Review: Four Seasons Oahu At Ko Olina

The best collection of hotels in Hawaii is offered by Four Seasons, with each of the five properties offering something unique. The Four Seasons property in Hawaii that gets the least coverage is the Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina.

There is a lot to love about this property, it is easy to get to, it has great dining venues, and it is less than 30 minutes from Honolulu Airport.

Booking the Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina

For our dates in March, the nightly rate for a base room at the Four Seasons was $1,100. Rates at properties in Hawaii have gone up a lot since the start of the Pandemic. The Marriott next door is currently charging $700+ for a standard room on some dates.

I think it's worth giving Four Seasons credit for not having resort fees at any Hawaii properties.

There are some offers to get a better deal, like a fourth night free promotion, at the Four Seasons. The best way to book a Four Seasons hotel is through a travel advisor. You pay the same rate when booking through Preferred Partner, but you will receive additional perks.

• A room upgrade, subject to availability
• Complimentary daily breakfast
• A hotel credit to use during your stay

Four Seasons offers a variety of promotions, including advance purchase rates, free night offers, and more. Booking through programs like Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts is not as good as booking through the Four Seasons Preferred partner. Why?

• With Preferred Partner you have the option of room service breakfast in place of restaurant breakfast
• Upgrades are prioritized for Preferred Partner bookings, given that it’s Four Seasons’ own proprietary program (and the value of an upgrade can be significant)
• You can combine Preferred Partner perks with virtually any rate on Four Seasons’ website (other programs don’t allow you to stack promotions in the same way)

You can get all of these perks if you book through an eligible travel advisor. Ford and his team don't charge booking fees for Four Seasons properties.

Ford got a travel agent rate for us. All opinions are mine.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina history & opening date

The Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina opened in 2016 and is not a new build. The property first opened as an independent hotel in the 1980's and was later renamed the JW Marriott Ko Olina. After an extensive renovation, the hotel reopened as the Four Seasons.

You can definitely tell that this was an older property if you look at it. It's a high-rise, it has an atrium, and parts of the facilities feel like they were designed decades ago. Four Seasons did a great job updating the property, including refreshing the rooms, adding great dining venues, and building a new pool for adults.

The exceptional Four Seasons Astir Palace Athens is a former Westin and Luxury Collection property.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina location

The Four Seasons is located on the island of Oahu, which is the main transpacific gateway to Hawaii. The hotel is close to both Honolulu Airport and Waikiki.

This is a great alternative to staying in Waikiki, which is incredibly touristy. This is a great base to visit the North Shore, Pearl Harbor, etc.

Ko Olina is a development that consists of multiple resorts, residences, a golf club, and more. Disney's Aulani Resort is located here. There are four lagoons in Ko Olina, which offer protected swimming. More on that can be found below.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina check-in & lobby

The Four Seasons Oahu has an open air lobby with a nice breeze in it, which is fun at a tropical destination.

There is a canoe suspended from the air that reminds you of where you are.

The reception was located in the lobby. The check-in experience was pleasant.

Some ginger infused lemonade with cayenne pepper was the first thing we were offered. We received a map of the property, as well as room keys, which came in the form of waterproof wristbands.

We went to our room on the 15th floor. There was plenty of seating in the lobby on the way.

There was a staircase leading to the public areas of the resort.

The elevators were near the reception.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Oceanfront One-Bedroom Suite

The oceanfront one-bedroom suite was assigned to us. The rooms at the Four Seasons Oahu are large and must be at least 600 square feet. The one bedroom suites here are a minimum of 1,400 square feet, since they are essentially two full guest rooms. Since there are two full bathrooms, they are ideal for families.

The living room had a shaped couch, a couple of chairs, and a television.

Fresh coconut, pineapple, papaya, and sparkling water were included in the welcome amenity.

There was a mini-fridge, a kettle, and a Nespresso machine in the hallway.

