This post may contain some affiliate links, which means I’ll make a little money on anything you choose to purchase. But of course, I only recommend my absolute favorites to you. Thank you for supporting the brands that make HulaLand possible.

Hawaii may not be known for their tennis culture like other sunshine-y places like Florida, California, or Arizona but that doesn’t mean they’re short on absolutely fabulous resorts where you can work on your game while enjoying sand, sun, and tropical breezes.

They may call Indian Wells, CA “tennis paradise” but in Hawaii…tennis + an actual paradise = an incredible vacation.

I’ve stayed (and played) at quite a few resorts in Hawaii with great tennis programs plus I’ve done a TON of research since I love to hit the courts on vacation, so I’ve rounded up the best list of Hawaii tennis resorts.

Best Hawaii Tennis Resorts

Whether you’re looking for the best overall tennis resorts in Hawaii or you’re looking for your best option on any particular island, I’ve got you covered here.

I’ll start by breaking down your options by island and then at the end I’ll rank all of them together.

Big Island Tennis Resorts

If tennis is your #1 priority on vacation, you’ll 100% find the best options on the Big Island. Maybe it’s because there’s more space on the Big Island, but so many resorts here have really invested in onsite tennis infrastructure.

Mauna Kea Beach Hotel

By far the best tennis resort in Hawaii is the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel. It’s probably a contender for top tennis resort in the world.

The resort has nine tennis courts, eight pickleball courts, a team of pros running daily drills, clinics, and private lessons plus a great pro shop but the showstopper here is the LOCATION.

They don’t call it the Seaside Tennis Club for nothing. This is as oceanfront as it gets.

When I stayed at the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel last November, I booked an hour-long lesson with a pro and ended up having a mini breakthrough on some niggling forehand issues.

And while the instruction was excellent, I can’t help but think it had a little to do with the oceanviews and the sound of waves crashing in the background ; )

Find pricing and scheduling info here.

Now, about the resort itself…besides the tennis, the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel is one of my favorite hotels in Hawaii.

It has an absolutely spectacular setting on Kauna’oa Bay, and the beach here is everything. Seriously, it’s one of the best beaches in Hawaii.

The hotel itself is vintage Hawaiiana. The resort was developed by Laurance Rockefeller in the 1960s, and it has pretty great Mad Men era vibes.

Another huge perk of this place is that it’s a Marriott property and it’s one of my favorite spots to cash in points for a stay.

A heads up though…the property is slated for a major renovation starting in Q2 of 2024 lasting through 2025 so keep an eye on exactly how that might impact your stay.

Fairmont Orchid

Of all of my top favorite tennis resorts on the Big Island, the Fairmont Orchid is probably where you’ll find the best deal, both on the resort itself and the tennis fees.

The Fairmont Orchid is a great luxury beach resort with a nice little cove beach, plenty of rocky shoreline, and a great pool.

The Fairmont has a 10 court full service club with lights for evening play plus a stadium show court.

More info here.

Four Seasons Hualalai

The Four Seasons Hualalai is the most definitely the most luxurious resort on the Big Island…probably in Hawaii…maybe in the world!…and of course they have an onsite tennis complex.

It’s not quite as large as the clubs at the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel or the Fairmont Kea Lani, but it’s plenty good enough and if you want a top of the line experience, this is it.

More info here.

Mauna Lani Resort

I LOVE the Mauna Lani Resort, and it hits the “quiet luxury” vibe absolutely perfectly.

If I’m picking a resort based on best overall experience, it’s hard to pass this place up, but the tennis situation isn’t quite on the same level as the other tennis resorts on the Big Island.

The Wellness Center & Tennis Club at the Mauna Lani Resort is just a quick drive from the hotel itself, but it’s not what I would call walkable or onsite. I mean, it’s technically walkable but it’s about a half mile or so.

But if you don’t mind hopping in the car, it’s definitely a great option!

More info here.

