Skip to main content
Entire home

Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard

Photo gallery for Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard

Property grounds
Twilight at the Seaside Zen Cottage (before lanai was extended)
With lanai addition
"your" beach (all beaches in Hawaii are public)
Lounge comfortably on the lanai or in the hammock

Reviews

9.8 out of 10
Exceptional

Highlights

  • The great outdoors
    Guests love the outdoor space here.
  • On the beach
    A rare beachfront property in the area - enjoy direct access to the sand and sea.
3 bedrooms3 bathroomsSleeps 6

Popular amenities

  • On beach
  • Onsite parking available
  • Kitchen
  • Washing machine
  • Barbecue grill
  • Balcony

Explore the area

View in a map
Kailua-Kona, HI
  • Place, Sadie Seymour Botanical Garden
    ‪19 min walk‬
  • Place, Magic Sands Beach
    ‪2 min drive‬
  • Place, Kailua-Kona Beaches
    ‪2 min drive‬
  • Airport, Kailua-Kona, HI (KOA-Kona Intl.)
    ‪24 min drive‬

Rooms & beds

3 bedrooms (sleeps 6)

Bedroom 1

1 Queen Bed

Bedroom 2

1 Queen Bed

Bedroom 3

1 Queen Bed

3 bathrooms

Bathroom 1

Toilet · Shower only

Bathroom 2

Toilet · Shower only

Bathroom 3

Bathtub or shower · Toilet

Spaces

Deck or patio
Porch or lanai
Kitchen
Balcony
Outdoor play area
Garden
Dining area

About this property

Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard

This is an ideal place to relax with family and friends. The lagoon in front of the cottage is a great place for snorkeling, for teaching small children to swim and to rest in the healing waters.

Rental of the Cottage can be combined with rental of the "Robertson's Beach House" (446099) the property next door, to host weddings, family reunions or gathering of good friends. If you are planning to host an event, please let us know - there may be restrictions and additional charges. Events with more than 20 people total including all vendors, caterers, family and friends are required to rent both properties. Site fees apply to groups over 20. Maximum daytime gatherings is100 people.
No smoking, vaping, candles, tiki torches, open flames or fires allowed in or on the property or beaches.



Add dates for prices

Have a question?

AI iconBeta

Get instant answers with AI powered search of property information and reviews.

Similar properties

Exterior
Robertson's Beach House
Holualoa Village
  • Ocean view
  • Kitchen
  • Washing machine
  • Dryer
9.8 out of 10, Exceptional, (9 reviews)
Robertson's Beach House

House Rules

Check in after 4:00 PM
Check out before 10:00 AM
default

Children

Children allowed: ages 0–17
default

Events

No events allowed
Must receive prior approval & may bring added fees
default

Pets

No pets allowed
default

Smoking

Smoking is not permitted
Quiet hours are 9pm to 8am.
No smoking, vaping, candles or open flames allowed

Important information

You need to know

Property Registration Number GE-149-182-8436-01, TA-149-182-8736-01
Property # 446243vb
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
On-site parties or group events are strictly prohibited
Note from host: Must receive prior approval & may bring added fees
Host has not indicated whether there is a carbon monoxide detector on the property; consider bringing a portable detector with you on the trip
Host has indicated that there is a smoke detector on the property
Safety features at this property include a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit
This property has outdoor spaces, such as balconies, patios and terraces, which may not be suitable for children; if you have any concerns, we recommend contacting the property prior to your arrival to confirm that they can accommodate you in a suitable room

About the area

Kailua-Kona

Located on the beach, this cottage is in Holualoa Village, a neighbourhood in Kailua-Kona. Kailua Pier is a notable landmark, and the area's natural beauty can be seen at Magic Sands Beach and Kahalu'u Beach Park. Travelling with kids? Consider KBXtreme and Kona Community Aquatic Center. Discover the area's water adventures with kayaking and scuba diving nearby, or enjoy the great outdoors with rock climbing and ecotours.
View more Cottages in Kailua-KonaOpens in a new window
Map
Kailua-Kona, HI

What's nearby

  • Sadie Seymour Botanical Garden - 19 min walk - 1.6 km
  • Magic Sands Beach - 2 min drive - 2.3 km
  • Kailua-Kona Beaches - 2 min drive - 2.3 km
  • Kahalu'u Beach Park - 5 min drive - 4.9 km
  • Kailua Pier - 5 min drive - 4.2 km

Getting around

  • Kailua-Kona, HI (KOA-Kona Intl.) - 22 min drive

Restaurants

  • ‪Royal Kona Resort Oceanfront Bar - ‬4 min drive
  • ‪Don's Mai Tai Bar - ‬4 min drive
  • ‪Huggo's On The Rocks - ‬4 min drive
  • ‪Island Lava Java - ‬4 min drive
  • ‪Laverne's Sports Bar - ‬4 min drive

Frequently asked questions

Is Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard pet-friendly?

