The Death of a Titan

Slated for a "temporary" closure later this year, Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows, once a AAA 5 Diamond property,  has seen its better days.  For nearly two decades, Mauna Lani was the shining star of the Kohala Coast, playing host to flocks of rich and famous patrons. The hotel was popular for many years for two main reasons, large well furnished rooms and impeccable personalized service. Though the resort had two championship golf courses, it lacked most importantly a beach and the spirit of Aloha (honestly you could have been staying at Mandalay Bay if you did not know better). 

Today her age shows. Once considered a masterpiece of late 20th century architecture, now looks nothing more than failed 1980's modernism. The massive porte cochere is now void of cars and people. Fish ponds, though filled with water, lacks its abundance of sea life. The once grand lobby is eerily quiet, no guests milling about, empty work stations, out of date water features and a once trendy glass elevator now looks strange. What happened to the grand dame?

There are many contributing factors to the hotels demise. The first blow to Mauna Lani came in the form of the Four Seasons Resort at Hualalai, which opened in the late 1990s. To date no hotel has brought to the island the level of luxury and sophistication provided by Four Seasons.  Next came September 11th, which as we know resulted in the near collapse of the American tourism industry. The worst damage to Mauna Lani's ability to succeed, was the loss of Pan Pacific as the management firm. What the hotel lacked in beach and views, Pan Pacific brought in terms of service. Finally the hotel's out of date design did not age well by any means. With all of this pilling up on management it was a teetering on the brink of failure and need just one last push. This push came in the form of the 2008-2009 economic downturn. 

During my last evening in Hawaii, I dined at the hotel's only remaining venue, The Canoe House. Having finished dinner at around 8:30, I decided to walk around the hotel and count how many rooms had lights on. Lets just say I counted twice since the first count seemed way to low. In a 350 room resort, a whopping 16 rooms had lights on. Now I doubt the hotel is truly running at 4.5% occupancy (both Four Seasons and Mauna Kea were running around 80% at the time) but this gives some indication of Mauna Lani's decline. 

Rumor has it that the Mauna Lani's closure in September is for a renovation but the hotel is slated to reopen in November. I foresee two problems with this. A- How do you "remodel" a 350 room hotel and its venues in 60 days? B- If you are running at an absurdly low occupancy rate for an extended period of time, where in the world are you going to get money for a renovation?

The future of Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows is uncertain. My bet is on the hotel closing in September indefinitely, eventually a new owner will come in and refurbish the it. Only time will tell. 

-- Jaguar

Whats the Deal with Opakapaka?

First off, what is Opakapaka?

Well, Opakapaka is a red snapper, considered a bottom fish which are difficult to catch. It is also considered the most abundant Hawaiian bottom fish.... in terms of landed weight and total catch value.

Due to over fishing around the Hawaiian Islands, there are now times when "Deep 7" Bottom fish (opakapaka included) are banned. This year, the ban is in effect from July 6th to August 31st.

So now you are asking as to how exactly does this relate to my recent journey...

Well my second day on the Island I was dinning at Bamboo in Hawi Town. The proprietor noticed that one of my family members is wearing a hat that says Mauna Kea on it. She came over and asked if we were staying at Mauna Kea. Well, she goes into this long story about a recent dining experience. While she was pondering over the menu at the Hau Tree (beachside restaurant), she noticed that there was opakapaka. She inquired with the waiter as to its freshness. He informed her that it is"fresh and caught locally". The lady found this puzzling since she knew that the "Deep Bottom 7" are currently banned. When dinner was over, she stopped by Manta (Mauna Kea's fine dining venue) and inquired about the opakapaka and received the same information.

As her story came to a close, she informed us that she had turn the Mauna Kea in to the Health Department, since the hotel might be buying fresh black market fish. The inspector reported his findings to her. The supposedly locally caught fresh opakapaka was fresh when it was frozen. Also it was flown into Hawaii from Guam.

After hearing this story, I decided to do a little test of my own.

Here are the responses I received from various restaurants I recently dinned at:

Manta at Mauna Kea: "It is fresh but it caught down south outside of Hawaiian waters due to the ban."

