Quiet, well-stocked and spacious
Pilar
Southern California
Review Submitted: May 20, 2008
Date of Stay: May 2008
My best friend and I treated ourselves to this 11-day trip to the Big Island for our 40th birthdays. Our Australian friends flew in with their two children prior to their inter-island cruise and shared the house with us for 6 days, renting the top unit for their portion of the stay.
The home was perfectly suited for our needs, offering a pool (there are LOTS of pool and beach toys in the garage), Magic Sands beach just a short drive away (little legs couldn't quite manage the journey), and downtown Kailua-Kona just a few miled down Ali'i Drive which offers many shopping and dining options. We followed a recommendation by Lonely Planet and visited Teshima's, located a short drive south of Kailua-Kona on Hwy 11 at 79-7251 Mamalahoa Hwy in Kealakekua. It is a family-owned restaurant offering delicious shrimp tempura ~ after one visit, we decided we had to go back again the next day!
Also along the Mamalahoa Hwy on the ocean side of the road between Kealakekua and the Kahaluu-Keauhou turn off is a great playground/athletic center. It features a fantastic wood play structure for the keiki in each of us. Another wonderful place to take kids is the space center located at the Kona International Airport. It was amazingly well-done with tons of interactive things for kids of all ages to explore.
The home is located on a very quiet cul-de-sac, so you hear the chirping of crickets in the evenings and birds in the morning.
The kitchen is well-stocked with a coffee maker (must have Kona coffee every morning), blender, pots-n-pans, dishes, cutlery, and eating utensils. You may want to bring your favorite toilet paper from home, as there was just a very small supply in our place (one 1/2 roll in one of the two bathrooms) when we arrived.
There is no access to either the pool or the upstairs unit from the lower unit without going out and around the side and front of the house, or through the garage and using the driveway. One thing we discovered while occupying the lower unit is that every footstep made by people upstairs is audible. If this is unacceptable to you, I would suggest you rent the top floor and not the lower. The upstairs unit is VERY spacious and the master bed/bath combo is fantastic!
The house and yard were clean, tidy, and well-maintained, though you should be prepared for geckos and millipedes. I would definitely recommend this home to friends and would seriously consider it for our next visit.
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Helpful votes: 3/4
