Our family, including two kiddies, will be heading out to the Big island for ten days in July. We are looking for a ';suite'; type set up in a family friendly resort style setting. We don%26#39;t want to be crammed into a typical hotel room but a condo might not have the vacation feeling that we want. We%26#39;d like easy going from room to pool/beach and back. We would like to have a mini kitchen or atleast a mini frig and seperate sleeping quarters. I also like a nice sized bathroom with a walk in shower. Comfortable furniture would be a plus. Cleanliness is a must. ON THE OCEAN WITH A GREAT POOL IS A MUST! Morning buffet a plus! I%26#39;m not familiar with the island and we will do a little exploring but mostly we%26#39;ll hang around and relax. What are your favorite areas to stay on the island? Can all my requests be found in one place or am I just dreaming... Thank you Thank you Thank you my fingers are crossed. Budget, 300-400.
Calling Island experts! Help me find the suite life!
At the ocean with a great pool...there%26#39;s only 2 choices (other than the $600+ Four Season Hualalai): Hilton Waikoloa Village (stayed) and Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort (visited). Both have fantastic pools, even lagoons, with speed slides and waterfalls...great fun for both adults and kids.
www.hiltonwaikoloavillage.com/index_flash.asp
starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/…
However, bear in mind, that the beaches at those two resorts are nothing to boast about. For an oceanfront resort with a good pool and great beach, try the Hapuna Prince. The Mauna Kea%26#39;s beach is the best, but the pool is so so.
Couple of condo resorts you should also consider are the Outrigger Kanaloa at Kona (oceanfront, in the Keauhou region) and the Outrigger Fairway Villas or Waikoloa Colony Resort(in the Waikoloa/Kohala resort region but not oceanfront).
www.outrigger.com/hotels_detail.aspx?hotel=24
www.outrigger.com/hotels_detail.aspx?hotel=61
Some units can be obtained for even less through rental agencies like SunQuest (have used and liked for diff condo) or directly through owners via vrbo.com.
sunquest-hawaii.com/Condos/…kanaloa.html
owner-direct example:
www.hawaiianchill.com
didn%26#39;t end up renting directly from them due to nearby construction, but we maintained excellent correspondence
There%26#39;s a lot of other condo resorts (modern and some even brand new) in the Mauna Lani and Waikoloa resort areas to consider.
But for 10 days, you might want to consider some B%26amp;B%26#39;s in Hilo/Volcano Village area as well as even considering splitting up the stay on the west side of the Big Island since it%26#39;s so huge. For instance, I stayed in condos in the Keauhou region to experience the Capt Cook/Honanau/coffee farms/etc before staying at the Hilton to experience Hawi/Pololu Valley/Waimea/etc and the best beaches (Mauna Kea and Hapuna).
Also, if you want to get the best rates at certain resorts on the BI (Hilton and Hapuna Prince for example), see biddinfortravel.com then Priceline. I was able to obtain 2 rooms in the Hilton for $125ea in May 05 and luckily got upgraded to 2 adjoining oceanfront rooms upon request at check-in.
Calling Island experts! Help me find the suite life!
Thanks blue, how was the room size and bathroom condition at the Hilton? Did you find yourself walking a lot? Thank You!
After reading your post and all the required things it narrows down too less than 2 places. Either your desires and needs will have to change or your budget will.
There is NOTHING in the $300 to $400 range and very few in the $600 and above range. Expect to pay for a famly of 3 or 4 about $ 700 to 1000 a day including meals, taxes and all the extras you expressed like some meals.
they have special packages for families.
However, one, an all inclusive and it is a value for a family. Please read the reviews by others and you will see what I mean
It is the Kona Village Resort.... not to be confused with the Kona Hawiian Village a time share.
To get a non-hotel atmosphere; with suite like set-up;a mini fridge; nice bathroom-walk in shower; very clean; family friendly; in a low key resort setting; easy going from pool/beach to room; and an included breakfast buffet; On the ocean with great pool: A place in which to relax and ';veg-out';.
is that correct ?
This is what the Kona Village Resort, north of Kona 12 miles and 6 miles north of the airport is..excact as you describe with the exception of a kitchen.
