my daughter and i are back from our month%26#39;s long trip to kona. husband is still over there working. would have stayed longer and stayed with him a few months but had to come back due to seriously ill grandmother who i help. the advise about there not being a way to get around if i didn%26#39;t have a car was unfortunitly right, so i rented a car for the month from a local car rental guy that had a really good rate compaired to the national brands. i had a love/hate experience on this trip with hawaii. well, hawaii i always love, but i did find kona to be very unpleasant the first few weeks, i actually was going to come back home. where i stayed, if i didn%26#39;t get home by 3pm there was no where to park. right in front of my place (kona islander inn) there were bums, drug dealers, and %26#39;working girls%26#39; every single day/night, (oh, and also sleeping under the stairs right next to my condo, constantly gabbering as a few were on speed or something) and constant horn honking (realized later it was the druggies friends honking as they drove by them) and i almost got purposely run over (me and my 4 year old daughter) on several occassions by very rude older white men talking on cell phones and oblivious tourists. very rude tourists just about everywhere. however, once i got out of kona i had a great lovely, amazing time. actually there was a place to eat in kona that was really nice, called the kona beach club, hardly anyone there and it had the best view and pretty good food for breakfast and dinner and a nice bar, also with a great view. i%26#39;m not the type that likes crowds or touristy feeling stuff or bad vibes, and having grown up in santa monica i really could compair alii drive to a beach side hollywood blvd., with cruisers, druggies, tourists, it was a very strange mix to say the least. but by the end of my trip it had %26#39;grown%26#39; on me, although i did not get one single full night%26#39;s sleep. people slamming luggage down in front of my door at all hours of the night as they arrived, someone scratched and ran over the front of my car with their big SUV and took off, local guys screaming as they drove by and local teens starting fights in the driveway, i definetely won%26#39;t miss that. i met many residents that i had wonderful conversations with (them also confiding in me how the city has gone down hill) and nice shop owners, i was offered several jobs, seems employment rates must be zero because everywhere i went there were help wanted signs and if i%26#39;d just casually talk to an owner i%26#39;d get offered a job. ok, so here%26#39;s what i did like, was able to find a few uncrowded, beautiful beaches, some right next to a popular place or obvious place, but i managed to go around a bend or walk half a mile and we%26#39;d have the place almost to ourselves, along with 7 beached turtles. we saw turtles every single day. my husband had to yell at several annoying tourists to leave the turtles alone, even at a fancy hotel an adult man was knocking on a turtle%26#39;s shell, what a jerk, anyhow... we tried to avoid %26#39;popular%26#39; beaches because the tourists annoyed us with their obnoxious behavior to no end. back on point, the good stuff: got my fill of turtles, which was great. and my daughter enjoyed that as well. the beaches we went to that we enjoyed were outside of kona (with the exception of one very special place, not listed on any sights or beach maps, so i%26#39;ll keep that my special secret for now) up to the north and down to the south. captain cook area and place of refuge area, and the drive all the way to the north to the lookout was beautiful, and driving along the highlands hwy%26#39;s was very pretty in both directions. met some nice people at a beach we went to several times, each time met some nice people and the sand was the softest i%26#39;ve ever felt in my life, like powder, and i got to dive under the waves, after several hours of this i put my snorkel mask on because i saw a lady fishing and wondered what might be there and wow, right where people were swimming were gorgeous fish of all colors shapes and sizes and they didn%26#39;t even know there were right there around their legs, that was funny. ah, that was a great beach. i think if i had stayed elsewere for accomodations my feelings and frustrations would have been nonexistant. my husband is staying just down the block amongst the stores yet his place is really quiet and he only stayed at my place 2 nights because he couldn%26#39;t take the noise, but he still is not enjoying hawaii, i guess working in the heat and other factors make it not as appealing to him, but i loved my days at the beaches with my daughter, especially down south where we found sea urchins of all colors and shells with huge slugs in them and cute little fish, it was just great and even 29 days i was not bored and could stay there a year and never be bored. i%26#39;ve read comments on other sites that said the big island is boring and young kids will get bored but mine didn%26#39;t, but then again she%26#39;s a nature lover and we can amuse ourselves just looking at nature and the turtles from a distance. many days we spent the whole day at beaches with no %26#39;beach%26#39; just a black hard lava drop off and yet she still loved it and so did i. when i get skin cancer in 30 years at least i can say i had a lovely time getting it under the sun in hawaii.
