The North Shore is a really enjoyable place to stay on the island. We found the area had a relaxed feel and was a good base to explore the island from. Our stay at Aloha Pupukea Cottage was our 4th and final accommodation at the end of our vacation. Watch the sunset from Sunset Beach on your last night!
The cottage is in a quiet area but still very close to the North Shore attractions. There was a nice feeling of privacy in the cottage which is set in a large garden filled with fruit trees. We appreciated being left a full bowl of garden fruit on our check in. Lemons and limes were great for adding to our drinks and cooking.
After booking on Air BnB, you’ll be sent a separate contract to fill out, sign and return (by Michele). This is the first time we’ve come across this for an Air BnB property. We had no issue with the principle of a contract, but we did feel that the listing should have clearly mentioned that there would be a contract to sign and what those terms are beforehand. Airbnb actually states that “Hosts may ask you to sign a contract, but they must disclose this requirement and its terms prior to booking”.
On arrival there are further house rules which you will only learn on check in. Some of these prevented us from completely relaxing and we felt they should have been laid out at time of booking as well.
A few examples:
Do not lie on top of the bed quilts;
Squeegee the shower glass after showering;
Fee to replace towels if you should get make up marks on them;
Again, we have no issue with the principle of rules in place for guests to look after the property, but would have liked to have seen them on the listing (which should have been done according to Airbnb) so they could have been taken into account while we were choosing which accommodation to book.
The kitchen area has everything you need for making your meals and a nice big fridge freezer. The lounge is actually in the cottage’s converted garage room. You have to go outside the cottage door and into an outside door to access. Quite a basic lounge with wicker furniture and a smart T.V. You’ll need your own accounts to access Netflix, Amazon Prime etc. The TV was a bit temperamental during our stay though it is a new TV. Often it wouldn’t turn on and then randomly would be ok an hour or so later. We know we could have messaged Michele for help with this aspect, but by the time we finished our meal we no longer needed the TV on, as well as that it was often too late in the evening to ask for help by then.
If you plan on spending your days out exploring, as we were, be aware that laundry hours are 8am to 8pm. As we were getting out early and returning in the evenings, it was hard to find any time to put laundry on.
There is a beach rental place down the road where you can hire surf boards, body boards, beach chairs and umbrellas etc. but the price does rack up pretty quick if you want a few things for your stay. We found our other accommodations on the islands provided a lot of these beach accessories. The cottage has camping chairs and a child’s body board, which Michele mentioned were left by another guest.
The welcoming touches such as the champagne, the flowers, and the rose petals on the bed that you see in the photos are just for making the cottage look attractive for the listing, they’re not actually in the cottage. We wouldn’t expect champagne and flowers of course, but it’s a little inaccurate to display them to entice you in when it’s not part of the property.
Overall, we did enjoy our stay at the cottage but we did find that we couldn’t feel at ease in the ways we were able to at our other accommodations during our Hawaii vacation. Each guest will be different, though for us the very specific rules just felt a bit un-welcoming. Had the rules been upfront at time of choosing, we would have had the freedom to have opted for somewhere a bit more easy going.