***Want to save major $$$ on your trip to Hawaii? I get asked ALL the time how I’m able to travel so often to Hawaii and stay at really nice resorts. Well, my favorite travel hack is cashing in points to score free airfare and free nights at some of Hawaii’s most high end resorts. Read my full guide on the exact system I use to max out credit card rewards here. Seriously, it’s going to save you soooo much money.

Maui Tennis Resorts

After the Big Island, I think Maui has the most tennis options in Hawaii. The two biggest (and best) tennis clubs on Maui aren’t onsite at resorts, but they’re in the resort areas of Wailea and Kapalua so there are plenty of places to stay nearby.

Here are your best options:

Four Seasons Maui

The Four Seasons is one of the only resorts on Maui with an onsite tennis program, so if you’re a tennis player and it’s in the budget, the Four Seasons is the place to be. I mean, I think it’s the place to be in general…It’s one of my favorite resorts in Hawaii.

While located on the sixth floor of the Four Seasons (above the parking garage), the tennis program is actually operated by the Zerbe Tennis Group. Coach to the pros, Darrin Zerbe retired to Hawaii after running a tennis academy in south Florida for many years and now you can participate in one of his clinics while you’re on vacation.

And if you’re like me, a lesson here may be your first time playing on turf!

Every day is a different theme- some clinics are targeted towards beginners and some designed for intermediate and advanced players- but you can also book a private lesson if you have something specific you’d like to work on.

Daily clinics are $50 and can be charged to the room. When I played here at the end of September, there were only three of us that showed up for the daily clinic, but from Thanksgiving through the winter season, clinics and courts (there are only two) book up far in advance.

More info on the tennis program here including prices and schedule.

Royal Lahaina

The Royal Lahaina is an older property (one of Maui’s first resorts!) located on Kaanapali Beach just north of Black Rock, but their tennis ranch has been one of the best tennis facilities on Maui for a long time (they’ve hosted the Fed Cup in the past).

Unfortunately after the wildfires in Lahaina, the operators of the ranch for over 30 years decided not to renew their lease so the ranch is currently closed. But keep checking here for new announcements to see if they’ll reopen under new ownership.

Wailea Tennis Club

The Wailea Tennis Club is an independent 11 court facility in the Wailea resort area that hosts daily clinics and lessons. The Grand Champions Villas condo complex is the best place to stay if you want to be within walking distance of the courts (but it’s not on the beach).

The Wailea Beach Resort, Andaz Maui, and Wailea Elua Village are all technically within walking distance of the Wailea Tennis Club (about ¾ of a mile) but all of the resorts and condos in the Wailea area are only a very short drive away.

Find more info here.

Kapalua Tennis Garden

West Maui’s best tennis option is the Kapalua Tennis Club. With eight tennis courts and eight pickleball courts, it’s the hub of tennis activity in Kapalua and Kaanapali.

The Kapalua Tennis Garden is within walking distance from the Montage (the Ritz Carlton is a quick drive), the Napili Kai Beach Resort and the Mauian on Napili Bay.

Find more info here.

Oahu Tennis Resorts

There aren’t any large tennis clubs in the resort areas of Oahu, but here are your best options:

Turtle Bay

This gorgeous resort on Oahu’s north shore has four tennis courts (plus new pickleball courts) and the Oahu Tennis Academy operates drills, clinics, and lessons.

More info here.

Four Seasons Oahu

The tennis facilities at the Four Seasons in Ko Olina are definitely the most picturesque on the island.

The resort’s sixth floor rooftop complex features three tennis courts and four pickleball courts all with mountain and ocean views.

More info here.

Kaimana Beach Hotel

Okay, this isn’t really a tennis resort, BUT if you want to stay in Waikiki and be able to play tennis, this super cute boutique hotel is located just across the street from the Diamond Head Tennis Center in Kapi’olani Park.

Check out the Kaimana Beach Hotel here.