locals please don%26#39;t be offended by my honest summary of kona, i know it has it%26#39;s charms i%26#39;m sure, but like i said that was my experience due to where i stayed. i still love kauai the most of anyplace in the world, it%26#39;s more %26#39;country%26#39; and slow paced and friendly, but i did get to experience some amazing sea creatures with my kid and also the most beautiful sunsets while in kona. that is my best memory of kona, the sunsets.... ah....
a great place for breakfast, if you don%26#39;t care about a view, is U Top It. the food is fresh and yummy, it looks like just a crepe place but it has all kinds of things. like i said the kona beach club was also good, and for a night place On The Rocks was rocking, you can sit right in the sand and they have great bands, a bar, and it%26#39;s kid friendly, wish i had gone to that place sooner in my trip. if you%26#39;re planning a trip to hawaii and want advice on where to go or not to go, let me know, i%26#39;ll email you directly. the sheraton in kona was beautiful, had a great place for dinner called koi and you can watch manta rays outside the bar on certain nights, if i were to stay at a hotel in kona in the future that%26#39;s where i%26#39;d go. Up North there%26#39;s the Fairmont Orchard which was lovely with a great beach, good place for kids too. My husband is working on 4.5 million dollar houses near spencer beach, which is touted as being the best beach on the island, i didn%26#39;t care for it, crowded and undertows at the time we went, but the Fairmont was just down the road and the sheltered beach there was waveless. I do love waves, but there%26#39;s days you want your kid to have fun and be safe too. anyhow, respond to my post if you want any advice or details, i don%26#39;t want to give away beaches on this site because then they won%26#39;t be %26#39;secret%26#39; and unspoiled anymore, right? i do have to say that the aloha cafe along the drive from kona to captain cook was still as delicious as it was back in 1999, look for the aloha theater, it%26#39;s inside there. food takes along time but it%26#39;s very tasty and very quiet and relaxing. And to the North the Marriot across the street from the Kings Shops mall thing, had a really nice place for dinner, friendly servers and nice decorations, that is also a nice hotel to stay at (heard from many people with older kids) with activities for the kids. The most amazing hotel i saw i forgot the name of but it was really interesting, all separate or duplex like condo%26#39;s and a lagoon like salt water pool, harsh sand beach but very pretty accomidations.
good luck and remember to respect the creatures of the islands and keep your distance from the sleeping turtles and DON%26#39;T FEED THE FISH it destroys the eco system, you can see plenty without temping them with peas and bread, and remember if you are enjoying yourself then try to do your best to keep things the way they are, conserve energy and waste and don%26#39;t take shells that have things living in them still and don%26#39;t break off coral, and please, don%26#39;t band up the coral with your (most of the time unneeded) flippers (or kick other people in the face) and if you have kids remember this is your chance to teach them about nature and life and make it a life enriching experience that helps them grow as a person. mahalo.
the real truth about kona after month long tripMoani,
Please don%26#39;t take offense at this.I think the message you are portraying has value, however, so much is lost in the presentation.
Lack of paragraphs make it hard to rea, and your valuable information will be ignored.
I%26#39;ve attempted to spruce it up to be easier to read, but I am sure I have created some gaffs as well.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
My daughter and I are back from our month%26#39;s long trip to Kona. My husband is still over there working. I would have stayed longer and stayed with him a few months but had to come back due to my seriously ill grandmother, who I help.
The advice about there not being a way to get around if I didn%26#39;t have a car was unfortunately right, so I rented a car for the month from a local car rental guy that had a really good rate compared to the national brands.
I had a love/hate experience on this trip with Hawaii. Well, Hawaii I always love, but I did find Kona to be very unpleasant the first few weeks. I actually was going to come back home.