No, pets are not allowed at this property.

How much is parking at Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard?

On-site parking is available at the property.

What time is check-in at Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard?

Check-in begins at 4:00 PM.

What time is check-out at Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard?

Checkout is at 10:00 AM.

Where is Seaside Zen Cottage - A beach is your front yard located?

Nestled on the beach, this Holualoa Village cottage is within 2 mi (3 km) of Magic Sands Beach, Kailua-Kona Beaches and Honl's Beach. Sadie Seymour Botanical Garden and Don's Mai Tai Bar are also within 2 miles (3 km).

Reviews

9.8

Exceptional

Reviews are presented in chronological order, subject to a moderation process, and verified unless otherwise labelled.
Learn moreOpens in a new window
Rating 10 - Excellent. 19 out of 21 reviews
Rating 8 - Good. 1 out of 21 reviews
Rating 6 - Okay. 1 out of 21 reviews
Rating 4 - Poor. 0 out of 21 reviews
Rating 2 - Terrible. 0 out of 21 reviews

9.6/10

Cleanliness

10/10

Check-in

9.8/10

Communication

10/10

Location

9.8/10

Listing accuracy

Reviews

Verified

10/10 Excellent

Brook P.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy
This place might be the nicest spot on planet earth. We’ve stayed three times now.
Stayed 7 nights in Nov 2025
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Todd B.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy
Beautiful property with picture perfect backyard view. Everything was amazing
Stayed 5 nights in Oct 2025
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Brant W.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Zen Cottage

Wonderful place to stay. The kids loved the direct access to the beach and small lagoon for snorkeling.
Stayed 6 nights in Jul 2023
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Ruprecht v.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

A Dream House for a magic vacation

The Zen cottage has great outdoor spaces and access to a beautiful little beach. The rooms are airy and two of them overlook the ocean and a very pretty yard. The location is near good restaurants and shopping. Many good excursions can be easily made from there.
Stayed 5 nights in Dec 2024
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Robert B.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Kona Trip

A beautiful classic Kona Home in a beachfront setting. Perfect for relaxing and enjoying tha Aloha of Kona. And a great location for enjoying restaurants and shopping and the other wonders of the Big Island.
Stayed 5 nights in Jun 2023
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Kelly A.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Location location location

Stunning, primitive the grounds and ocean view and breeze and access were everything. We loved the property manager, he was amazing! Can’t wait to come back.
Stayed 4 nights in Apr 2023
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Debbie A.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Great getaway

Beautiful little beach house. Lopaka the prop Manager was awesome, friendly and filled with Aloha!
Stayed 3 nights in May 2023
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Tim C.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Zen Cottage

The Zen Cottage was like a step back to old Hawaii. Wonderfully located on the beach. While being old the house and the grounds were well kept up and clean. No complaints at all. It would be nice if the hedge towards the beach were lowered to the top of the lava wall to open the view while sitting or lounging.
Stayed 12 nights in Mar 2025
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Peggy A.

Heaven in Hawaii!!

We loved our stay immensely! Beautiful property as described. Well stocked. Wonderful mattresses and pillows. Right on ocean as described. Fabulous ocean breezes & locale!! Loved the simple Zen house!!
Stayed 7 nights in May 2019
Response from VrboOwner on 31 Mar, 2020
Thank you, Peggy! We loved having you and I am working on your special request - should be able to get back to you on that next week. We look forward to your next trip and were honored to be a part of your memorable anniversary celebration. A hui hou Valerie
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Tiffany D.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

BEST EVER!!!

My husband and I stayed here for our anniversary, and we were never disappointed! Everything was well communicated in advance, well stocked kitchen, super nice grounds keeper, lots of useful information, and views were better than expected! We will be back!
Stayed 5 nights in Oct 2019
Response from VrboOwner on 31 Mar, 2020
Thank you for the 5 * review....you were 5 * guests, Tiffany and we look forward to the day that you can return. Aloha Valerie
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Charlene B.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Absolutely Perfect!