Side Note: If you’re looking for a rental car for your trip, I LOVE Discount Hawaii Car Rentals. They’re seriously the only company I ever use. They’ll give you the very best prices, you don’t have to reserve with a credit card or pay until you show up, you can cancel and re-book anytime if you find a better rate, and they usually have a special that adds additional drivers for no fee. It’s a no brainer. Click here to check rates for your trip.

Kauai Tennis Resorts

Kauai probably wouldn’t be my first choice for a tennis vacation, but it’s a lot of people’s first choice for top Hawaiian Island. And if you’re looking to play tennis while you’re on Kauai, you’ve got options…

Hanalei Bay Resort

This would be my pick for the best tennis resort experience on Kauai. I haven’t stayed at the Hanalei Bay Resort yet, but I love its location right next to the Princeville Resort (the new 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay) and the north shore of Kauai is one of the dreamiest places on the planet.

The resort has four hardcourts and four artificial grass courts plus a pro shop and a pretty hopping schedule of events. Private lessons, daily clinics, round robbins, cardio tennis, player matching, etc. They do it all. AND it’s a nice resort.

Find more info here.

Poipu Athletic Club

I accidentally stumbled upon the Poipu Athletic Club after waiting way too long for a cup of coffee next door at Little Fish Coffee. The guy working at the front desk was very friendly and let me walk around and check out the club. This place is seriously cool! If I lived on Kauai or spent much time there, I would definitely have a membership. Besides tennis and pickleball courts, this place has an enormous pool (complete with sand bottom and waterfall feature), soccer field, open air gym, volleyball, ping pong, pretty much every sport you can think of, etc.

And the tennis program sounds pretty good. Besides lessons, there are adult drills scheduled four days a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday) from 9-10:30 and I heard the instructor to student ratio is GOOD.

You don’t have to be a member to do lessons and drills here, but you will pay a little more than members.

Find more info here.

Poipu Kai Tennis Club

I walked up from Poipu Beach to check this place out and it’s a great location if you’re staying in the area. There are 8 courts total and their website says two of them are artificial grass, but I didn’t walk around to all of them to look them over. They had quite a few flyers advertising different clinics, round robbins, and drop ins for tennis and pickleball, and it looks like there’s a pay as you go option for non members.

It’s within walking distance to quite a few condo complexes in Poipu.

Find more info here.

Best Tennis Resorts in Hawaii Ranked

Hopefully by now you have a pretty good idea of where you want to stay on your trip, but since I’ve mentioned all of the above options sorted by island, here’s how I would rank the best tennis resorts in Hawaii – all islands combined:

Mauna Kea Beach Hotel (Big Island)

Fairmont Kea Lani (Big Island)

Four Seasons Hualalai (Big Island)

Four Seasons Ko Olina (Oahu

Hanalei Bay Resort (Kauai)

Mauna Lani Resort (Big Island)

Four Seasons Maui (Maui)

Turtle Bay (Oahu)

If you’re an absolute tennis nut and you like to play at a variety of places, the Kohala Coast on the Big Island is by far the best area to stay. The Mauna Lani Resort and the Fairmont Orchid are both in the Mauna Lani Resort area and less than a five minute drive from each other plus the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel is less than a 10 minute drive from those two so you’d have the option to visit a few different tennis clubs in one area.

Here’s one more really important thing you need to know before your Hawaii trip…

Reservations You Need to Make BEFORE Your Hawaii Trip

You’ve got your airfare, hotel, rental car and your big activities booked, so you should be good to go, right? Wrong!

Travel is BOOMING in Hawaii so a lot of state and national parks used the closure and reopening to institute reservation systems at some of the island’s most popular spots to make things a little more sustainable.

That means that there are now over half a dozen sites (beaches, trailheads, etc.) that require advance reservations. And some sell out well before you arrive on the island so you really need to have some sort of a plan.

