Great Place

Guest: Christina (Santa Barbara)
Date of Stay: 08/06/10 Review Submitted: 08/15/10

This house was cute, comfortable, wonderfully relaxing and had everything anyone could want including beach gear. We loved getting to stay so close to Tunnels Beach, interesting lava caves, Ke'e Beach, Ha'ena State Park, the trailhead to Kalalau Trail and in one of the most lush, green and tropical parts of Kauai. If you want to be away from the bulk of tourists this is the place to be. Although the house is on a main road, there is absolutely no traffic at night and it is very quiet. The owners are very conscientious and thorough. It was nice to have air conditioning; we were able to use it to bring down the general temperature in the house, and then rely only on the ceiling fans all night to keep us comfortable. The beds were a perfect combination of support and softness. The house felt very private, and it was always a joy to return to after exploring the island. My kids got a big kick out of the lone adorable gecko that showed up in the shower periodically. I will always return to this rental in the future.

Owner response:We appreciate travelers who love Haena and the value of our property. We are currently working on rearranging our bath to add a 6' double sink, glass top vanity and another window. We are also creating an "outdoor room" in the area of our entertainment/BBQ area. This lower level space will have a flat screen TV and small refrigerator and quiet reading area. We hope to have both of these projects complete by early summer. Yes, we do have one gecko! We have carefully caulked and sealed the kitchen and bedrooms but we still have a friend who occassionally shows up in the shower.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, adventure seekers.

Wonderful, Relaxing, A Paradise!

Guest: Bruce and Linda (Phoenix, AZ)
Date of Stay: 08/09/11 Review Submitted: 09/12/11

Thank you Mike and Donna. The house was perfectly equiped and located within five minutes of the most beautiful beaches and island scenery we've ever seen. You can have it both ways with this great house; be the do-it-yourself beach comber who likes to stay at a very cozy home and cook or, be the sight seeing tourist who likes to enjoy great food out or, do anything in between. We snorkeled with Sea Turtles and beautiful tropical fish. We walked the beaches for hours and swam in the warm ocean water. Although we brought our own gear, the house is equiped with great new snorkeling gear. The air conditioners were perfect, kept us comfortable on the hot days. Time ran out too soon for us, we will come back to this beautiful home. Very clean and comfortable, very reasonable rates.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Wonderful!

Guest: superboys (Wildomar CA (Inland Empire))
Date of Stay: 06/09/11 Review Submitted: 06/23/11

Thank you very much for allowing our family to stay in your lovely cottage. It was light and airy and we really didn't need the a/c (but it was nice to have it available). Every night we opened all the windows and listened to the breeze and sounds of periodic rain . . . wonderful! We have teenage boys and we loved the close proximity to the fun of the north shore . . . Tunnels, Ke'e, Hanakapa'i trail, etc. We visited the little town of Hanalei almost everyday for Bubba's Burgers, Tropical Tacos or just shopping. The isolation of Haena was exactly what we were hoping for. We bbq'd several nights and enjoyed the outdoor shower almost everyday after the beach. I even walked across the street for an incredible massage with Lynn at the Hanalei Spa. They got me in immediately when I called at the last minute to see if they could. When we arrived on a Thursday, Donna surprised us by meeting us at the home and explained that the dryer had suddenly gone out. She asked when we would need to wash and I told her we'd probably need it by the following Tuesday. We came home from church Sunday afternoon and the new dryer was already installed! Its great that the owners are right there on the north shore to help out and take care of problems like that. By the way, we visited Calvary Chapel North Shore and experienced a great service with fellow believers who love Jesus. We highly recommend you work that into your vacation too! :-) Thanks again for a wonderful stay. We can't wait to do it again!

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with teenagers.

Had a great time!

Guest: Family 5 (Arizona)
Date of Stay: 05/30/11 Review Submitted: 06/09/11

We rented this house for our family of 5 and had a great experience! The decor of the home is very beachy, relaxing, and well kept. We loved having the washer and dryer, full kitchen, and especially the beach gear. There were plenty of high quality sheets, blankets, towels, dishes, etc. The only less than perfect things I would say are: the living area and kitchen are smaller than they appear in the pictures, but we soon realized we don't need so much space; and, the home is right on the main road, which was not what we expected from the description (pretty busy road during the day, calms down at night). I did not feel comfortable letting our 5 year old play downstairs by herself due to the road. However, I would recommend this house to anyone! It is clean, well kept, nicely appointed, and most importantly, about 1 mile from Tunnels Beach (our favorite beach in the world!) We will stay again!

Owner response:Here our direct response from guest "We enjoyed our stay very much and will definitely be back! The house is great. Very well kept and decorated really cute. We especially loved the beach toys and having a wahser and dryer. Also, the fact you supply laundry detergent is really great! The beds were comfortable and we slept like babies. The only things I would mention that could possibly improve are, perhaps a little more comfortable furniture in the living room. We are a family that plays hard all day and likes to relax with movies/tv at night. It was a little tough for all of us to get comfortable. Second, and not really a big deal, I could not find any dishtowels in the kitchen. Resorted to using bath wash cloths. It is clear you take great pride in the property and appear to always be improving it. It is, as I'm sure you know, a fabulous location. We LOVE Tunnels and Lumah'ai beaches and were so happy they were close. We have already recommended the houes to others and would love to be back ourselves. Thank you

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Hale Sweet Hale

Guest: Chandra (Alberta, Canada)
Date of Stay: 03/25/11 Review Submitted: 04/09/11

This is a great home..and I mean home! It feels like someone really lives there because it is so well appointed and thoughtfully stocked. You are able to cook whatever, however you like with the kitchen and outside appliances. Beach stuff is great, though after time - I decreased the amount of stuff I was constantly toting around. Laundry facilities are a huge bonus as is the wicked bathtub! Being in Haena (which I do believe means Heaven) is ideal if you want to really get away. If you like nightlife, I would suggest either entertaining at the home or staying closer to Kapa'a or the southern part of the island - driving the road up to the house (especially between Hanalei Town and home) at night can get a little sketchy. Anything that we needed, which wasn't much, from the owner was quickly and satisfactorily addressed. For myself and my 7 year old son, this place was within perfect distance to everything we wanted to see and do while on Kaua'i. I would stay here again in a heartbeat. Thank you for having us! Aloha :)

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children.