This listing is amazing! I wish we could have stayed longer. The home was very clean and comfortable. It had everything we needed. Lopeka was a wealth of knowledge and very helpful. The views and sunsets were incredible. I would definitely stay here again when we visit the Big Island.
Stayed 4 nights in Jan 2023
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Alex H.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Incredible Property, truly spectacular

If you're looking for a perfectly relaxing getaway this is it. The sound of the waves, the snorkeling right in the backyard, the turtles in the cove, the green grass --- I'm not sure life gets any better than this. If you are considering it, do yourself a favor and book this place. This is truly something special.
Stayed 6 nights in Feb 2021
Response from VrboOwner on 22 Feb, 2021
Thanks Alec. We were as happy to welcome you as you were happy being there. You were a great guest and we hope that we can look forward to another visit some day. Please stay well and, as always, let me know if you think of anything we could do to enhance the stay at our home for our guests. Aloha, Valerie
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Phil M.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy
We had a great stay at this property! The location was very convenient, and we loved having a little patch of sand beach right in front of the house, even if it was not only for our use (this was made clear in the listing). People were very friendly and it did not get over-crowded. Lapaka, the onsite manager, was very friendly and available, but not obtrusive. He was not aware of our arrival, but everything in the house was ready for guests, so there was no problem when we checked in. The house is quaint and spacious (bathrooms were huge!). It could easily accommodate 6 adults, although the bedroom walls do not go all the way to the ceiling, so some may like more privacy. Two of the bedrooms have walls of doors that open onto a deck overlooking the ocean. We loved listening to the surf at night. The third bedroom has an attached bath. The house was well-equipped with comfortable beds and nice linens. The living room furniture was older and not real comfortable, but we spent most of our time on the big lanai, which was well-furnished, covered and usable even when it was raining. We had plenty of kitchen equipment for the days we cooked at home; we also took advantage of the gas grill on the lanai. This is a cute cottage with character— it has some old house quirks (sliders that stick, a few areas that could use paint), but it was full of the Aloha spirit and gave us a great home base for our week on the Big Island. Thank you!
View of house from water. Note that other people can also use this beach.
Looking out from the lanai.
We loved this bedroom, and having the sound of the surf every night!
The lanai was spacious and had a big sitting area plus a double lounger and two large dining tables.
Stayed 7 nights in Mar 2026
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Cody L.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Great cottage with nice beach

The place was very quiet and peaceful. No air-conditioning, but with the constant ocean breeze it felt great. We had our 18 month old and they loved the little beach pretty much in the back yard. The adults could do some snorkeling in the same area. We did most of our relaxing and eating outside in the back lenai. The property manager, Lopaka, was a lot of information and checked up to make sure we had any further questions or needed any help. I would book the place again if we go back.
Stayed 7 nights in Jan 2024
Verified

6/10 Okay

Patricia B.

Liked: Check-in, location, listing accuracy

Ok in Kona

This place was in a beautiful setting. Loved hearing the ocean waves at night. However, you must be comfortable with having all windows and doors open at night. No AC. There are screens and the property is gated at the road, but the “beach” behind the property is public. The house itself could use some updates. Baseboards were missing. The bathrooms were dated and stained. The tops of the roller shades downstairs were very dirty. The washer and dryer units are outside and rusted. There were no chairs available to take to the beach. Overall, for the price, I think I would look elsewhere if we were back in the area.
Stayed 3 nights in Jan 2024
Verified

8/10 Good

Kari S.

Liked: Check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Zen cottage

The Zen House is part of an old sugar plantation. The house is old and is decorated with antiques but we found it charming. The property manager/maintenance guy and his wife live in another house on the property. He was super friendly and my husband enjoyed talking to him. The beach is literally steps from back porch! Amazing views and close to shopping and all the action! Gated so we felt safe. The beaches in hawaii are public and there are not a lot of Sandy beaches in this area so “our” little beach had people on it pretty much all the time. This was awkward at times because it is just steps from our patio…but I mean I’m not complaining because there aren’t many homes with access like this to a Sandy beach! The owner could definitely upgrade the “extras” have an extra roll of paper towels, nicer hand soap, beach towels, beach chairs, better blow dryers, a little cooler for you to use etc. these little touches would make it more luxurious and would help balance out what the price per day is to stay. Overall adorable little house with unbelievable views and location! If we came back to the Big Island I would stay again.
Stayed 7 nights in Jun 2023
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Brook P.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

Wonderful spot!

