Westin Moana Surfrider, Kahala, or Turtle Bay? Need help picking a venue!

kku416

I am planning my wedding for late Sept or early Oct of this year and I desperately need help deciding between these three venues.  These are the major pros and cons in my opinion. 

Westin Moana Surfrider
Pros:  convenient location for guests, beautiful architecture for pictures so i can have both nice indoor and outdoor pics
Cons: VERY crowded and congested area, small pool, won't be relaxing

The Kahala
Pros: quiet, hotel is luxurious, quick 10 min drive to Waikiki so guests can easily stay/eat elsewhere
Cons: (this is a big one) requires use of their preferred (more expensive) vendors, expensive rooms

Turtle Bay
Pros: most secluded, gorgeous scenery, affordable rooms
Cons: hotel itself looks a bit shabby; would only have outdoor pictures, far from Waikiki, so lack of restaurant, entertainment options

Any advice or experiences you can share is greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Karen

pepelau

My fav out of your choices is hands down the Kahala. This was originally my top choice but we didn't go with them due to the high cost and the max room capacity of the venue room available (they only had the Waialae room on my date which allows max of <100 people). The banquet manager Grace is an absolute delight to work with and I felt that she would have really took care of me. The grounds are gorgeous, with a small waterfall, fairly secluded beaches and the prestige of the hotel speaks for itself.

I like the Moana for its gorgeous architechture, beautiful columns and beach views. However, I attended a wedding there and I remember the food was only mediocre. Also, they jacked up the prices since becoming a Westin property.

caiandcullen

I liked all 3 choices of hotels.

The Moana was our first choice -- I LOVED the look of the hotel. We also had a tasting (granted, it was in Dec 2008), and the food was pretty good. I have heard from others, though, that on occasion the food wasn't great. The reason we didn't go with them was because from the time we got quotes to when we actually decided to book, their rates went up ~$25 (or so) in FOUR MONTHS. The projected prices for 2010 were MUCH higher. I asked them to work with us because we really wanted to have it there and they said "nope, sorry."

Needless to say, a few months later (after we had booked Lani), they called me back and said they were "willing to work with us if we were still interested." Boo.

The Kahala is also gorgeous. My dad got re-married there and the Waialae ballroom (as Sandy said) is beautiful. However, the deal break for us was it could accommodate 100 people without a dance floor. About 80 or so with (we had 200). The food was amazing there.

Turtle Bay is also nice. While it is far, the hotel did undergo some renovations a few years back. Prior to that it was REALLY shabby. I haven't been there in the last 3 years, so I'm not sure what it looks like now. There is the essence of the North Shore, Haleiwa, etc and that's a completely different experience than Waikiki. I guess it depends on what you want for your guests...

I don't think you can go wrong with any of your choices, though!

A.a.A.

ooh i SO wanted to go with the Moana when we were looking! However we wanted to have the reception outdoors, and they did not know if a chapel was going to be built there and possibly interfere with the lawn (It ended up getting built, but I think it is an outside company, and a reception would interfere with the chapel's view or something so you have to book both, what I heard anyways).

I would have my wedding at the Moana for the amazing pictures! However you are right, it can feel crowded and if you choose the outdoor reception, everyone on the beach can see (another thing that bothered DH).

Kahala is gorgeous, quiet and secluded, and has GREAT food. People can stay wherever they want.

Never been to Turtle Bay, so I can't help you with that! However if your guests are from the mainland and don't mind driving, they could stay wherever and just drive up there for the wedding. Just a thought!

fabutan

I second/triple Moana for the scenery!  We were also considering Moana when we were considering having our wedding on Oahu (I have relatives there)...the columns are so beautiful in photos!  It has a very classy and elegant feel.  

If we hadn't decided on having our wedding on Maui (for the laid-back atmosphere), I would've probably chosen Moana out of all the hotel venues on Oahu.  I agree that it can feel rather crowded/cramped...but so is the rest of Waikiki (compared to other parts of the island anyway!).  The positive side is there's lots of nightlife to enjoy and conveniences are nearby.  It just depends on what you want...  you can't go wrong with any of those choices!!  

destiny1108

We ended up doing a private estate, but did site visits of Kahala and Moana.  Kahala was beautiful but out of our price and we didn't like excess charges for bringing in own vendors.  Moana was our 1st choice for hotel type venue, loved the architecture, but we decided to go private estate.  Don't know about Turtle Bay.

caiandcullen

oh, I also wanted to add - MH's friend recently looked at the Moana, and she was saying something about there's a minister there who does ONLY Japanese weddings, and he does them every day. So, if there's a Japanese wedding booked on the day of yours, you can't have the ceremony until 6pm.

And supposedly, he can be booked last minute... ? I'm not 100% sure, but I'd ask the Moana specifically. That could definitely sway your decision.

cloar

Hello

I haven't been to any of the other resort you mentioned, but my now Fiance and I stayed at Turtle Bay in Feb of 2009 and LOVED it! it was beautiful and quiet. The quiet part might be its downfall depending on what you are looking for. We were looking to get away but you are looking at a good 45 minute drive from Wikiki and about 20 to the North shore. The pluses are you won't have to worry about huge crowds on the beach, but you also don't have a lot of beach to work with. The locations for the weddings are gorgous, we saw two wedding beign set up, but didn't actully see the weddings themselves. The grounds are nice, although we are baised as it was our first trip to Hawaii and we fell in love with it.

We also had the luxury of staying at one for the cottages, so we had nothing but peace and quiet. The spa was clean quiet and the staff very friendly.

Hope that helps, good luck.

Christine

kku416

We FINALLY decided on the Moana Surfrider for Sept 24.  Thank you everyone for all your helpful responses!

A.a.A.

ooh beautiful!!! good luck and share your pictures please

fabutan

Congratulations!!  I'm sure you'll love it there.