OK place but not what what was billed

Guest: JB (Prospect Heights, IL)
Date of Stay: 02/08/11 Review Submitted: 02/12/11

It's a tired but cozy home on stilts right in the heart of the north shore beaches, It was great being close to Ke'e and Hanalei, but going anywhere else is a chore, The building is 50ft from the main road and there's traffic on it all day long - approx 1 to 5 vehicles a minute so it's not that bad, but hardly what I would call quiet. At night it drops off, but there's still a car every few minutes roaring by. From the owners description, I expeted a quiet unit at the end of a road surrounded by jungle. It's actually right on the road and surrounded by other homes. Granted, there's plenty of plantings and sufficient privacy, but it's not secluded in the least as the description infers. The 'walk to beach' is not bad, but you have to brave the main road for 100yds. The unit is also loaded with countless small ants everywhere. It's tolerable, but we chose not to inform the owners until after the stay because we do not want exposure to any pesticides. The kitchen was nice but the grill is the cheapest thing you can find. They have two other el-cheapo grills on the property as well - evidence of previous purchases of poor quality grills. The owner needs to invest once in a basic Weber gas grill - that will be the last time they purchase a grill. Everything else was as billed. I would not stay here again, but an adventurous group that wanted to surf and hike their entire trip would be happy here.

Owner response:We love our cottage and the value it provides. (less than a Super 8 at Ohare) We sincerely apologize to anyone who was unhappy. Since this review we have replaced several almost new windows, we have redone our beautiful landscaping, upgraded our lanai and staircase and hired professional pest control. We are currently working on extending the roof to cover the deck and to add an elegant, second bath. Most of our guests rest peacefully in air-conditioned comfort and appreciate the privacy where other homes are not visible from the second floor living area. We live only a few minutes away, rarely leave the island while we have visitors and respond to complaints immediately. In the 5 years, we have never had a complaint about ants. This is a beach cottage but it has upgrades galore. If the home is embellished in the description, it is because of the positive feedback we receive from guests, family and friends. . We appreciate everyone who chooses our rental and express a heartfelt apology to any one who was unhappy. I admit it is a chore to leave the area. We encourage our guest to prepare for a stay at the beach and rarely make the 8 mile trek to Hanalei.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers.

Wonderful!!

Guest: Jeff Ferguson (Mississauga, Ontario, Canada)
Date of Stay: 08/14/09 Review Submitted: 10/07/10

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay for five nights in August 2009. The house is wonderful, clean, spacious and with everything we needed. Sublime beaches are only a short walk or drive away. The north shore of Kauai is paradise for sure!!

Owner response:We continue to make improvements. We recently put a new queen Serta mattress in the second bedroom, added bar stools to the breakfast bar and added new flat screen TV and DVD player in master. We created a new outdoor shower area. We put up security lights that are activated when the guest car pulls into the parking area and improved the entrance to the property.

Recommended for:Romantic getaway, sightseeing, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+, families with young children, families with teenagers.

Guest: Christine (-)
Date of Stay: 06/23/10 Review Submitted: 07/03/10

The house was lovely and the location was wonderful. The house was well appointed and we really appreciated all the beach things. We had a great week.

Recommended for:

Guest: Joseph (-)
Date of Stay: 06/06/10 Review Submitted: 06/22/10

Hey Mike - We had a blast. The place was great...everything was as you said. Thanks again!

Recommended for:

Guest: Gary (-)
Date of Stay: 05/29/10 Review Submitted: 06/10/10

Thank you. We loved the house and our first stay in Hawaii and, of course, did not want to leave. I’ve included some feedback below that I hope you find helpful. They are all little things and we absolutely loved the house and will stay there again. 1. Kitchen organization. I have stayed in many vacation rentals and yours was the first to really have a clear, organized system for kitchen utensils, pots, etc. We appreciated it very much. 2. Trash/recycling/composting. Perhaps we just overlooked it in the binder, but we were not clear which cans outside were for trash vs. recycling vs. composting (does that ven happen on Kauai?). Inside there was only a trash can and we would love to recycle and compost if possible — we are aware of the landfill/water issues in the islands. 3. Laundry. We washed our towels at the end of our stay. During the week, it would be nice to have a drying rack (and for swimsuits, too) to hang things on. 4. Since there was only two of us, we never went in the second bedroom and did not notice the closet there (we found beach towels the last day). I think there might have been a broom there, too? If you mention those in the binder, it might eliminate confusion. 5. More info about the Geckos. There were several in the house (not a problem for us), but I was worried that perhaps we let them in or something? Or they were not supposed to be there? Just a note in the binder letting visitors know that geckos get in from time to time and not to worry about it. Thank you so much for a wonderful time!

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