After reading previous reviews I was a bit perplexed by the enthusiasm. I realize we all experience things differently so I thought I’d offer my perspective.
Overall I was disappointed.
Per previous posts there is mention of an outdoor shower & a nearby market in walking distance. We’ll start here. The outdoor shower is the main shower for a live-in guest on the property who lives in a shack out back. The shower is right under the window of the guest Airbnb bedroom (our room). All screened windows remain open day & night. The blinds do not work effectively so you can hear a person showering right outside your window & the shower has no barrier to maintain privacy, which adds an element of awkwardness. Bonnie uses this shower as well & at times the Airbnb guest shower which is actually the main bathroom in the home. No other bathtub or shower except for the outdoor one.
The market in walking distance is actually more of an old strip mall with a laundromat, bicycle shop, a souvenir shop, Kombucha spot, little restaurant & a few food trucks but definitely not a small Hawaiian market I envisioned.
Back to the open window in the guest room. It looks directly into the neighbors home & at times we’d make eye contact. We could definitely hear every conversation clearly & even woke up to a heated argument with yelling & cussing. The distance between homes was no more than 20 feet. When they burned incense it filled our room like it was burning in the Airbnb. Bonnie told me the trees growing maintained our privacy but this was 100% false.
The driveway is a single path curved drive. This makes parking an issue. You can only drive in & must back out onto a main road. I was directed different days on how & where to park in the drive. To avoid bothering the Airbnb guest with rotating cars around frequently I was asked to leave my rental car keys out anytime we were at the house so Bonnie could move the cars around. This is a liability to the individual renting the car because Bonnie is not listed as a second driver. Not to mention this is another invaded private space. To exit the drive there are bushes & foliage obstructing the view & this means you risk getting in a collision each time you leave. She’ll claim it’s not a big deal but that may be for her since she’s lived there a long time but for newcomers it’s not that easy. The curve as you back out makes navigating early on that much more difficult & this was with a rear view camera assist feature in use.
Bonnie has a naturopathic practice she runs out of the home. The clients she sees use the main bathroom, which is the bathroom for Airbnb guests. Not only is this unsanitary but it also leaves Airbnb guests personal belongings out where strangers are being permitted to go. We quit leaving our jewelry in there once this was realized. Of note: she does have a small 1/2 bath that she uses for her own toileting needs.
There is no dishwasher so you are left to hand wash your dishes in addition to composting left over food & recycling. I understand & appreciate recycling but to be expected to compost & hand wash & rinse your own dishes is an inconvenience. We are very clean individuals & keep things very clean & the kitchen was everything but clean. It was tidy but dirty. You’re allowed a shelf in the refrigerator for your food. You are not to keep food in your room to keep the ants out. Understood but another inconvenience. There are no basic condiments like salt & pepper. Only apple cider vinegar, oil & a few other odds & ends.
In the bedroom she was upset when she found we had turned on the A/C unit that is specific to the Airbnb room. We informed her we were uncomfortably hot & to this she said we could use it for a little bit but not overnight & to leave the bedroom doors open to allow airflow. We wanted our privacy & not to be exposed to her & her clients so this was not a good resolution.
She does eaves drop on conversations & inserts herself in as she sees fit. She also would go into the Airbnb guest room while we were away. This was realized when she reprimanded me for picking avocados from her tree that I placed on the table in our room. When we leave we shut the doors. First off, she told us we could pick anything from her trees the day prior, which she did agree occurred & she apologized for when I confronted her on this. Secondly, she said she was looking to see if we left any lights on. I asked that she respect our privacy & not go into our room.
Dresser drawers don’t work well.
Small lizards scale the indoor walls in the kitchen & main areas.
There are listed quiet hours which wasn’t an issue for us but I believe 8:30 pm is when it began.
After two nights of the nit picking & condescension from Bonnie I asked to speak with her due to growing frustrations & to limit further discontent so we could enjoy the remainder of our stay. It reduced the nit-picking but it didn’t address anything other than her respecting our privacy & laying off the constant correcting, etc… Otherwise, toilets still shared, windows still open, people showering outside our window, neighbors looking straight into our room, driveway issues, etc…. Overall we enjoyed Maui…even loved it but it was tainted & forever will be due to our stay at this Airbnb.
Positives: we wanted to be on the North shore & we were. She offered a few ideas about places to go. There is some snorkeling gear available