Vacation Rentals by Owner

Classic Country Home

Guest: Jeff (Ewa Beach, Oahu, HI)
Date of Stay: 04/18/12 Review Submitted: 04/28/12

I can't tell you how impressed we were with this home-so much charachter and comforatble. The grounds were beautiful with all of the Camelias. The location was great-close to everything.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, families with young children.

Fantastic Place

Guest: John, CO
Date of Stay: 03/18/12 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

What a fantastic place! The perfect vibe after camping our way around the island. We love all the windows and flowering plants to look out on.

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Wonderfully spacious accommodations

Guest: Mady and Shelly, WA
Date of Stay: 01/27/12 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

Aloha! We just loved this house, set in the glorious rainforest, the minute we entered, such charm and wonderfully spacious accommodations. Thank you for your home. We throughly enjoyed it, and find it very convenient to go to the national park.

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We had a wonderful time

Guest: Jim, Mary, Roy and Melissa, Ontario, CANADA
Date of Stay: 01/16/12 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

Thank you for sharing your beautiful estate with us. We a wonderful time exploring the beauties of the windward side. We were facinated with Halema'uma'u crater ant the arange glow it emits at night. It was a great stay!

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Perfect Home

Guest: Heather and Ed, Park City, UT
Date of Stay: 09/03/11 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

We couldn't have found a more peaceful, beautiful setting to end our long days of hiking with- your home is perfect! Hopefully we'll be able to return here on a future trip to the Big Island very soon- it's hard to stay away.

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Hideaway by volcano

Guest: Helen L.
Date of Stay: 07/26/11 Review Submitted: 08/11/11

The home is right across from the volcano national park, a perfect location to visit the park and stay. The house is beautiful with artworks, nice bedrooms, and clean bathrooms. A fabulous garden and trail into the forest. We had a great time. The only thing that can be done better is the bed sheet and blanket, we wish they were a bit cleaner and fresher. Other than that, everything was perfect for a family vacation by the volcano.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway, pet owners, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

We agree with everyone!

Guest: The Murata Family, Oahu
Date of Stay: 07/21/11 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

Old Hawaii charm, beauty, peace, joy, health, fresh, clean, rain, mist, laughter, comfort, nightly fires, Ohana, blue hydrangea, great beds with Hawaiian quilts. Tranquillity.

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nice experience

Guest: xm (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Date of Stay: 04/27/11 Review Submitted: 05/03/11

large space,nicely decorated rooms,friendly landlord.

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Beautiful and tastefully decorated home

Guest: Sharon and Julian, Oakland CA
Date of Stay: 04/20/11 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

Probably the most tastefully decorated and beautiful house that we have stayed in. Fabulous location, perfect "exploring jungle" for our two boys (7&10). Wish we were staying longer!

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Love this house!

Guest: Kim and David, Balsam Lake, WI
Date of Stay: 04/16/11 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

I love this house! It makes me miss living in an older home. It's gorgeous and the decor is perfect- appropriate to the location, but not tacky. Love the quilts and the kitchen. Loved the birdsong and the peaceful back deck. Thanks so much for the dish soap and the coffee filters- we stay at a lot of VRBO rentals that lack these two basics.

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Beautifully decorated home

Guest: David, Linh, Thomas and Alexander
Date of Stay: 03/22/11 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

Mahalo for a wonderful stay at your house. We enjoyed the spacious and beautifully decorated home. Definitely as others have said a hidden gem!

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A Hidden Gem!

Guest: Stewart and Anne- Kailua, Oahu
Date of Stay: 03/04/11 Review Submitted: 05/02/12

Mahalo much for this wonderful house.... it is truely a hidden gem! We throughly enjoyed ourselves, it was like being at home with our Ohana. We will definitely recommend this place to friends, and will be back to visit in the near future

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Guest: Stewart and Anne
Date of Stay: 03/04/11 Review Submitted: 05/11/11

Mahalo much for this wonderful house... it is trully a hidden gem! We throughly enjoyed ourselves... it was like being home with our Ohana. We will definitely recommend this place to friends and will be back to visit in the near future!

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Guest: Russ and Sue
Date of Stay: 01/24/11 Review Submitted: 05/11/11

Thanks so much for this quaint retreat with great decor. It reminds me of my Grandmother's home- with the huge livingroom and kitchen.

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Guest: Marie- Claire and Paul
Date of Stay: 01/20/11 Review Submitted: 05/11/11

Beautiful home and gardens. Loved how this home was decorated. A great private, seculded retreat!

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Great location - huge house!

Guest: Terceratops (Calgary, AB, Canada)
Date of Stay: 01/07/11 Review Submitted: 01/20/11

I was very impressed with the size of the home, and that it had most of the comforts of home. Being close to the volcano saved huge amounts of travel time and allowed us to take in the volcano at night. I liked the layout of the home and that you could easily sleep 6 or 8 people if required (we were only four). The unfortunate part for us was that there were a few power outages, and we had to use electrical space heaters to keep warm at night (not fond of keeping these running while sleeping). This area is colder, especially at night, so if you stay here bring lots of warm clothes!

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, families with teenagers, families with young children, sightseeing.

New Upgrades were made to this home in August 2010

Guest: Volcano Lady (Volcano, HI)
Date of Stay: 12/01/10 Review Submitted: 12/06/10

A new toilet and sink were put in the main bathroom, a new and better gas BBQ was purchased, new heaters were purchased and cozy comforters for all of the beds were purchased as well. This lovely home is now better than ever.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, age 55+, families with teenagers, families with young children, girls getaway, pet owners, romantic getaway, sightseeing.

