We had a really great time here, and if my husband and I are ever able to travel back just the 2 of us, we would love to stay here again!
I do have a few things to point out to help future guests. The first is sleeping arrangements. The description says the sofa can sleep 2 smaller framed people, but our kids are 5 and 10, and they couldn’t both fit on there comfortably. Size-wise it’s ok, but the way the cushions form to make the bed when it’s flat leaves crevices and dips that just wasn’t comfortable for more than 1. They’re both really small so they took turns sleeping one to the sofa and one to the recliner since we only spent 2 nights there, but sleeping in the recliner wouldn’t have worked for more nights than that. We did find the bed in the bedroom very comfortable though, and although there is a window a/c unit in there, we didn’t need it and felt very safe sleeping with the windows open each night.
Another thing we were a little frustrated about was the dishes that hadn’t been cleaned before us, but that’s more on the guests before us than the host. They request the dishes be cleaned before leaving, but all of the dishes we pulled out of the cabinets to use has to be washed first.
We really liked the convenience of having laundry on site, and they even had unscented detergent that I loved using so my kids wouldn’t have irritated skin. Another thing we loved is having an actual bathtub to give them baths since they don’t rest like showers.
In keeping with the kids theme, I also really appreciated the fence and just overall how enclosed the property is. The street can get a little busy, especially in the late afternoon into the evening, so having the fence and sides enclosed have me so much peace of mind when my son (5) wanted to be outside with us playing. There was enough room in the little yard for him to play without feeling cramped. Major plus for us! We also appreciated having Wi-Fi and Netflix for some downtime.
A couple of must-do things that are SO close!! Watching the sunrise which was breathtaking!! You CAN watch it from the lanai, but both mornings we went right across the street to the little parking area with a ledge to sit on and it was perfect. There are palm trees that make for amazing silhouette photos, and there were only 1-3 people there while we were there for sunrise. Another thing is Pohoiki Beach which they mention in the description. We LOVED going there so much that we went each day. The black sand is stunning, and the spring area is so much fun! The water was a little warmer than bath water but not as hot as a hot tub. Perfect for our kids! Related to this, one issue we ran into was that we didn’t have enough towels. We had showered before we went, but there are only 4 small bath towels at the cottage so we didn’t have any dry ones left to bring. One more thing to note about the beach itself, it’s not a beach to go to with plans of playing on the ocean. There are rocks to climb to get to the water, and the water itself looked dangerous to play or swim in.
All in all, we are happy we discovered this place, and we would recommend it to a couple traveling together or a couple with 1 child. We live on Oahu and really wanted to get away from the hustle of this island and go somewhere off the grid. The Whale House was the perfect place for that, and hopefully we can find our way back there some time!!