West Hawaii hotels, restaurants receive AAA award

A handful of West Hawaii restaurants and hotels have earned the coveted AAA Four Diamond Award.

Pahuia at Four Seasons Resort Hualalai and Brown’s Beach House Restaurant at The Fairmont Orchid received the award based on hospitality, ambiance, service and other criteria, according to AAA, which announced the awards Wednesday.

This is the first year Brown’s Beach House has received the award, according to AAA. Pahuia has been rated since 2000.

The Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows and The Fairmont Orchid also received the award for lodging, according to AAA. Both have been rated since the 1990s.

The AAA Four Diamond Award is presented to hotel and restaurant general managers and executive chefs to recognize the properties, which rank among the top 3.8 percent of 59,000 hotels and restaurants inspected by AAA, according to the organization. Statewide, 16 hotels and 12 restaurants received the Four Diamond Award.