I recently saw somebody in a Hawaii travel group post in a panic that they didn’t know they had to make reservations for things in advance…they thought they could just show up and “go with the flow.” I was tempted to say, well, “as long as the flow doesn’t take you somewhere that requires reservations, you can!” ; )

But I don’t want YOU to be that person, so I’ve pulled together a list of all the places you need to reserve entry in advance (plus all the details on booking windows, price, links, etc.) and a handful of popular tourist hotspots that book out really far in advance too.

Haleakala National Park (Maui)

To visit Haleakala National Park for sunrise at the summit, you must make reservations in advance here.

Reservations are required to enter the park gates between 3AM and 7AM (sunrise hours).

Online reservations are $1 per reservation/vehicle PLUS you’ll pay the park entrance fee of $30/vehicle when you arrive (National Park annual passes are also accepted at the gate).

The reservation booking window opens 60 days in advance at 7AM HST. There are also a limited number of tickets released two days before.

You can make one reservation every three days with the same account. So if you want to make reservations for back to back days (in case of weather/conditions), you’ll need to do so with separate accounts (email addresses).

If you can’t get reservations for sunrise, you can enter the park anytime after 7AM without reservations. The summit is spectacular during the day and you don’t need reservations for sunset.

I strongly recommend creating an account before and making sure you’re logged in at 7AM HST because it’s not uncommon for reservations to sell out quickly.

Waianapanapa State Park (Maui)

To visit Maui’s famous black sand beach at Waianapanapa State Park on the Road to Hana, you must make reservations in advance here.

Reservations are required to visit the beach and are distributed in windows from 7AM-10AM, 10AM-12:30PM, 12:30PM-3PM, and 3PM-6PM. And they are pretty strict about exiting by the end of your window time (you can arrive anytime within your window).

It’s $5/person to enter plus $10/vehicle to park and those fees are paid when you book your time slot.

Reservations open up 30 days in advance.

Iao Valley State Park (Maui)

To visit the lush, green mountains and hike at Iao Valley State Park, you must make reservations in advance here.

Reservations are offered for 90 minute time slots beginning at 7AM and ending at 6PM. They ask that you arrive within the first 30 minutes of your time slot.

Entry is $5/person plus $10/vehicle to park.

Reservations open up 30 days in advance.

Diamond Head (Oahu)

To hike to the top of Waikiki’s famous Diamond Head, you must make reservations in advance here.

Reservations are offered in two hour increments beginning at 6AM (6AM-8AM, 8AM-10AM, etc.) and ending at 6PM. If you’re parking onsite, they ask that you arrive within the first 30 minutes of your reservation window.

Entry is $5/person plus $10/vehicle to park.

Reservations open up 30 days in advance.

Tip: I recommend booking one of the first two time slots because there isn’t much shade on this hike and it gets pretty hot.

Hanauma Bay (Oahu)

To snorkel at Oahu’s pristine Hanauma Bay, you must make reservations in advance here.

Entry times are staggered in 10 minute increments from 7AM to 1:20PM with roughly 1000 slots being assigned in advance every day.

Reservations can be made two days in advance and they open at 7AM HST. They’re usually gone in minutes (if not seconds).

If you’re unable to get an advanced reservation, you can try for a day of, walk in ticket. They open at 6:45AM and they only have a limited number available. Everyone in your group needs to be present when you purchase your tickets in person.

There are no reservations for parking and it’s first come, first serve. $3/vehicle.

It’s $25/person to snorkel at Hanauma Bay (12 and under, active military, and locals with HI ID are free).

The Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve is open Wednesday through Sunday (CLOSED MONDAY AND TUESDAY) from 6:45AM-4PM. Last entry is at 1:30PM, the beach is cleared at 3:15PM and you have to leave the facility by 4PM.

Jellyfish patterns can also affect whether or not the bay is open so double check the day before/day of.

USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor (Oahu)

If you want to take the boat tour at Pearl Harbor out to the USS Arizona, it’s recommended to make advance reservations here.