You can be on the beach, near pools, have all your meals included, have all your activities including a Luau, Have suite like setup and even 2 bedroom units with a living room and Lanai and huge baths like you described.
You wont get a mini-Kitchen however. and it is over your budget... a little, but not really when you factor in 3 meals a day, recreation activities, and all the extras that are included ( figure it will cost a family of 4 about $240 a day for food eating meals out)
The resort is gaited and in a fantactic exclusive area They have kids programs included in the price....it is truly all inclusive...
Families come here year after year for decades and it is a tradition with many. It might be for you. This is over your
I have been to or visited most all ot the places here and in honesty this is the only one that is going to meet your desires... no hotel,B%26amp;B,Homes, Condo, in going to even come close..... with the exception of the Four Seasons., which it the Hotel next to the Kona Village Resort. this hotel will start at 800 a night.
You might check the Mauna Kea...and get connecting suites.... but that will cost too. it is the only come even coming close to you needs.. but has a hotel feel, no kitchen,
Let me know if you need more input
HawaiiDan has it nailed. What you are asking for is the Kona Village Resort. The price might be a little out of your price range at first look, but it might not be when you think about meals, as meals are included in the rates at KVR.
My wife and I booked KVR for a ';once in a lifetime'; honeymoon 6 years ago; we%26#39;re going back for our 6th trip back later this month.
If KVR is a little more than you%26#39;d like to pay for 10 days, consider spending a week at KVR and then 3 days in Hilo or near the Volcano for some exploring on the east side of the island.
The room size in our Ocean Tower room with King bed (and full sofa) was fairly spacious...definitely not cramped. Restrooms weren%26#39;t Four Seasons spectacular but were clean, modern and had a separate vanity area. Just don%26#39;t compare them to the more upscale resorts in the Kohala area like the Mauna Lani or Fairmont Orchid.
BTW, all the rooms in the Ocean Tower should have been renovated by now (completed in 2005). But next time if I were to stay here with kids, I%26#39;d opt for the Lagoon Tower since it%26#39;s so convenient to the better pool area and the dolphins.
I only walked if I wanted to fully explore the wonderful grounds of the Hilton Waikoloa Village or merely for the exercise (as there%26#39;s a lot of Asian artworks in the walkways between towers). To get around, there are trams and canal boats (no addl cost)...nice transp modes but don%26#39;t expect to get anywhere in a hurry.
Mahalo! I will definitely look more into the Kona Village Resort. On first glance it definitely looks dead on to what I am looking for. You all are so darn smart! Is it true that the Kona area is not very tropical and kind of congested? How does it compare to the island of Maui? I have been there three times and that would be my only point of reference as the islands go. Thanks again for the help. By the way i%26#39;ve been on break from work for two weeks, today is my last day off....rain,rain,rain, I really am looking forward to the island rays...
I used to visit MAUI, for years....then I discovered the big Island. Maui is packed out with visitors and residents.... more people live in Maui than Hawaii even though it is less than 1/4 the size.
At Kona village RESORT you will feel like you are alone.....in the tropics....there is nothing for miles around it....paradise found.
It is all inclusive and the price you will pay sounds steep......yet it is your entire vacation.... room, activities, meal, kids program, luxury, quality and seclusion......
No other resort on any ilsand is going offer you the same bang for the buck
The Hilton is a luxury mega resort with over 1000 rooms...... Kona Village has 75...do the math. Food is excellent as is the Luau.
you will never look back......this is what you described and want.
Oh, Kona is very tropical south of the Airport tropical starts.
there is some traffic around 1 to 5 going south due to shift changes at hotels.
The area north of the airport is a lava desert with little tropical oaisis in them.. this is the gold coast......where all the resorts of quality lie...with the exception of the Sheraton.
You may wish to consider a Kolea unit at the Waikoloa Beach Resort depending upon the size of your group 2 and 3 bedroom units will be available. These condos are right on the beach and are quite nice. The ground floor 3 bedrooms are in the low $400s/night, and the 2 bedrooms which become availble in April will be less.
with due respect, kolea is about 300 yards to the Marriotts beach at A bay ;and you have to wallk down a long path between lux-Homes. It is a very lux-condo complex that is still being built and has home construction on several sided......in several years it will calm down.....
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