Hotel review · Waikiki
Hyatt Centric Waikiki Review
A 2016 conversion of an office tower on Kuhio Avenue: 230 rooms, a pool deck built for lounging rather than laps, and a food hall downstairs instead of a hotel restaurant.
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Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach, December 2022. Photo: Peaceray, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The 30-second verdict
Book the Hyatt Centric for a newer room in the middle of Waikiki for less resort fee than the beachfront names, with the beach five minutes down Seaside Avenue. Skip it if you want to swim at the hotel: the deck has a hot tub and a wading pool, not a swimming pool.
Hyatt Centric Waikiki at a Glance
- Area
- Central Waikiki, Kuhio Avenue side
- Address
- 349 Seaside Ave, Honolulu, HI 96815
- Beach
- About 5 minutes on foot, down Seaside
- Price tier
- Upscale
- Resort fee
- $48 a night
- Parking
- Valet and self; 6′2″ clearance
- Check-in / out
- 3 PM / 11 AM
- Rooms
- 230, opened December 2016
- Pets
- Dogs to 50 lb, $100 up to 6 nights
Fee, times, rooms and pet rules from the hotel’s own page as captured on Aug 29, 2026; hyatt.com blocks outside tools. The hotel publishes no current parking rates.
Best for
- CouplesGoodCabanas and a hot tub eight floors up, but no spa and no hotel bar.
- FamiliesGoodTwo-queen rooms and suites, beach gear in the fee; the pool is a wading pool.
- FriendsGreatKuhio Avenue’s bars and a food hall downstairs, open 6:30 AM to 11 PM.
- SoloGreatA newer, 230-room hotel with a 24-hour gym in the center of everything.
- GroupsGood3,900 square feet of meeting space; 230 rooms caps the room block.
Pros
- A $48 resort fee, below the $50 to $55 at the big Kalakaua hotels.
- Opened in 2016, newer than most of Waikiki.
- Royal Hawaiian Center and International Market Place about 4 minutes away on foot.
- Food downstairs from 6:30 AM: Dukes Lane Market, Basalt and Nori Bar.
- Dogs welcome up to 50 pounds, with published fees.
Cons
- No swimming pool: a wading pool and a hot tub.
- Not on the beach; about two blocks inland.
- No hotel restaurant or bar of its own.
- Garage clearance is 6′2″, and current parking rates are not published.
Known for
The eighth-floor Splash Lounge
The hotel builds its page around the deck eight stories up: a hot tub, what the hotel calls a wading pool, cabanas and drinks, open 8 AM to 10 PM.
Rooms
The hotel opened on December 8, 2016 in the former Waikiki Trade Center, an office tower on Kuhio Avenue, with 230 rooms. Rooms come as one king, a king and a queen, two queens or two doubles, in city, high-floor and ocean-view versions, with Chromecast and digital keys. Pick Ocean View or High Floor if the view matters.
Suites
Four suite types: Ocean View, Mountain View and City View with a king, and a City View suite with two queens. Sizes are not published. Dogs up to 50 pounds stay for $100 (one to six nights) or $250 (seven to 30); tell the hotel three days ahead.
The Splash Lounge
The eighth-floor Splash Lounge is a deck for sitting, not swimming: a hot tub, a wading pool, cabanas and drinks, 8 AM to 10 PM. There is no lap pool anywhere in the hotel, and no published cabana price.
Spa and Gym
There is no spa. The fitness center is open 24 hours with cardio machines and free weights. The Hyatt Regency’s Na Hoʻola Spa is about 7 minutes east.
Getting to the Beach
Walk down Seaside Avenue and cross Kalakaua, about 5 minutes, to the sand between the Royal Hawaiian and the Moana Surfrider, where city lifeguard tower 2A stands. The resort fee has covered beach chairs, umbrellas, towels and boogie boards, so carry the gear two blocks. For the walled, calmer Kuhio Beach swim basin, keep walking east about 10 minutes; a state sand project starts there in fall 2026. Surf schools check in around the corner on Lewers Street (see our Waikiki surf lessons comparison), and Waikiki’s beaches, section by section covers every stretch.