At the place where I stayed, if I didn%26#39;t get home by 3pm there was no where to park. Right in front of where I was staying, the Kona Islander Inn, there were bums, drug dealers, and %26#39;working girls%26#39; every single day/night/. Also sleeping under the stairs right next to my condo, constantly jabbering as a few were on speed or something and constant horn honking. Later, I realized it was the druggie’s friends honking as they drove by them. My 4 year old daughter and I almost got purposely run over on several occasions by very rude older white men talking on cell phones and oblivious tourists.
There appeared to be very rude tourists just about everywhere. However, once I got out of Kona I had a great, lovely, amazing time.
Actually, there was a place to eat in Jona that was really nice, called the Kona Beach Club. There was hardly anyone there and it had the best view and pretty good food for breakfast and dinner and a nice bar, also with a great view.
I%26#39;m not the type that likes crowds or touristy feeling stuff or bad vibes. Having grown up in Santa Monica I really could compare Alii drive to a beach side Hollywood blvd., complete with cruisers, druggies, tourists. It was a very strange mix to say the least. However, by the end of my trip it had %26#39;grown%26#39; on me, although I did not get one single full night%26#39;s sleep. People were slamming luggage down in front of my door at all hours of the night as they arrived. Someone scratched and ran over the front of my car with their big SUV and took off. Local guys were screaming as they drove by and local teens starting fights in the driveway. I definitely won%26#39;t miss that.
I met many residents that I had wonderful conversations with. They confided in me how the city has gone down hill. I met several nice shop owners and I was offered several jobs. It seems employment rates must be zero because everywhere I went there were help wanted signs and if I%26#39;d just casually talk to an owner I%26#39;d get offered a job.
Here%26#39;s what I did like. I was able to find a few un-crowded, beautiful beaches, some right next to a popular place or obvious place, but i managed to go around a bend or walk half a mile and we%26#39;d have the place almost to ourselves, along with 7 beached turtles. We saw turtles every single day. My husband had to yell at several annoying tourists to leave the turtles alone. Even at a fancy hotel an adult man was knocking on a turtle%26#39;s shell. What a jerk, anyhow.
We tried to avoid %26#39;popular%26#39; beaches because the tourists annoyed us with their obnoxious behavior to no end.
More good points: My daughter and I got our fill of turtles, which was great. The beaches we went to that we enjoyed were outside of Kona, with the exception of one very special place, not listed on any sights or beach maps, so I’ll keep that my special secret for now.
Up to the north and down to the south. The Captain Cook area and place of refuge area, and the drive all the way to the north to the lookout was beautiful, and driving along the highlands highways was very pretty in both directions. We met some nice people at a beach we went to several times, each time we met nice people and the sand was the softest I’ve ever felt in my life, like powder.
I got to dive under the waves, after several hours of this I put my snorkel mask on because I saw a lady fishing and wondered what might be there and wow, right where people were swimming were gorgeous fish of all colors shapes and sizes and they didn%26#39;t even know there were right there around their legs, that was funny. That was a great beach.
I think if I had stayed elsewhere for accommodations my feelings and frustrations would have been nonexistent. My husband is staying just down the block amongst the stores yet his place is really quiet and he only stayed at my place 2 nights because he couldn%26#39;t take the noise, but he still is not enjoying Hawaii. I guess working in the heat and other factors make it not as appealing to him.
I loved my days at the beaches with my daughter, especially down south where we found sea urchins of all colors and shells with huge slugs in them and cute little fish, it was just great and even after 29 days I was not bored and could stay there a year and never be bored.
I%26#39;ve read comments on other sites that said the big island is boring and young kids will get bored but mine didn%26#39;t, but then again she%26#39;s a nature lover and we can amuse ourselves just looking at nature and the turtles from a distance. Many days we spent the whole day at beaches with no %26#39;beach%26#39; just a black hard lava drop off and yet she still loved it and so did I.
When I get skin cancer in 30 years at least I can say I had a lovely time getting it under the sun in Hawaii.
Local people, please don%26#39;t be offended by my honest summary of Kona, I know it has it%26#39;s charms I’m sure. As I have said, that was my experience due to where I stayed.
