Hawaiian Resorts Upgrade To Attract Biz Travelers, Mtgs.

With a booming meetings and convention scene, Hawaii's hotels and resorts are upgrading and expanding their accommodations, services and technology in the hopes of attracting even more corporate travelers.

Michael Murray, director of sales for meetings, conventions and incentives at the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau, said Hawaii is a hot spot at the moment for hosting large conventions. He spoke of the islands' coup in attracting the American Society of Association Executives, which will hold a conference there in August.

"Hawaii remains one of the premier incentive business destinations," he said. "It's an exotic and unique experience with world-class facilities."

With more than 70,000 hotel rooms across the state's six islands, Murray said Hawaii's incentive business continues to grow, bringing business travelers from around the world. "They make a vacation out of their annual meeting," Murray said. "One of the main incentives of Hawaii is to grow the business travel mix, and we clearly value that sector."

Halekulani, a resort on the beaches of Waikiki, is doing its part to court the business traveler. The property recently completed a $20 million refurbishment program, which included an upgraded ballroom meeting area and hospitality suites, renovated public space and expanded business center.

With a location less than a mile from the bustling streets of Honolulu, the nation's 11th-largest city, Halekulani representatives said guests can enjoy the best of both worlds—business and leisure. "It's the ideal property especially for business travelers," said Halekulani spokesperson Joyce Matsumoto. "We're in the heart of Waikiki, but it's still very quiet and serene when guests want to get away."

The hotel has made a concerted effort to upgrade its technology, and is the first in Hawaii to have a 100 percent wireless Internet network. Guests can be at the pool or on their balcony and still be connected to the Internet, and the hotel offers this as a complimentary service. "For those who need to be connected for work, this is really ideal," Matsumoto said. "Guests here come to appreciate this and are surprised that we offer it as a free service. Needless to say, it's been warmly accepted by our guests."

For travelers who do not bring their laptops with them, Halekulani offers free access to the Internet using computers in the hotel's business center for 30 minutes each day—again another complimentary service geared toward travelers who need to check e-mail or need to stay in touch with co-workers.

But the resort takes the service one step further: If guests are having problems connecting to the wireless system or have hardware that is not initially compatible with the network, the hotel's Management Information Systems technicians personally will walk the guest through the process and come up with a feasible alternative, even if it means using the hotel's equipment.

Halekulani, however, is not alone in its forward-thinking approach to technology. Maui Sky Fiber, a Maui-based telecommunications carrier, this month said it will deploy the IPWireless advanced 3G broadband wireless solution on the island of Maui. Maui will be the first in the nation to deploy 3G broadband technology in the commercial market, enabling businesses, consumers and visitors to access a high-speed Internet connection anywhere on the island.

The Hawaii Convention Center is another leader in Hawaii's tech boom, with its fiberoptic cable running through the entire building and satellite up-link and down-link capability. Coaxial cable for video interconnects all major areas of the building and major meeting rooms have the ability to network 400 computers working simultaneously. The press room is equipped to provide global links to any country in the world, with simultaneous multilingual translation available in all major meeting rooms.

Many area hotels feature a number of high-tech capabilities as well. The Grand Wailea Resort Hotel and Spa in south Maui provides Web TV in all guest rooms and high-speed Internet access in all meeting rooms and in its poolside cabanas. The Renaissance Ilikai Waikiki in Oahu has an international business center that offers audiovisual equipment, videoconferencing and tech support. Guest rooms on the Ilikai's business class floors also are equipped with in-room fax capability, dataports, dual telephones and office supplies.

Halekulani's Matsumoto said her property's accommodations are "executive friendly," including a private, escorted checkin and registration in the privacy of the room. Each room is outfitted with new furniture, including a large executive desk, a 27-inch television and DVD entertainment center. The hotel recently was ranked third nationwide in the 2003 Zagat survey for its service and accommodations.

In terms of meeting spaces, Halekulani has five. Matsumoto said the hotel's Ballroom One and Ballroom Two each comfortably can seat 380 people for proper sit-down meetings and up to 600 for cocktail receptions. With a panoramic view of the beach, the hotel's Heu Terrace can host 100 for dinner and 300 for a reception. There are several more traditional spaces for board meetings, which can be outfitted with full audiovisual equipment upon request.

The property also features a full concierge service where guests can take care of shipping, receiving and faxing of business materials. Matsumoto said the hotel is surrounded by a number of well-known attractions, whether it is for a casual cocktail business reception or an all-out, sit-down formal dinner. "You don't really have to leave the property to entertain," she said. LaMer, a neoclassic French Bistro, located in the hotel is the only AAA-rated five-star restaurant in all of Hawaii, according to Matsumoto.

"As far as amenities go, we go out of our way to make sure that business travelers are productive as well," she said. "We know the success of their trip is of the utmost importance and that means getting things done. We're aware of their intense schedules and we offer as much as we can in the way of service and business tools to maximize their time."

A number of other hotels across the islands of Hawaii also are pouring money into refurbishing and upgrading their accommodations, with an eye for attracting more business travelers.

The Marriott Vacation Club International has expanded its presence with the Ko Olina Beach Club, which when complete this year, will offer 750 villas. Of those, 103 were completed last month.

The Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel recently completed its $30 million renovation of all public and retail areas, restaurants and hotel rooms. Meanwhile the Turtle Bay Resort completed a $55 million renovation project to upgrade its meeting and event space, revamp the guest rooms, cottages and restaurants, remodel its lobby, renovate its golf course greens and add a full-service day spa.

The Kapalua Bay Hotel & Ocean Villas has completed the final phase of a $32 million renovation. The hotel's meeting facilities were upgraded and expanded by more than 50 percent, the lobby was remodeled and the pool and fitness centers were overhauled and upgraded.