The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel is celebrating 50 years in business with its $50,000 Golden Anniversary Package. The hotel itself, nestled on the Big Island's gorgeous Kohala coast, is luxury in every sense, with four and a half out of five stars on Trip Advisor and weekly rates upwards of $4,000.
But is this all-inclusive "deal" worth all those pretty pennies?
We dug through its offerings -- checking prices whenever possible -- to find out if the outlandish price tag is really worth it.
What do you get?
The five-night package for two covers all the basics of luxury travel -- a private driver, first-class roundtrip airfare for two, a 24-hour concierge, spa treatments, customized dining and unlimited golf, tennis, daily meals and beach rentals. The hotel even offers the option of arranging a private helicopter to shuttle guests from the airport to the hotel.
But the package also includes a handful of one-of-a-kind experiences that can't be found -- or purchased -- anywhere else.
For example, the trip includes a private stargazing session at the Keck Observatory atop the 13,796-foot Mauna Kea Summit -- an opportunity that is not available to the public. The exclusive look at the starry Hawaiian sky is offered because the hotel has a "special relationship with the observatory," public relations director Vicy Kometani told HuffPost.
Knock out your entire Hawaii bucket list.
The list of activities offered with the package include almost everything you can possibly do during a tropical vacation: a private helicopter tour of Volcano National Park; a customized nature tour; a sunset sailing charter on a catamaran; a private farm tour and farm-to-table dinner made by the hotel's executive chef -- even a coconut tree planted on hotel property with your name printed on a plaque.
The package also includes a few Golden Anniversary gifts: an original painting by local Hawaii artist Mary Spears; a photographed portrait of the guests at a location of their choice; two TaylorMade drivers and a choice item for each guest from Tori Richard's limited addition 50th anniversary resort wear collection in the hotel's boutique.
But, is the price worth it?
There's one glaring problem: The ambitious itinerary seems a little exhausting for a mere five night trip. What's the point of having a daily private cabana, or endless rounds of golf and tennis, if you're off doing other things most of the time?
By far, the most expensive element of the five-night stay is the top-level, panoramic ocean view Mauna Kea or Mauna Loa suite, which would normally cost $18,500 for the five nights. The second most expensive item is the first-class airfare.
When we added all the items that could be specifically priced, we came up with roughly $30,000 -- that doesn't include the inestimable things, like the night at the Observatory, or the private farm tour, or the 24-hour on-call concierge.
The extra price no doubt goes to the above and beyond customer service and luxurious details, but let's be honest: If you're considering spending that kind of money at a hotel, shouldn't you expect that kind of treatment anyways?
According to Kometani, no one has bought the package yet, but everyone who has called to ask about it has been very impressed with its offerings.
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/10/mauna-kea-beach-hotel-package_n_6306100.html?utm_hp_ref=travel&ir=Travel and provided by entertainment-movie-news.com
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