Located on O'ahu's famous North Shore, the newly refurbished Turtle Bay Resort is the biggest and most comprehensive resort in the area, set in a huge 850 acres of oceanside lawns and gardens, 2 championship golf course and miles of picturesque coastline.  The Resort is in a great location for exploring the North Shore area.  On one side of the resort is the small, sheltered, horseshoe-shaped bay of Kuilima Cove, and on the other, the wide Turtle Bay, both with a white sandy beaches sloping gently into the water, and a shoreline walk that goes on for miles in each direction around the coast. It is close to the Polynesian Cultural Centre, Waimea Falls Park, the famous surf spots of Sunset Beach, Banzai Pipeline and Waimea Bay and several national parks and forest reserves, great for hiking and walking.

Having gone through a $45 million refurbishment, that was started back in 2009, they finished the last few touches by mid-2014.  As well as the room, villas, suites and beach cottage refurbishment, they also redesigned the old Palm Terrace Restaurant and turned it into the modern North Shore Kula Grill, added a brand new dining room, the elegant Pa'akai, relocated the Nalu Kinetic Spa and fitness centre into a brand new location in the lobby, opened 2 brand new retail boutiques, North Shore Watershed and The Oakley Store, and added a hip new bar, Surfer, The Bar, in partnership with Surfer, The Magazine.

The main Resort building is located right on the shore on a finger of land, so is surrounded on 3 sides by the sea!  Because of the location and design of the main hotel building, every guest room has a sea view from the furnished, private balcony. All the rooms and suites have been completely renovated, with new furniture, furnishings and decor in soft cappachino and cream colours with touches of sea greens and blues, with splashes of vibrant turquoise.  The refitted ensuite bathrooms offer new natural stone, marble and tiled decor, with complimentary toiletries, double vanity, hairdryer, walk-in shower and, in some rooms, a shuttered window you can open so you can enjoy the seaview from your separate bathtub.  The Partial Ocean View and Ocean View rooms offer 478sqft/44sqm of space and provide  1 King or 2 Queen beds, flat-screen TV with cable channels and pay-per-view movies, mini fridge, tea and coffee making facilities including a Keurig single serve coffee machine, work desk and chair, complimentary Wi-Fi internet access, iron and ironing board, easy chair and sliding patio doors to a private furnished balcony with views of the beach, gardens and the sea.  Deluxe rooms are the same size and offer the same amenities but are located on higher floors in prime ocean front locations, giving better scenic views, and Premier Rooms are on the penthouse 6th floor, with wide panoramic views.

The spacious Family Suites offer 725sqft/67sqm of living area with 2 separated rooms, and similar amenities as a Standard Room.  The separate bedroom offers a king bed, large flat-screen TV, easy chair and foot stool, and the sitting room has a sofabed,  and armchairs.  These 2 rooms have floor to ceiling windows with white plantation-style sliding shutters and easy access to the double length private balcony through double sliding patio doors.  The ensuite bathroom offers a separate tub with shutter window, large vanity and large walk-in wet-room style shower with bench seat, complimentary toiletries and hairdryer.

The Ocean View Junior Suites offer the same other amenities as the standard room, and the same size as the Family Suites, but they are one, spacious, open-plan room, with either 1 King or 2 Queen beds, sitting area with sleeper sofa, armchair table, TV, dining table and chairs, and ensuite bathroom with separate tub with shutter window, large vanity and large walk-in wet-room style shower, complimentary toiletries and hairdryer.

The new Beach Cottages are located along the shoreline of Turtle Bay to the west of the main building, set in tropical landscaped gardens and lawns, in small clusters of just 6 cottages. They offer 740sqft of space with 1 King or 2 Queen beds, Brazillian walnut floors, marble ensuite bathrooms with deep soaking tub and separate glass shower, living area with high ceilings, easy chairs, table and dining chairs, and wide opening patio doors that make your private terrace with stunning sea views, become an extension of the cottage.  There is also ADA accessible cottages available on request.

There is also a range of 3- and 4-bedroom villa apartments and 1-bedroom villa studios, that offer everything you might need in a home-away-from-home, including living and dining areas with access to a private balcony or terrace, ensuite bathrooms and mini-(1-bed studio) or full kitchen (3/4 bed villas) including full oven/hob, washer/dryers, fridges, and all crockery, cookware etc.  They offer the same high quality amenities as the other luxury rooms, and are ideal for families, or groups, or anyone wanting extra space.  The Villas are located in 7 buildings to the east of the main building, in a horseshoe shape around the private pool and courtyard, overlooking Bay View Beach, and guests have exclusive use of the pool with jacuzzi and the courtyard gardens with BBQ area.

There are several dining options at Turtle Bay, offering everything from fine dining, to sandwich and a coffee.  The brand new Pa'akai Restaurant (seasalt in Hawaiian) offers a fine dining dinner menu, serving the freshest seafood in ocean-inspired contemporary surroundings with amazing sea views.  The North Shore Grille is the main casual dining restaurant, offering a comprehensive breakfast buffet, and a farm-to-table dinner and lunch menu, where most of the ingredients, meat, poultry and vegetables, are sourced from local farms and small scale small holdings.  The Lobby Lounge offers a full bar service, freshly brewed coffees and a light menu of salads, sandwiches, appetizers and pizzas.   The trendy Surfer, The Bar, serves drinks, cocktails and tasty treats such as sushi, burgers, pizzas and pupus, whilst enjoying live music most nights.  The popular open air Leilei's Bar and Grille serves a full bar menu and delicious casual comfort food overlooking the greens of one of the golf courses. The Point Sunset and Pool Bar serves light bites and snack, along with cold juices and cocktails, with a great poolside view.  On Sundays, they have a traditional Polynesian Luau show, with Hawaiian food, including Kalua pork and salmon and much more, plus music, dancing and traditional Luau entertainment.

The Turtle Bay Resort provides guests with a huge amount of activities in the resort to fill your days, from the 2 onsite championship golf courses, designed by Arnold Palmer and George Fazio, several tennis and volleyball courts, stables, a well equipped fitness centre with fitness classes, and 3 swimming pools (1 being a kids pool with slide), to a myriad of watersports; snorkelling, surfing, stand-up paddle boards, kayaking, hiking/walking trails, bicycle, segway and moped rentals, and horseriding from their own stables.  Nearby there are several beach areas, many at famous surfing spots, national parks and forest reserves to explore and enjoy, and even helicopter sightseeing can be arranged right from the resort.   To relax, the Nalu Kinetic Day Spa offers a range of beauty and body treatments to restore and revitalise you for another day of adventure.  In the lobby there is a Tours and Excursions desk, who can arrange and book a wide range of half and full day excursions, from farm visits, segway, horseriding, surfing, and walking/hiking tours, and  'Go with a Pro' guides at the GuidePost, so you can explore with local knowledge!

Turtle Bay offers a wide range of amenities to guests, including Wi-Fi in rooms and around the resort, concierge and porter service, luggage storage, several gift shops and boutiques, tea coffee and infused waters available in the lobby, a well-equipped business centre, 14 meeting and conference rooms, and full wedding services for your special day.

Over all, Turtle Bay Resort offers almost anything and everything you could possibly wish for on a vacation.  A premium property and a not too premium price.

Click HERE to visit the hotel's own website