The title says it all, but let me lay out the context.
I booked our stay at The Kahala last week using the American Express Fine Hotels & Resorts program. Among the AMEX FHR benefits at the Kahala are:
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Room upgrade upon arrival, when available*
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Daily breakfast for two people
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Guaranteed 4pm late check-out
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Noon check-in, when available
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Complimentary Wi-Fi
- USD$100 Property credit to be used during your stay (I was actually given $150)
That * denotes this disclaimer: “Certain room categories are not eligible for upgrade”.
The cost of the room was $200 cheaper on Agoda, but I booked through American Express for the 1.) late checkout, 2.) free breakfast, and 3.) resort credit.
When we arrived at the hotel, I was given a choice: a quadruple upgrade from a lagoon view to an oceanfront (it was my lucky day, apparently) with a noon checkout or a slightly upgraded lagoon room with a 4pm checkout, as guaranteed by the FHR program. The hotel was fully booked on our checkout date. All rooms are the same size with same layout.
This actually turned out to be a tough choice, since a 4pm checkout is so valuable to me. I knew we’d be able to stay on the property and use amenities like the pool or fitness center as late as we wanted, but there are certain activities that should only be done in the guest room…
In the end, we chose the upgraded room and appreciated this amazing view:
CONCLUSION
The early checkout worked out fine. We worked out then headed out around 2pm for Waikiki.
What would you have chosen?
…or at least in ~very~ dense foliage. Haha
Heck yes I’d take the quadruple upgrade in exchange for a normal checkout time. I’ll gladly have a long lunch somewhere and then drive around the island for a couple of hours for that view!
Late check-out, because I tend to get quite frisky in the afternoon.
I believe you got an ocean front room. Ocean view at this property overlooks valet parking.
This property was extremely rigid with upgrades when I stayed on an FHR rate. They initially refused any upgrade because room type immediately above mine was not available, and they would not give a 2 class upgrade. After talking them into 2 class upgrade to ocean view, I ultimately switched back to mountain view because of noise from valet parking and the bar. Mountain view was actually quite pleasant, as it overlooks the golf course towards the mountains.
The property has a fantastic location, but the rooms are badly in need of a refresh.
If you ever want me to proofread your posts before they are made public, hit me up. There is a typo in the first paragraph and it may look bad to your readers. It seems like a third of the posts I read from you contain glaring issues that a 5-minute read-through could fix. Just my 2c.