Online reservations are guaranteed a specific boarding time to go out to the USS Arizona. If you’re unable to get an advance reservation, you can wait standby when you arrive. The line could be short (15 minutes or so) or long (hours) and it just depends on the day (if they’re having problems with the loading dock sometimes they don’t take many from the standby line) and the time of day.

Reservations are supposed to open up 60 days in advance, but keep an eye on your exact dates, because lately they’ve actually been opening up about 57ish days in advance???

They also release a small batch of tickets the day before.

The boat ride out to the USS Arizona is free, but it’s $1 to make the reservations online.

They recently started charging $7/vehicle for parking at Pearl Harbor.

Haena State Park / Kalalau Trail (Kauai)

If you want to hike Kauai’s famous Kalalau Trail, you must make advance reservations here.
You’ve got three options here:

1) Parking & Entry: This is the most flexible option and also the most limited. THESE RESERVATIONS SELL OUT IN LESS THAN A MINUTE. There are three time slots available: 6:30AM-12:30PM, 12:30PM-5:30PM and 4:30PM to sunset. You can purchase multiple time slots if you want to stay longer. It’s $10/timeslot (parking) plus $5/person and you have to reserve every person when you initially book. Everybody has to arrive in the same car and your ID needs to match the reservation.

2) Shuttle & Entry: If you can’t get parking at the trailhead, there’s also a shuttle option. Shuttle reservations are $35/person (16+), $25/person (ages 4-15), 3 and under can ride free. The shuttle runs every 20 minutes 6:20AM to 6:40PM.

3) Entry Only: If you’re a Hawaiian resident (with HI ID) or someone WITH a Hawaiian resident, you can purchase entry only for $5/person with no advance reservations. Also, if you’re walking or biking to the trailhead you can do this option. But there is NOWHERE to park in the area to walk in. So this really only works for those with bikes or who are staying close enough to walk. They will tow your car if you park outside the designated areas.

The reservation window opens 30 days in advance at 12AM HST. The parking & entry option usually sells out in a minute, but the shuttle availability will last longer.

There are a TON of FAQs here including the possibility of snagging a canceled reservation.

Other Things to Book in Advance

Hawaii is a busy place these days! Besides the state and national parks above, here’s a handful of miscellaneous things you should make reservations for in advance (if they’re on your radar):

Mama’s Fish House (Maui): The iconic spot is the most popular restaurant in Hawaii and dinner reservations usually start filling up about 6 months in advance (they open up bookings 18 months in advance). Make reservations through their website and if the dates you want are already booked, you can join a waitlist. Most people have pretty good success getting in on the waitlist (even if it’s for lunch).

Old Lahaina Luau (Maui): Honestly, any luau you’re planning to attend you should book early, but most people are usually shocked how far out the Old Lahaina Luau books out. Book it as soon as you know your dates (I think they open at the six month window). They also have a waitlist.

Kualoa Ranch UTV Tour (Oahu): Everybody loves Jurassic Park so getting to ride UTVs where they filmed the movies is very popular. The ranch offers a lot of different tours but the UTV tours usually book out a couple of months in advance.

Spa Reservations: If you’re staying at a resort with a spa (or planning on visiting one), don’t wait until you arrive to make your reservations. I’d make them at least a month in advance.

Tee Times: Same for golf, reserve your tee times well in advance.

Dining Reservations: Any “fancy” or resort restaurant is likely to be booked up these days so if you like having a nice dinner every night, make your plans in advance.

P.S. Thanks for sticking around and reading this whole post! If you have ANY questions about planning your trip to Hawaii, you can join my free Facebook group here. I’m there answering questions every day and there are 7500+ other friends who have a ton of Hawaii information to share!

Also, if you want to follow along on my travel adventures in real time, you can follow me on Instagram (@caitylincoln). My post captions are full of travel tips and I have a ton of story highlights and videos with great info. And please share my account with your friends that are headed to Hawaii! Your support really helps me keep this blog running!