea). Hilton waives resort fees on award stays, which can be a huge added benefit of using points. Unfortunately for early-risers, the food and beverage credits given with Gold and higher elite status rarely cover a full breakfast.

Note that the prices listed below are for standard room awards. Premium room awards will be much more expensive.

The Big Island (5)

Grand Naniloa Hotel Hilo – 50k

- Located at the tip of a small peninsula that juts out into Hilo Bay, the Grand Naniloa shows its age and will never be mistaken for a sleek, modern hotel. It’s a short walk to the Lili’uokalani Gardens and provides a serviceable points option in Hilo, one of my favorite areas in all of the islands.

Hilton Waikoloa – 75k

- Although one of the three original towers is now composed completely of timeshares, the Hilton Waikoloa Village is still a behemoth with almost 700 rooms available for nightly rental. That said, the grounds were very well-tended and there’s a massive amount of pool and (manmade) beach space. Water play areas for kids are especially well-provided for. There’s a ton of activities and strolling around the extensive grounds during sunrise or sunset is lovely. The restaurant options are surprisingly sparse for a resort of this size and there’s a lot of nickel-and-diming for a $500/night property with a $45 resort fee. Still, my wife and I found ourselves surprised with how pleasant our stay was and there’s certainly much worse options for Hilton points in the Hawaiian Islands – Read my full review of the Hilton Waikoloa here

Hilton Waikoloa Grand Vacations King’s Land – 100k+

Hilton Waikoloa Grand Vacations Kohala Suites – 100k+

Hilton Waikoloa Grand Vacations Ocean Tower – 100k+

Kaua’i (2)

Hilton Garden Inn Wailua Bay (Kapa’a) – 60k

Hilton Grand Vacations The Point at Poipu – 100k+

Grand Wailea Maui | Luxury Beachfront Resort Hotel Maui, Hawaii — Waldorf Astoria Grand Wailea Maui (Image courtesy of Hilton)

Maui (4)

Grand Wailea Waldorf Astoria – 110k

Ho’olei at Grand Wailea – 100k+

Hilton Grand Vacations Maui Bay Club (Kihei) – 100k+

Hilton Vacation Club Ka’anapali– 100k+

Oahu (12)

Doubletree Alana (Waikiki) – 50k

Embassy Suites Kapolei – 70k

Embassy Suites Waikiki Beach Walk – 70k

- This is a little deceiving, as the name and some of the pictures make it sound like it’s waterfront. It’s actually about a block away from the beach. This is one of the busiest Embassy Suites that I’ve ever been to and the lines for breakfast and cocktail hour have to be seen to be believed. Still, if you’re prepared for the crowds, it can be a solid value for families.

Hampton Inn Kapolei – 60k

Hilton Hawaiian Village (Waikiki) – 70k

- This is a massive property that covers several towers on the west end of Waikiki. It’s certainly dated and the resort fee on cash stays is ridiculous, but I’ve always liked the Hawaiian Village, provided you know what you’re in for (lots of families and package tours). It’s got a nice kids swimming area and plenty of nooks and crannies to sequester yourself away from the crowds.

Hilton Waikiki – 60k

- “Small, outdated rooms and too many people for the pools.” – Frequent Miler Insider Daniel
- “I thought it was a great value with the 5th night free. I was upgraded, had an ocean view room and the on-site M.A.C. Restaurant was really good. Granted, if you want a pool, this is not the hotel for you. But it is really convenient in Waikiki!” – Frequent Miler Insider Tina

Hilton Garden Inn Waikiki Beach – 50k

- There’s nothing particularly remarkable about this hotel that’s located about a block away from Ala Wai Canal on the back end of Waikiki. It’s serviceable and clean.

Hilton Grand Vacations The Grand Islander Waikiki – 100k+

Hilton Grand Vacations Grand Waikikian – 100k+

Hilton Grand Vacations Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki – 100k+

Hilton Grand Vacations Hokulani Waikiki – 100k+

Hilton Grand Vacations the Modern – 100k+

IHG One Rewards

a building with a pool and palm trees — Holiday Inn Express Waikiki

IHG has a surprisingly paltry footprint in Hawai’i, with just two Holiday Inn Express locations. Neither of them are terribly desirable, although they can often be booked with an IHG 40k free night certificate from the IHG Premier or IHG Select card. However, keep in mind that IHG does not waive resort fees on award stays, so you’ll be on the hook for $25/night in Waikiki. If you brought a car and have to park there, you’ll be paying $70+tax per night for your “free” stay.

The Big Island (1)

Holiday Inn Express Kailua-Kona – ~40k