Travelers planning a vacation on the Big Island of Hawaii will be able to book newly renovated rooms at the Grand Naniloa Hotel in Hilo starting May 1.
Although work on an approximately $20 million overhaul to the 388-room, oceanfront property is ongoing, management plans to open up about 140 substantially updated guestrooms around the start of next month. Meanwhile, much of the renovation work at the rest of the property’s public spaces has already wrapped up.
PeggySue Harrell, the director of sales and marketing for the Grand Naniloa, said the hotel will officially open as a DoubleTree by Hilton in October after all the renovation work is complete.
“We’ve got a little ways to go as far as the branding,” Harrell explained. “But right now, we have just completed all of our pool, our parking lot, our driveway, our porte cochere, our lobby and front desk.
“But a lot of our Hilton furniture, a lot of our required stuff, has not arrived on the ship yet,” she added.
Construction work on the rest of the property’s guestrooms will continue through the summer, and “all the guestrooms are scheduled to be complete by late August, early September,” according to Harrell.
Harrell was also quick to mention a new design feature in the Grand Naniloa’s renovated rooms.
“The wall that separates the bathrooms from the living room is a glassed, one-way mirror,” she explained. “ And you can see out from your shower all the way into [Hilo] Bay. ... And the windows looking onto the bay are floor-to-ceiling glass, so when you walk in, your breath is just taken away.”
Newly renovated rooms at the Grand Naniloa will be available starting May 1.
Acquired last year by Honolulu-based Tower Development, the Grand Naniloa will continue to be managed by Aqua Hotels & Resorts following the official DoubleTree by Hilton rebranding next fall.
“The owners realized this side of the island needed a branded hotel,” said Harrell, who’s worked at Hilton for 20 years. “There’s nothing wrong with soft-branded hotels, but we really feel like this will give us more of an international draw. Hilton travelers all over the world will feel comfortable coming and spending more than one day in Hilo.”
Hilo is a 45-minute drive from the Big Island’s most popular visitor attraction, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and offers a lush contrast to the destination’s western Kona coast, where travelers can already find a range of branded hotels and resorts.
Harrell also mentioned plans to work in conjunction with the Hilton Waikoloa Village, an oceanfront property located north of Kona, to create specials promoting at least a couple nights there and then at the new DoubleTree by Hilton in Hilo.
“What we’ll do is try to build packages for people who want to see the whole island,” she said.