OK, buckle up - this is a long review - great property - wanted to make sure future guests knew exactly how good it was.
First, we had an amazing time at this property. It was incredibly comfortable, and the host and his representatives were very responsive.
The property is in a gated community at the southern entrance to the Waikoloa area by the sea. The home is on the ground floor so easy access for bringing in groceries, although parking is about 150 yards from the front door. The nearby Queen’s Marketplace has lots of great stores including the local Starbucks and a little bit higher priced but convenient grocery & prepared food store called Islands. A little further from Queens is Kings Shops with lots more shops and restaurants. Tip: Original Big Island Shaved Ice (OBISIC) is great, but you have to arrive early or in the off times because the line gets super long and can take an hour or more to be served while waiting in the heat with bugs biting you and kids screaming because they need an afternoon nap. LOL
Sleeping accommodations: There are two bedrooms. The secondary bedroom has two twin beds with thick foam mattress toppers that make the beds very soft. The beds are on wheels which makes them easy to move when removing, washing and replacing the sheets. There is a king bed in the primary bedroom, also with a thick foam mattress topper, very soft. There are electrical outlets near all the beds making it easy to charge phones, watches, iPad, etc.
Bathrooms: There are two bathrooms. The bathroom in the primary bathroom is large with a separate tub and shower, two sinks, large walk-in closet with pool towels, laundry hamper and plenty of hangars and a separate water closet (toilet). Shampoo, conditioner and bath gel are supplied and are of good quality. Hot water is plentiful. The only drawback is there is no door between the bedroom and the bathroom so if one person gets up before the other, they both basically have to get up due to the noise and light. Also, you have to shut the blinds to the bedroom window that faces the golf course so no one can see you shower and bathe.
Kitchen: The kitchen was well stocked with several skillets, pots and pans, storage containers, plates and bowls, silverware, cooking utensils including knives and a sharpener, and eating utensils. Kitchen towels and rags were supplied as well as dish soap and dishwashing liquid. The refrigerator is large and there are even some supplies such as salt, pepper, vinegar, ketchup, etc. The trash can was large which was great because it lessened the number of trips to the trash can (about 150 yards from the front door).
Living/dining room: Super comfortable lazy-boy type chair and couch in living room with TV and access to log into your own streaming services. Dining table seats six – I loved the fabric on the chairs and the rugs on the floor – so Hawaiian! The view out the patio door is of Hole 3 on the Lakes course at Waikoloa Golf Course. Didn’t see many golfers but the patio faces westerly, and we loved the afternoon sun on the porch.
Restaurants: Recommend Roy’s in Kings and Sansei Sushi in Queens. Sansei has a ½ price happy hour from 4:45pm to 5:30pm on Sunday and Monday only. Reservations are required but food and service are outstanding. FORC in Waimea is a good farm to table restaurant with unique food items. Bring a sweater because it gets a little cooler at that altitude (about 2500 feet above sea level).
Grocery stores: I mentioned Island Marketplace near the home. Lots of food but higher price (and food is already really expensive in Hawaii to begin with). There is a Foodland in the Mauna Lani resort area 3 miles north of Waikoloa, but the best prices were at the KTA Store in Waikoloa Village, about 15 minutes inland.
Other: In the garage are lots of beach chairs, umbrellas, swim fins and masks, bags, noodles, etc. Pool towels are in the primary bedroom closet. The nearest beach is by Lava Lava (restaurant currently closed until October 2022). Also another one of the best beaches is Hapuna, about 15 minutes north. Go early because it gets crowded and take the umbrellas because there is very little shade. The pool near the property entrance was closed when we visited so we used the other property pool but only once because it was way too hot due to no shade. There is a workout room but it’s only available after 8am, no air conditioning, and no weights less than 5 lbs. However, there are cardio machines, loose weights and pulley types of machines. If you get ill or need prescriptions filled, I would not recommend going to Waimea. We’ve been there twice on two separate trips to the Big Island and both times were terrible experiences. I would recommend driving to Kona where there are more services and choices for pharmacies available. Lastly the tee times for the Waikoloa golf course are plentiful, rates are reasonable (there is a discount) and you can rent clubs for around $50/day.