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What the Resort Fee Covers
The $48 fee’s most recent published lists have included a GoPro rental, beach chairs, umbrellas and toys, towels, sunscreen and aloe, reusable water bottles, EV charging and activity discounts. Confirm the current list when you book. There is no kids club.
Food Downstairs
The hotel says plainly that it has no restaurant or bar of its own; its 2016 restaurant, The Lanai, is gone. The building fills the gap. Dukes Lane Market & Eatery, run by ABC Stores, is a market and food hall open 6:30 AM to 11 PM. Basalt, inside it, serves breakfast and dinner with a 2 to 5 PM happy hour, and Nori Bar, a newer arrival, does hand rolls from 11 AM to 10 PM. For more, see the best food trucks in Waikiki and the best mai tais on Oahu.
Around the Hyatt Centric
This is the middle of Waikiki: International Market Place and the Royal Hawaiian Center are about 4 minutes away, Kuhio Avenue’s bars are out the door, and the free Kuhio Beach hula show (Saturdays and the first and third Tuesdays, 6:30 PM) is about 10 minutes east. The airport is 9 miles away; see Honolulu airport to Waikiki. The garage clearance is 6′2″ and oversized vehicles are turned away, so size your rental with that in mind (renting a car on Oahu). Comparing? The Hyatt Regency Waikiki is the big Hyatt across from Kuhio Beach, and the best Waikiki hotels at every budget lines up the rest.
Could be better
The pool deck is the hotel’s headline amenity, and the only water on it is a hot tub and what the hotel itself calls a wading pool. There is no swimming pool on the property. Families who want the kids swimming at the hotel should look at a resort with a swimming pool, or plan on the ocean.
Consider Instead
- Surfjack Hotel & Swim Club suits travelers who want a pool to swim in and no amenity fee on a direct booking, and its guests park in the Hyatt Centric’s own garage.
- Hyatt Regency Waikiki is the pick for families who want the kids in the water: the walled Kuhio Beach swim basin is across the street, and beach toys come with the $55 resort fee.
- White Sands Hotel is the lower-cost choice: a mid-range garden hotel with a courtyard pool, a $30 amenity fee that covers beach chairs and boogie boards, and dogs of any size.
Tips Before You Book Hyatt Centric Waikiki
- Measure the rental. The garage takes vehicles under 6′2″; oversized ones are turned away.
- Call about parking. The hotel publishes no current rates.
- Borrow the beach gear. Chairs, umbrellas and towels have come with the resort fee.
- Book the dog in early. Tell the hotel three days ahead; the fee covers up to six nights.
- Eat early downstairs. Dukes Lane opens at 6:30 AM, useful before a surf lesson or Diamond Head.
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Hyatt Centric Waikiki: Questions
Does Hyatt Centric Waikiki Beach charge a resort fee?
Yes, $48 a night, subject to change, per the hotel’s page (August 2026). Past inclusions have covered beach chairs, umbrellas, towels and a GoPro rental; confirm the current list at booking.
Is Hyatt Centric Waikiki on the beach?
No. It is on the Kuhio Avenue side of Seaside Avenue, about two blocks inland. The nearest sand, at the Royal Hawaiian and Moana stretch, is about a 5-minute walk.
Does Hyatt Centric Waikiki have a pool?
It has the eighth-floor Splash Lounge with a hot tub, cabanas and a wading pool, open 8 AM to 10 PM. There is no full swimming pool.
How much is parking at Hyatt Centric Waikiki?
The hotel offers valet and self-parking with a 6-foot-2 clearance, but does not publish current rates. Call the hotel for the rate.
Sources, checked Sep 26, 2026
Researched from the sources above, checked Sep 26, 2026. We never claim a visit we did not make; first-hand notes are marked as Stew’s. How we research and review.
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