TB
Tim Bagnieski
2 days ago
Nice hotel - great people and location:
If you are like me and relied on the Hilton brand to put their best foot forward, and you read the reviews too late, you might of been concerned upon check in at the Modern, Hilton Waikiki.
My review hopefully puts a lot of these concerns to rest as this property is very nice. If you are coming to expect a Waldorf Astoria experience you will be sorely disappointed. Like, me you are probably expecting a busy tourist property in Waikiki beach. And this is precisely what you will be getting at the Modern. Not Modern and not yet upgraded by HGV, but the property, people and location are fantastic. Love the pool areas, gym was adequate and spacious, water filtration stations on site, and views of marina all very nice. Our room was one the many anxious for updates, but nothing was bad and housekeeping staff kept everything very tidy and smelling of lemon fresh each day.
We will likely hit Maui next time so I am unlikely to return, but I would, and I would also recommend the property to friends.
NM
Nayo Martinez
Jan 5, 2026
Spoke to Yuko (spelling?) for about 2.5 hours trying to cancel my reservation more than a week in advance. Yuko insisted to know the personal details about WHY I would not be coming to her hotel. It was VERY awkward and unpleasant to spend that much time on the phone. I am disappointed a company as large as Hilton thinks a HOTEL RESERVATION is leverage to be used to extract personal info for. I didn't stay at the hotel, I have no idea about the rooms but I know Yuko made me feel disturbed and as far as I can tell plans to keep my money despite me telling her well in advance to cancel. Consumers may not have much of a voice any more in 2026 and people like Yuko try their best to brush it under the rug, but I want as many people to hear me when I say this hotel management in not an ethical business. That's my 4 cents.
TK
Tanvi Kasture
Dec 30, 2025
This stay was deeply disappointing and honestly a shame on the Hilton name.
The bed quality is terrible — uncomfortable mattress, cheap bedsheets, and a low-quality duvet that made it impossible to sleep. I did not sleep at all, which directly caused me to miss and cancel a snorkeling trip the next morning because I couldn’t wake up. Sleep is a basic expectation, and this property completely failed.
After experiencing this, I noticed many Google reviews reporting the exact same issues, especially regarding poor bed quality and an unjustifiably high resort fee that does not match the services offered. This clearly isn’t a one-off problem.
What made the experience worse was the complete lack of Hilton-level hospitality. The front desk staff was not helpful or knowledgeable at all. When I raised a serious concern about sleep deprivation, the only solutions offered were a mattress topper and fixing a bathroom door — neither addressing the real issue. I was also wrongly told that because I booked through a travel portal, Hilton could not help, which shows a concerning lack of understanding of basic Hilton service standards.
This property does not meet Hilton expectations in any way and damages the brand’s reputation. Hilton should seriously reevaluate whether this hotel deserves to carry its name.
I would strongly advise future guests to stay elsewhere, especially if you value sleep, service, or genuine hospitality.
LT
Lei Lei Trock
Dec 23, 2025
I had high hopes for this “Modern” Hilton but I was (still am) very disappointed. I look forward to checking out tomorrow. The carpet was not clean and the curtains were falling apart. But the BEST part was (the main reason why I felt compelled to write this review was when we got back to our hotel at 9:30pm after a long day, there was no hot water. Called down to the front desk and that’s when they told me the hot water heater is broken but offered for me to take a time slot to shower next door in another hotel. I did not do this. I will never take my family to another hotel, just to shower, while on vacation. So we all took cold showers. Front desk apologized. But did not offer to make this right whatsoever. We will not return to this place again.
TH
Tammie Haley
Dec 18, 2025
The Modern. We are staying in a standard room, with two full beds. We found out today that Hilton has recently acquired this hotel and will be doing renovations in the future. Thank goodness because we've stayed at multiple Hiltons through the years and couldn't understand how this could be so below their standards. Small uncomfortable beds. Broken fixtures (lamps mostly) worn out areas in furniture, really weird louvered "blinds" between the bathroom and main area, hardly any closet space, and no dresser. This is supposed to be big enough for 4 adults. It is not really. We had mentioned to the front that we were struggling to fit for sleeping, they apologized but didn't offer solutions.
Staff seems nice. We had to call down for more pillows and towels since rhe room had only been set up for two people (our reservation was for 4 adults). They arrived quickly after our call.
I would prefer more information on check in about where things are located and how breakfast works. We had just come from another Hilton on the island and had gotten free breakfast (very good) and afternoon drinks. Now that we have had to pay for buffet here once we will be going elsewhere for breakfast.
The rooms are clean, the mini fridge a decent size for some drinks and maybe a few leftovers. There is USB charging for phones in-between the two beds. Plug outlets in other areas of the room. We brought longer charging cords. There are night stand shelves on either side of beds so that is a plus for phones, glasses, books, CPAP (if needed) and small fans.
The air conditioning is quiet and does well to keep the room comfortable. (The fan in the bathroom does not do a good job exhausting and keeping the mirror fog free. (Maybe why part of the wall louvers to open to help with air flow?)
I look forward to seeing how the renovations go. I'm sure the new rooms will be beautiful.