The 20 Best Resorts in Hawaii, According to Travel + Leisure Readers

Travel + Leisure readers found beauty, culture, and adventure on five different islands in this year’s World’s Best Awards survey, proving, yet again, that this archipelago is one of the most diverse and adaptable vacation destinations in the world. From Oahu to Lanai, they weighed in on their top resort experiences. 

How Voting Works

Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Over 186,000 T+L readers completed the 2024 survey. A total of more than 700,000 votes were cast across over 8,700 properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).

Hotels were classified as either resort hotel, city hotel, inn, or safari lodge based on their location and amenities, and they were specifically rated on the criteria below:

• Rooms/facilities
• Location
• Service
• Food
• Value

For each characteristic, respondents could choose a rating of excellent, above average, average, below average, or poor. The final scores are averages of these responses.

What Readers Loved

T+L readers found Hawaiian resort favorites on the islands of Maui, Oahu, Hawaii, Lanai, and Kauai.

Plenty of perennial Oahu favorites made the list, like Turtle Bay Resort, Halekulani, and Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina. Last year’s No. 20 pick, The Kahala Hotel & Resort, has risen precipitously to No. 3. “My favorite hotel in Hawaii, and I’ve been to all the islands,” one T+L reader raved. On the island of Hawaii, the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai returns at No. 17 (down from No. 14), as does the Mauna Lani, Auberge Resorts Collection (up from No. 4 to No. 6).

On Maui, Hotel Wailea continues to impress, earning the No. 2 spot (down one spot from last year’s coveted No. 1 pick), with praise from readers: “This hotel is a dream,” wrote one. But this year’s top pick goes to the much-discussed Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort, an 81-acre oceanfront property that opened in the 1960s and had been in a state of disrepair since a 2011 tsunami struck; Rosewood reopened it in 2023.

The Winner

Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort: Island of Hawaii, Hawaii

In 1965, Johnno and Helen Jackson founded a much-beloved resort known as Kona Village. It was destroyed in a 2011 tsunami that struck the property, and, until 2023, remained the stuff of legends. That’s when Rosewood reinvented the iconic property as Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort. Is it as incredible as the original? T+L readers seem to think so. “One of the most special places on earth, and I appreciate Rosewood and the construction and finance teams for all they have done to restore this wonderful resort,” wrote one reader. Another deemed Kona Village the “best in Hawaii.” Known since inception for its hospitality, the resort has not lost its sense of self with new ownership. “The care and concern for guests is evident throughout the resort by everyone from check-in to checkout” wrote one surveyor.

The Full List

1. Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort: Island of Hawaii

Reader Score: 97.29

2. Hotel Wailea: Maui

Reader Score: 96.91

3. The Kahala Hotel & Resort: Oahu

Reader Score: 96.67

4. Kaimana Beach Hotel: Oahu

Reader Score: 95.64

5. Montage Kapalua Bay: Maui

Reader Score: 94.53

6. Mauna Lani, Auberge Resorts Collection: Island of Hawaii

Reader Score: 93.59

7. Ko’a Kea Resort on Po’ipu Beach: Kauai

WBA Hall of Fame honoree. Reader Score: 93.47

8. Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea: Maui

WBA Hall of Fame honoree. Reader Score: 93:08

9. Four Seasons Resort Lanai: Lanai

WBA Hall of Fame honoree. Reader Score: 93.05

10. The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Waikiki Beach: Oahu

Reader Score: 92.42

11. Fairmont Kea Lani, Maui: Maui

Reader Score: 92.23

12. Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii: Island of Hawaii

WBA Hall of Fame honoree. Reader Score: 91.86

13. 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay: Kauai

Reader Score: 91.82

14. Hanalei Colony Resort: Kauai

Reader Score: 91.43

15. The Westin Hapuna Beach Resort: Island of Hawaii

Reader Score: 91.11

16. Turtle Bay Resort: Oahu

Reader Score: 90.77

17. Four Seasons Resort Hualalai: Island of Hawaii

WBA Hall of Fame honoree. Reader Score: 90.71

18. Halekulani: Oahu

WBA Hall of Fame honoree. Reader Score: 90.46

19. Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina: Oahu

Reader Score: 90.25

20. Wailea Beach Resort – Marriott, Maui: Maui

Reader Score: 89.81