It is a cheap place to stay in paradise. We learned early, however, that you get what you pay for. The parking is a problem and there is no place to park in order to check in. We drove past the place 5 times before we realized this and finally saw another car pulling out of a small entry next to the hotel. They charged us $18 to park in the lot with no alternatives offered. They tried to put us in a room with 2 twin beds, but after further discussion the front desk finally gave us a room with a queen. The staff was helpful and seemed friendly enough, but the hotel needs to be completely redone. Its old and the rooms are tiny, but at least it was clean. The location is great since it is right near the beach and among a number of nicer hotels. Overall, I must say that we were a bit disappointed in the hotel, but we didn't spend a lot of time there. We wanted a cheap place to stay and the Continental certinally is cheap and as noted above, we got what we paid for. We were out and about most of the time seeing all the sights. Next time we'll spent a little more and book a better quality hotel.

I was in Honolulu for a week for work staying at an expensive hotel paid for by my employer. When the week was over and I had to pay for a hotel, I moved here which was only a few blocks from the original hotel. While it is an older hotel, it is clean. I was 2 blocks from the ocean which I could see from my window. It has window air conditioning which isn't great, but it was sufficient. My room also had a kitchenette which I found handy. However, the alarm clock and the phone did not work consistently, but if you have a cell phone and a travel alarm, it doesn't matter. Night front desk staff seemed a lot friendlier and more helpful than the daytime staff, some of whom were downright unfriendly and minimally helpful. It has an excellent location for a tourist. I spent my time there mostly on tours or shopping for souvenirs and just needed the hotel as a place to sleep and store my things. If I were going back to Honolulu and planned on staying at the hotel most of the time, I would probably want a newer hotel with more amenities like room service (although there are lots of restaurants within walking distance), more cable channels, and a workout room. But, if you're going there to be a tourist you won't spend much time there and you can allocate your money to other things besides your accommodations. If I ever go back I will stay there again.

Don't expect much from this hotel, you get what you pay for. The elevators were a little scary chipped paint on walls, sticky floors and walls. The rooms are very small as is the bathroom, our beds were made everyday if you can call it that. It always looked like the maid just pulled up the blankets and didn't bother to smooth anything out, it always looked lumpy...one day we came back and heard bubbling coming from the bathroom and went to look and saw black stuff coming up in the shower. Called the front desk to have someone come and look, we had to call them twice before anyone came to check it out. He finally fixed the problem and we asked if he could send housekeeping up to clean the shower again, he said he would but no-one ever came, after waiting for 2 hours or so we had to clean it ourselves.

First off, when Aloha Airlines & ATA went bankrupt during my stay, all Aqua Hotels in Waikiki quickly offered to let any stranded Aqua occupant stay free for 3 additional days after their reservation was due to expire. This allowed me a few extra days to scramble around to find a new way to fly home. This was very thoughtful & helpful of Aqua. Yes, for FREE. I would stay here again (even if they had not offered me the 3 extra days). Physical condition of the bldg was so-so (maybe some occasional peeling paint here & there, but generally clean). If you want lavish surroundings stay elsewhere. But I chose this hotel because the price was cheap (compared to other Waikiki hotels) and the location was convenient (1/2 block to public transportation, 2 blks to the only supermarket in Waikiki, 3 short blks to beach, 4 blks to International Marketplace). The staff was friendly & helpful. Note: the hotel name ... hotel names in Waikiki frequently change when there is a new owner. This hotel is listed here as Aqua Continental. And Aqua now owns multiple hotels in Waikiki. But name on front of bldg says Continental Surf (in case you are looking for this hotel in some older literature)(or telling your airport shuttle driver where to take you)(or stumbling home after a few tropical drinks).

Fantastic view. We saw whales almost every day from our room's view. The staff is excellent! A very short 3 minute walk to Waikiki. About a block from the International Marketplace. This is an older hotel, smaller rooms, but always very clean. This is not a luxury 5 star hotel, but it is a clean, safe and nice place to stay and see Hawaii-not spend your time in the room. The price allows us to stay longer, which makes it 5 stars in my book! We've gotten to know so many of the very friendly staff that it's like visiting family, and we stay in touch during the year. We've already made our reservations for next year.