We just loved our time and hope to be back!
Stayed 7 nights in Nov 2022
Verified

10/10 Excellent

John A.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

What a GREAT rental!

We LOVED this property. Rustic and well-maintained, it was perfect for us. No complaints, no issues.
Stayed 6 nights in Apr 2022
Verified

10/10 Excellent

Vincent D.

Liked: Cleanliness, check-in, communication, location, listing accuracy

A true gem!

This property was exactly how we imagined it and more. Everyone was extremely responsive with communication and check-in and out were smooth. We will absolutely be returning.
Stayed 6 nights in Mar 2022
Archival

10/10 Excellent

Beautiful Zen Cottage

We spent three weeks in the Hawiian islands and the Zen Cottage was the pick of the accomodation. I stayed with my wife, two teenage children and their grandmother. Then ambience of the cottage is perfect to relax in. We love snorkelling and found as many tropical fish directly in front of the cottage as any where else we went to, inluding many beautiful turtles. The entry into the water is from a lovely and safe small sand beach at the back gate. Sand beaches are rare here. Nearby Captain Cook monument Bay Area was full of Spinner Dolphins who come right up to snorkelets. We hired kayaks there and found ourselves immersed in their world. We left the Vegimite behind to complement the helpful items we found in the pantry. Below is the unsolicited response we sent to the site manager Val who then asks us to post a review. Ian and family from Sydney Australia. "You have a magical spot, we were spoilt snorkeling out the front seeing many tropical fish and the green sea turtles. Tina was a great help with any questions. The house was well equipped. We had a lovely week and will recommend your house to friends."
Response from VrboOwner on 31 Mar, 2020
Mahalo, Ian and Pat! We loved having you stay with us and hope we can look forward to a return some day. You were ideal guests. (And thanks for the Vegimite!) Aloha, Valerie
Verified

10/10 Excellent

A guest from Charlotte, NC

Stayed 4 nights in Oct 2025

About the host

Hosted by Lisa Week

Host profile image
The Seaside Zen Cottage is one of the oldest beach homes on the Kona Coast. Sometime in the early 1900's Dr. Phillips purchased a 'surplus' teacher's cottage in Hilo. Dr. Phillips had the house dismantled, put on a truck and reassembled on his beachfront lot in Kona. Whether this occurred in the 1920's, '30s or '40s is unknown. Marjorie and Robbie Robertson started renting Dr. Phillips' oceanfront vacation rental in the very early 1940s it was one of the few homes on the Government Road (as Alii Drive was then known). The 7 mile long single lane unpaved road from Kailua to Keauhou was little traveled and sparsely populated.
Marjorie and Robbie Robertson purchased the Seaside Zen Cottage in 1951. Since then The Cottage has been wired for electricity. There is a County water and 'wastewater' system. There are modern appliances and conveniences like wireless internet and cable TV, but we have strived to keep the Seaside Zen Cottage reminiscent of the time when it was known as 'The Phillips Place.' Emily Jagoda, a brilliant architect who studied in Japan re-imagined the stuffy Hilo teacher's cottage, opened it up to the ocean and mountain breezes and created its Zen like atmosphere.

Why they chose this property

Here you will get the sense of the real Hawai'i....not a condo, not in a development -Peace and quiet by the ocean with plenty of party activity in town should you find you have withdrawal.

What makes this property unique

There is a large covered lanai on the ocean side of the house with comfortable chairs and a dining table. While at home, guests spend most their time on the lanai. The front lawn is a great place to rest on the deck chairs under the heliotrope trees. You can read, sleep, or watch the honu (green sea turtles) swimming in the lagoon or sunning themselves on the beach right in front of you. The lagoon is great for a dip at high tide, or if you like to snorkel, you can cruise around looking at the amazing variety of reef fish and sea creatures. Outside the lagoon, schools of porpoise go by just about every day. In the winter, humpback whales are often seen just past the rocks. It is thrilling to watch them spout, or if you are lucky, see them breach.
Tell us how we can improve our siteShare feedback