Not what we expected

Guest: john (denver, CO)
Date of Stay: 06/20/10 Review Submitted: 07/06/10

This home was not quite what we were expecting in a VRBO. Perhaps this is common for the area (Volcano) or even not unusual for the island - I heard some horror stories from folks on the island, and this one isn't nearly as bad as some stories I've heard, but again I wasn't expecting what we found when we arrived. The rental we used outside of Hilo was just gorgeous, new, and in great operating condition. For this home - the surroundings and the home itself are no doubt beautiful, but any home in Volcano Village will probably be able to boast beautiful surroundings, and pictures of this home are accurate (and beautiful), BUT. The home is in pretty sorry shape. The main bathroom toilet will not shut off most of the time so you have to play with the handle and take the top of the reservoir off to get at the drainage plug, the grill is the most disgusting appliance I've ever seen (it looks like it's 15 years old and hasn't been cleaned in that long either) and the burner assembly below the grill is so clogged that only 2 flames came up into the grill, and the temperature was consistently low. The 3 of the 4 burners on the gas range in the kitchen would not light by themselves (you had to use a match), and one of the ignitor electrodes was tied to the wrong burner so while you ran 1 burner the other continually tried to light. The washer was tied to cold water only and could have been connected to hot water only, but only by unscrewing the single hose from the cold tap and attaching it to the hot tap. Finally, something not talked about in the ad - this home is (and apparently a lot of other homes in Volcano Village are) on a casement system, so you are advised upon arrival that the running water should not be drunk, and you have to use bottled water (the maintenance folks left 3 gallons for us to use, but the directions upon entry to the home only indicates that 1 gallon was provided - troubling if you are arriving after dark and still want to prepare dinner!). Heating is by a series of space heaters (so no central heat), one of which is a fire hazard because the on/off/thermostat had broken so the maintenance guy just hard wired it for "full on", and you turn it off by unplugging it! Last - once you find out where this home is by emailing the agent and mapquest it - you will see that this home is relatively close to the main road, so you do hear traffic pretty much all day and night when the windows are open. Ultimately this was a disappointment.

Owner response:On no central heat: This is a well maintained historic house built in the 1920’s when central heating was nonexistent in this part of Hawaii. There is a gas wall heater which works fine and there are electric space heaters if necessary (rarely used). The heat is turned off in the summer. For a June 20 rental the heat was not on so I question why this was an issue. Every guest receives a welcome letter explaining that while we use the house water for cooking, we believe bottled water is a better choice for drinking, and we always have at least 2 gallons for guests for the first night. Bottled refills in the Village are 30 cents per gallon. In the Welcome letter there is the phone number for the caretakers who live down the road and respond quickly to any requests like fixing a balky toilet handle or stove lighter when asked. The BarBQ will be replaced. Cold water wash: We use cold water for washing by choice. We are “green” along with most Hawaii residents and try to be environmentally friendly i.e. reduce energy. The road: the road is a half mile away on the other side of a very thick rain forest. I can honestly say that road noise has never been an issue.

Recommended for:Adventure seekers, sightseeing.

Guest: Jo and Park Blubaugh
Date of Stay: 03/30/09 Review Submitted: 03/30/09

We felt as though we were in a South Seas movie setting in your spectacular grounds and picturesque home. Barb's hand shows in the decor and artistry. Such a facinating island So far have driven through Volcano Ntl.Park, routes 130,137,11 many narrow winding roads even down to South Point. Walked on the black sand and took photos of greensea turtles at Punaluu Beach Park. A total wonderous experience!

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Guest: Mortenson
Date of Stay: 09/24/08 Review Submitted: 09/23/08

This house provided us a wonderful location to hold our Family Reunion. The seven of us loved being able to return each night to this warm and comfortable home. Each moring we sat on the deck and enjoyed the beautiful surroundings. We even took a family picture in the front yard. Thanks Eric for your hospitality- the fresh bananas were great and the extra blankets warm and cozy. We hope to return again! Mahalo

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Guest: Carol and Bill
Date of Stay: 10/10/07 Review Submitted: 10/09/07

We had a wonderful time here. Your home made us feel at home, and we had great adventures at the volcanoes. Our day ended with a scrumptious meal at the Kilauea Lodge. Thank you so much for a great experience!

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Guest: Nicole Pecora
Date of Stay: 08/20/07 Review Submitted: 08/19/07

Thank you so much for letting us use your home. It is so beautifully decorated. The property view is so gorgeous and it is a great area to hike. I have never seen so many stars in my life. You can't get this in Chicago. Thank you for everything.

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Guest: BYU Geololgy
Date of Stay: 07/23/07 Review Submitted: 07/22/07

Thanks for having us such a wonderful place for us to stay. It was like home away from home. We loved coming back after a hard day of "work" and "play". The grounds are beautiful and very peaceful.

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Guest: Kelsey and Jeremy
Date of Stay: 07/16/07 Review Submitted: 07/15/07

A better place could not be picked!

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Guest: The Muirheads
Date of Stay: 07/14/07 Review Submitted: 07/13/07

A great base for exploring Kilauea. Our family enjoyed returning each day to make dinner and wind down. Each morning the sun streamed in- there is so much light in this house! A fresh, bright, welcoming place- we were very comfortable, and enjoyed our stay. Mahalo!

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Guest: The Nakamuras
Date of Stay: 04/02/07 Review Submitted: 04/01/07

We had a wonderful time and we'll certainly recommend it to our friends. The house is comfy and has wonderful energy! We loved the grounds and the kids really enjoyed the tree house.

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