Gosh! Where to begin. Staying at Cyrus's place was hands down, the best AirBnb experience I've ever had.
My colleague and I stayed at Cyrus's place for an entire month. We had come to the Big Island in 2021 during the middle of the pandemic to escape our cramped NYC lives and work remotely, and we fell in love with the island so much that we decided to come back for another month in 2022. We stayed in a different part of the island (Hilo), and it was such a lovely experience, we worried nothing would be able to compete. Boy, were we wrong.
Cyrus's place is exactly as depicted in the images. It's gorgeous, and has more porches than bedrooms. It has amazing wifi, so two people were able to work remotely on Zoom calls with no service problems. There's lime trees in the backyard that we picked for cooking regularly, and lush jungle yard so that looking out the window makes you think you're looking at wallpaper - it's that beautiful. The kitchen was equipped so we were able to cook almost all of our meals in the house. I began every morning on my secluded porch, drinking coffee, listening to the tree frogs, and pinching myself that I got to experience a life as peaceful as this. The house sits in a sweet little neighborhood where everyone waves to each other as they drive in, and right near one of the most beautiful coastal drives on the island. And it's just a 1 mile walk from a secluded black sand beach we never would have found had we not stayed at Cyrus's place. There's an amazing grocery store less than 20 minutes away with everything you could need (aka, all the produce / poke / wine / and Ben & Jerry's options that a NYC grocery store has to offer.)
The home is definitely "off the grid" at first glance. We got in from the airport late at night, and were struck by the total quiet and darkness (the neighborhood is a dark sky area with some of the best stargazing you can imagine.) For two young women, we wondered if the place would be too remote for us. But we soon realized we had nothing to worry about. In fact, it was more than we could have hoped for. Marcy, the house manager, lives down the street and was always just a text away with fun local tips, neighborhood happenings, and late night visits with local pesto in hand. She responded to every question we had with such helpful information, and a warmth that made us feel so settled and welcome. She made us feel more connected to the island than we could have dreamt. (Truly, I want to move to that neighborhood now because of Marcy!) Thanks to that, the house gave us all the benefits of peace and quiet, while feeling grounded to the community nearby.
After visiting the Big Island last year, I wondered if I'd come back to visit for another vacation some day. But after staying at Cyrus's place, that's no longer a question. Staying at Cyrus's place made me realize returning to the Big Island is like coming home.