I think Honolulu must have the largest collection of shabby and overpriced 2 and 3 star hotels in the world. Normally I stay at the New Otani which is a $140-$160 per night property, great location, breakfast on the beach, some nice views and friendly staff. Rooms are so so.
I thought I would try something different for a change and wanted to be closer to Ala Moana shopping and movies. The Holiday Inn was offering a $125/night room with free high speed internet access and is only a 10 minute walk from Ala Moana and Victoria Plaza shopping.
The staff were very helpful, room was generous in size, internet access worked as advertised.
If you book a stay DEFINITELY ask for a room NOT facing Ala Moana Blvd unless you find traffic noise soothing.
Overall a good stay, average by most standards but a tremendous value for Waikiki.

I stayed here for one night while transiting through Hawaii. My flight was delayed and I didn't end up at the hotel until around 0430. The agent already knew who I was when I walked throught the door. When questioned how she knew, she replied "because you're the last check-n". I found that to be a good sign, meaning, the staff actually is paying attention to details. Actually, the entire staff is extremely courteous and friendly. The room itself is what I expected, nothing too fancy, but free high-speed internet (which most hotels charge extra for). There is some street noise, but nothing too terrible. I would definitely stay here again and recommend it for business travelers or people who want to just make a 'base camp' while they are in Waikiki.

Holiday Inn Waikiki is nothing fancy, but will get you a clean room at a good price in an expensive area. It is great if you are basicly just using the room as a base and a place to sleep while touring around Waikiki.

The hotel sits off the road with just a drive on the main street. There is a chinese restaurant in front of the entrance. It is walking distance from the beach (I did not go there), shopping and many restaurants including McDonalds, Starbucks and the popular Wailana Coffee House (decent food.) There is a bus stop out front, too (kind of in front of the chinese restaurant.)

The lobby is small and basic for a Holiday Inn. You will find just coffee there in the morning. There is no restaurant on the premises. The staff is friendly and accomodating (they held our luggage in the back on the day we arrived early, and the day we checked out and then went sightseeing.) The rooms are basic, but clean. Ours had a refridgerator. The A/C unit was kind of loud (not unusual for this category of room.) We had a room that faced the street (Ala Moana Blvd) which added to the noise level at night. (Tip: Try to get a room that faces the back of the hotel. This might cut down on the noise.) The hotel has a pool, but we did not use it.

In addition to the restaurants on Ala Moana Blvd, there are restaurants and shopping in the Hilton complex across the street. There is also an ABC (convenience) store there where you can buy an OK breakfast or lunch and sit at outdoor tables next to the pool. We weren't shy about this, and no one ever chased us away for not buying the outdoor cafe food.

One last observation: pilots and flight attendants from China and Japan airlines were staying in the Holiday Inn while we were there. I take this an indicator of consistancy (quality, price) since they are obviously in Honolulu all the time, and the hotel is not real close to the airport.

Waikiki has a lot of fabulous and luxurious beach front hotels, however, we found most of them are rather overpriced.

The Holiday Inn proved to be the best-priced hotel for us. For under $130 a night, we got a decent sized room that was clean and quiet. The bed was comfortable and the beddings were changed everyday. A good place to return to after a day at the beach.

The reception staff were friendly, even at midnight when we checked in. Our request for data cables to connect to the internet was fulfilled, without additional charge. And broadband internet access was free.

The laundry facility was convenient and the gym was well equiped.