Kapili 52 was SUCH a beautiful space and very well stocked! We especially appreciated having the wagon, small coolers, folding chairs, umbrella, and boogie boards. We used those things every single day of our stay to walk down to the beach by the Sheraton and on a drive to beaches on the north side.
There’s no AC, and my husband almost rebelled at that, but if you adjust the window shutters open throughout there is really good airflow, plus the ceiling fans.
We used the pool a few times. It had a little shade later in the afternoon so we often went there for a few minutes to cool off in the pool after walking back from the beach. The pool is conveniently close to the condo.
The beds were comfy and we adored sleeping with the master bedroom glass doors open a bit to hear the waves, since it faced the ocean. The other bedroom faced toward the pool/lawn and gardens and oddly could not hear the waves at all unless the master bedroom sliders and the bedroom door were fully open.
While we were “home” all the glass slider doors were usually kept open. When closed, the condo is pretty well insulated against sounds from neighbors (or maybe we just had mostly quiet neighbors), though I did hear the neighboring rental’s kiddos thumping up and down the stairs a little bit. Mostly mentioning this for others to be aware of therefore not thumping up and down the stairs in the condo so as to avoid disturbing others. Similarly, when the adjacent condo neighbors were outside on their lanai and our lanai slider door was open, their conversations could easily be heard, so be aware of that if you are talking out on the lanai later in the evening.
There was a small, portable Bluetooth speaker in the living room which was very nice to have, and cute as well. It was handy to bring up to the master bath to have music while getting ready or carry it around to different rooms in order to keep the volume low.
The extra little USB ports in the bedrooms were thoughtful, and our teen girls adored the rattan “egg” chair in the living room. That was their spot, while my husband and I enjoyed the lanai whenever possible.
We also enjoyed the chocolate macadamias which were provided in the fridge, and there was fresh fruit in the dining area which was a nice touch. We appreciated having a small bag of ground coffee to get us started during our stay. If you need milk for coffee, don’t get it at the Living Foods market in the Kukuiula village unless you want to pay $10.50 for a half gallon. It’s a beautiful market full of wonderful things, just expensive for basics.
Speaking of local amenities, a very short walk west of the condo is the HuliHuli grill, in a separate resort there. We also easily walked to the Kukuiula center often for several dinners and to do other shopping. There’s a Longs convenience store there too. Across the road from that (near the roundabout) there’s the Kukuiula Market (not to be co fused with the Living Foods market) which has a little sushi stand (soooo yummy!) and a busy juice bar, Anake’s, in the back. We always stop here on our arrival day to get sushi/poke or an açaí bowl and some basic groceries and beverages.
A maybe 5-10 minute walk down the road east there’s a nice (if sometimes rough surf) beach at the Sheraton. We went here for a bit almost every day. My favorite beach was the one near the Makauwahi Caves though—stunning!
There’s another shopping and dining center very close by—be sure to stop by Kauai Juice Co.! For a tasty breakfast nearby we went to Little Fish coffee several times before sightseeing for the day, though prepare to wait 35-40 minutes.
Corey, Kapili 52 manager, was very responsive, friendly, and helpful with communication. The condo’s cleaner seems to do a great job—it was spotless when we arrived. Everything was clean and furniture and finishings are modern and comfortable. A few extra beach towels would be nice. There are six, but we used them constantly, so a fresh rotation would be good while the used ones are in the laundry.
If you MUST have quiet between sunset and 9pm—maybe you enjoy an early bedtime or are vacationing with little ones—it might be challenging on some evenings as locals congregate along the road in front of the condo complex to relax at the end of the day and watch the sunset. By “relax” we mean party a bit. Our teen girls enjoyed watching the local boys from over the hedge on the lanai, but it might be irritating to folks that insist on quiet. A police officer was quite consistent with clearing all the cars out by 9pm, though did not patrol much before that curfew time.
A note specifically to Air BnB staff, if you’re scanning these reviews. — This is not for Kapili 52 or its management — I will likely avoid booking another rental via Air BnB if I can help it. It was an overly complex process, and while I completely understand the desire to fully vet renters to whom owners will be trusting their properties with, the numerous steps and, most notably, the utterly astronomical Air BnB fees was the most grumbly part of this vacation.
Other than those points, we very much enjoyed our stay at Kapili 52!