The living room had a full bathroom with double sinks, walk-in shower, soaking tub, and a bidet-style toilet.

There were toiletries from the area.

The bedroom was separated from the living room and had a Four Seasons bed.

There was a desk with a chair in the bedroom.

There was a lot of closet space in the room.

The first bathroom features the same features and amenities as the bedroom bathroom.

The balcony of the room had amazing views of the coastline and the Pacific Ocean. There were two chairs and a table on the balcony.

The balcony off the bedroom was even bigger.

The views around sunrise and sunset were amazing.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Oceanfront Room

We toured a few more accommodations during our stay, so I thought it was useful to share those. The standard rooms at the Four Seasons are large.

Standard guest rooms have double sinks, a walk-in shower, and a soaking tub.

Some guest rooms have great views of the ocean.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Junior Suite

Four Seasons Oahu junior suites are an average of 1,000 square feet. They have a full sitting area, a desk, and a huge bathroom and closet space.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Penthouse Suite

The Four Seasons Oahu has some amazing specialty suites for those who don't have a lot of money, and we were able to tour one of the 3,200 square foot penthouse suites. I will let the pictures speak for themselves, but wow!

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina pools

There are four pools at the Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina.

• There’s the Ohana Pool (for families), open daily from 7AM until 7PM
• There’s the Keiki Pool (for kids), open daily from 7AM until 9PM
• There’s the Adult Infinity Pool, open daily from 7AM until 9PM
• There’s the Spa & Wellness Pool, open daily from 9AM until 6PM

The Ohana Pool is the hotel's pool for families and is located near the pool bar and a few restaurants. It's cool that the pool is circular and close to the ocean, but other than that, it's not really memorable.

The Keiki Pool is for kids and has a couple of hot tub. I'm sure families appreciate having a dedicated pool for kids, where there's less of an expectation of keeping the noise down.

The most gorgeous pool at the property is the Adult Infinity Pool, and it also has a hot tub. This was built when Four Seasons took over the property, and it is a stunning space, with a huge pool, plenty of seating, and a swim-up drink truck.

There are more seats on the lawn, as well as some cabanas that you can rent for the day, in addition to the seating by the pool.

The Spa & Wellness Pool was located in the spa complex and was quiet. It's ideal if you want to swim laps.

There was plenty of sunscreen around the pool at Four Seasons.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina beach & boardwalk

The Four Seasons beach area is right on one of the lagoons. The water stays calm so it is safe for just about anyone to swim here.

Staff were constantly on the beach to see if guests wanted anything.

The entire complex is connected by a beachfront boardwalk at Ko Olina. It's easy to get your steps in at the Four Seasons Oahu.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina spa & gym

At this property, spas and gyms are a big focus for Four Seasons. The hotel's main building is across from a huge multi-level complex.

There is a fitness center with one room with weights, one room with cardio, and an outdoor fitness area.

Several rooftop tennis courts, a basketball court, and a soccer field can be seen.

The menu of services at the spa at the Four Seasons includes everything from facials, to massages, to energy healing. The variety of treatments is cool. There are hot tub, steam rooms, saunas, and other facilities in the main spa area.

The Spa Hale is an open air treatment hut and is where many spa treatments take place.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina La Hiki Restaurant (breakfast)

Breakfast and dinner were included at the Four Seasons Oahu. Breakfast and lunch were served at La Hiki Restaurant from 6AM until 11AM. I enjoy the open air of the restaurant, which is why I always eat there.

Breakfast here is a la carte and you can find the menu below. Breakfast is included if you book through the Four Seasons.

The drinks were great from the fresh juices to the iced coffees.

We tried a variety of breakfast foods over the course of two mornings. All were good.

There was complimentary coffee in the lobby of the Four Seasons.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Noe Restaurant (dinner)

Each of our two nights we ate at one of the Four Seasons restaurants. They were both great meals. Noe is an Italian restaurant that serves dinner from 5PM until 9PM. Most of the seating at the restaurant is on the outdoor patio.