Hualalai Grill at Four Seasons: "Yes it is fresh and local. We receive it from Fresh Island Fish."

Canoe House at Mauna Lani: "It is fresh and comes right here from Hawaii."

So are restaurants lying to their clients? Is opakapaka being acquired on the black market?

Not sure what to think of this but I smell something fishy....

-- Jaguar

August 2009 Update

I am pleased to report that there will finally be some recent articles on here. As mentioned before the failing economy has taken its toll on my traveling plans. Though with out further delay, here are some topics to look forward to.

1. What's the Deal with Opakapaka?

2. The Death of a Titan

3. A Dining Experience at Monettes

4. Big Island Adventure (or lack there of)

5. Sights and Attractions of San Diego

Should have these up soon.

Until next time... Jaguar out.

Indonesia Terrorist Attacks

As you most likely have seen on the new today, deadly terrorist attacks took place in the Indonesian capital Jakarta. The attack took place at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott luxury hotels. My deepest condolences go out to the families' that lost loved ones in the attacks.

Greetings

It has been some time since I lasted posted on this blog. Due to the crumbling economy my travels have been put to a minimum but will try to post some interesting tid bits here and there.

Thanks for reading,

Jaguar

Mauna Kea Beach Hotel Summary

Sorry for the delay, but I have only just returned home since my flight to Los Angeles was delayed several hours. Hopefully the final post will be up in the next day or so, plus a former post which was being reedited. Thank you for your patience. 

Having been at the Mauna Kea for 5 days, it is necessary to share some constructive criticism.

1. Presidential Ocean View Suites (Mauna Kea & Mauna Loa) - this will be my worst criticism!

At $3,500 per night your money would be better spent on a down payment for a Toyota. The first thing that came to mind when I entered the Mauna Kea Suite was "spartan". Now twelve hours later, I have yet to figure out what Barry Design Associates were thinking when these rooms were designed. With loads of useless open space, stark walls, and the same furniture found in lower category rooms it does not match its competitors in the scope of luxury. If you must have a suite, my suggestion would be either the Ocean View (Hualalai) or the Mountain View (Kohala) suites, $1,750 and $1,100 respectively.

2. Employee Training

Since the hotel only opened two months ago it is slightly understandable that the employees are not fully aware of the property's "standard operating procedures". Sadly this is apparent through out the hotel and reflects the management's lack of involvement. With the grand opening being only a few weeks away, service style, quality, and consistency needs to be ensured.

3. Employee Morale

With the lack of training prior to the soft opening, low morale is running rampant through out the hotel. Many of the employees had suggestions and opinions on what should be done with the Mauna Kea during renovation. Sadly, senior management did not take their workers feelings seriously. By far the most common complaint from team members are the new uniforms they have been issued. Many say, the uniforms are too hot and uncomfortable for the tropical climate and most would agree that they are not "Mauna Kea-ish". Other areas of concern have been the use of public spaces, employees have lost their "space" to make way for stores and art galleries (who wants to be stuck in small windowless areas?). Even though these issues maybe considered trivial, they all add up to bring down worker satisfaction. If team members are unhappy, in many cases they will not work the extra mile to ensure guest satisfaction.

4. Changes to tradition

One key ingredient that Mauna Kea had was guest loyalty. Why have generations of families been returning to the Mauna Kea for over 40 years? Tradition and familiarity. The hotel became travelers' home away from home, they knew what to expect. From the orange beach towels to plumeria leis and understated elegance to familiar faces. In many ways, traditions have been altered. For return guests like myself and employees too, this is an uncomfortable. Some traditions may change with time but other are to be left alone.

With this being said, I still love the Mauna Kea and it will always be my home away from home. Most likely I will have to adapt to the changes and accept new traditions. I firmly believe that in time, service will excel to the 5 diamond standards the management is striving for. Though with these small issues, the property has earned 4 out of 5 stars. By my next visit, which will be in August, all these issues should hopefully be ironed out. There shall be two more posts regarding the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel over the next few days.

--Jaguar