For the last three days of our Hawaii trip, we chose the Ritz-Carlton at Turtle Bay in the North Shore, and honestly, it was a bit of a disappointment. The hotel's location is great, about an hour's drive from the airport. Renting a car was essential, otherwise staying in the North Shore would have been inconvenient. As ocean view fanatics, we specifically booked the slightly more expensive full ocean view room, though it turns out all rooms at this hotel have some sort of ocean view, the difference being full versus partial. The first room we were given on the 5th floor mostly overlooked the beach, but the balcony was small. We weren't happy, so we switched to a second room, also on the 5th floor, which had a larger balcony but half of it faced the pool. They tried to claim it was an upgrade for my daughter's birthday, but that was just nonsense. My husband and daughter were ready to settle, but I insisted on our request, and finally, for the third room, we got a full ocean view, albeit on the lowest floor, the 2nd. As for the welcome amenities, besides the lei, there was nothing else. Compared to our first Hawaii trip – 3 nights at the Wailea Beach Resort on Maui and 4 nights at the Four Seasons Ko Olina on Oahu, where we really relaxed – this place didn't offer the same 'lie-down-and-do-nothing' vibe. There were very few complimentary activities. While the hotel itself is beautiful, the service felt a bit lacking. We had to repeatedly ask for the birthday sparkling wine, and when we changed rooms, all previous notes about our requests seemed to vanish. The service was very disjointed, and for 7000 a night, it really wasn't worth it. However, I did love the view from the balcony of the final room we got!
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