The Noe dinner menu can be found below.

We both had martinis and they were great.

We probably ordered too much food as we hadn't eaten in a while. You will get to see more of Noe's amazing food. We had whipped ricotta and ahi tonnato carpaccio.

We shared a pasta course.

I had the scallops, while Ford had the chicken.

I can say good things about the food, service, and overall atmosphere here. We had a front row seat to the hotel's nightly sunset ritual, where all the torches around the property are lit. Even if you are not staying at the Four Seasons, you should make a reservation here.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Mina’s Fish House (dinner)

We had dinner at Mina's Fish House. Happy hour is from 3PM to 5PM and dinner is from 5PM to 9PM. You can see the view from this restaurant, which is right on the beach.

The Mina's Fish House dinner menu can be found below.

I liked the presentation and taste of the cocktails here.

The meal started with some bread.

We ordered the squid and brussels sprout as a starter.

I ordered the mahi mahi, while Ford had the yellow fin with foie gras.

We had apples and cinnamon, and decided to split the dessert. It was good.

The setting for enjoying the sunset is lovely.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Hokulea (cafe)

The coffeeshop at the Four Seasons Oahu is open from 6AM until 2PM. If you're looking for a light snack, this is a good option. There was a pool table and plenty of outdoor seating in this area.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Waterman Bar & Lounge (drinks)

The pool bar at the hotel is open most of the day and serves drinks and food. Most people just have stuff brought to their pool chairs, but there is a small bar area and some outdoor lounge seating.

You can find the menu at the bar.

The food and drink game at the Four Seasons Oahu is very strong, but the drinks are weak. It didn't match what you'll find at this property in terms of presentation and quality of drinks. I think these drinks were more dive bar quality than Four Seasons. That is the only aspect of the food and drinks here that was not exceptional, so it is a testament to the property.

The fruit plate was very good.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina Dr. Mai Tai’s (drinks)

Dr. Mai Tai's is open from 1PM until sunset at the adult pool at the Four Seasons. The cocktail doctor at the resort makes his rounds with signature rum- infused prescription elixirs.

We had drinks at the resort and enjoyed them.

Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina service

The Four Seasons is different from the other hotels in that it offers a perfect, by-the-book Four Seasons service. The quality of service is what makes this a big resort, but it has over 350 rooms.

This can be seen in a number of ways.

• There simply aren’t any hassles with service at Four Seasons, and you only have to ask for something once — for example, when we asked to have our room cleaned, someone showed up within five minutes
• Four Seasons employees just generally seem happy to be working for the company, and treat guests really well — that was the case across the board, from the staff at the pool, to the front office staff, to everyone working in the restaurants
• There’s an impressive amount of attention to detail — for example, when Ford was brought his eggs benedict one morning, the server noticed that when he cut into one of the eggs it didn’t look perfect, so said “that doesn’t quite look like right, can I have them redo that for you?”
• While Four Seasons properties are of course pricey, I appreciate the lack of nickel-and-diming — there are no resort fees, there’s sunscreen available everywhere, they bring complimentary water and even small refreshing drinks (some with alcohol) and snacks around the pool throughout the day, etc.

Bottom line

The Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina is a great place to stay. There is a lot to love about this property, including the exceptional dining venues, the friendly service, the beautiful setting in Ko Olina, and the proximity to Honolulu Airport and the sights of Oahu. This is the lowest price beachfront property in Hawaii.

I think this could be a great family destination because of the dedicated areas for kids, the large accommodations, and the ease of getting here from so many places. This is a great property to pair with a Four Seasons property.

I don't give this hotel a perfect five star rating because I think some of the design isn't up to par with other Four Seasons properties in Hawaii. Some people may not like that the hotel is in a tower. This hotel is within the realm of high pricing we are seeing in Hawaii right now.

What did you think about your stay at Four Seasons Oahu at Ko Olina?