I still love Kauai the most of anyplace in the world, it%26#39;s more %26#39;country%26#39; and slow paced and friendly, but i did get to experience some amazing sea creatures with my kid and also the most beautiful sunsets while in Kona. That is my best memory of Kona, the sunsets.... ah....
A great place for breakfast, if you don%26#39;t care about a view, is U Top It. The food is fresh and yummy. It looks like just a crepe place but it has all kinds of things.
As I said the Kona beach club was also good, and for a night place On The Rocks was rocking. You can sit right in the sand and they have great bands, a bar, and it%26#39;s kid friendly. I wish I had gone to that place sooner in my trip.
If you%26#39;re planning a trip to Hawaii and want advice on where to go or not to go, let me know, I’ll email you directly. The Sheraton in Kona was beautiful. It had a great place for dinner called koi and you can watch manta rays outside the bar on certain nights, if i were to stay at a hotel in Kona in the future that%26#39;s where I’d go. Up North there%26#39;s the Fairmont Orchard which was lovely with a great beach, good place for kids too. My husband is working on 4.5 million dollar houses near Spencer beach, which is touted as being the best beach on the island. I didn%26#39;t care for it, crowded and undertows at the time we went.
However, the Fairmont was just down the road and the sheltered beach there was wave less. I do love waves, but there%26#39;s days you want your kid to have fun and be safe too.
Anyhow, respond to my post if you want any advice or details. I don%26#39;t want to give away beaches on this site because then they won%26#39;t be %26#39;secret%26#39; and unspoiled anymore, right?
I do have to say that the aloha cafe along the drive from Kona to captain cook was still as delicious as it was back in 1999. Look for the aloha theater, it%26#39;s inside there. The food takes along time but it%26#39;s very tasty and very quiet and relaxing.
To the North the Marriot across the street from the Kings Shops mall thing had a really nice place for dinner, friendly servers and nice decorations, that is also a nice hotel to stay at. I heard from many people with older kids, that there many with activities for the kids.
The most amazing hotel I saw I forgot the name of but it was really interesting, all separate or duplex like condo%26#39;s and a lagoon like salt water pool, harsh sand beach but very pretty accommodations.
Good luck and remember to respect the creatures of the islands and keep your distance from the sleeping turtles and DON%26#39;T FEED THE FISH it destroys the eco system. You can see plenty without temping them with peas and bread. Remember if you are enjoying yourself then try to do your best to keep things the way they are, conserve energy and waste and don%26#39;t take shells that have things living in them still and don%26#39;t break off coral, and please, don%26#39;t band up the coral with your (most of the time unneeded) flippers (or kick other people in the face) and if you have kids remember this is your chance to teach them about nature and life and make it a life enriching experience that helps them grow as a person. Mahalo!
the real truth about kona after month long tripI believe the resort to which you refer as the ';most amazing'; hotel is the Four Seasons Hualalai. It is indeed amazing. The lagoon area you mentioned is probably the least attractive aspect of the resort. It is a beautiful place to stay.
Seems to me that the negatives of your experience are related to the overall expense of lodging on the island. This is so common of any tourist paradise, where real estate prices rise to meet demand and there is an infinite supply of money from the outside pouring in that can leave locals in a precarious position for living quarters. Many of the locals probably work in the hospitality industry since I don%26#39;t think there%26#39;s a great deal of other commerce on the island, so the jobs are relatively low-paying.
If you had been staying at the Hualalai throughout your visit, you might have had a very different (if artificial) experience of the island. Your experience is told more from a ';local%26#39;s'; point of view since it sounds like you were living in an area where locals live rather than an area that caters to tourists.
Every community has its dark side, its underbelly. If you went to Kona expecting it to be a month-long vacation, you probably should have stayed in a hotel. Instead, you experienced what it%26#39;s like to really LIVE there, and while it was undoubtedly an illuminating experience for you, I question how relevant it really will be to most tourists planning a week%26#39;s vacation there. When people go on vacation, I%26#39;m not sure they really WANT the ';real truth';. They%26#39;re paying for fantasy and indulgence. They could stay home and work in their local soup kitchens if they wanted reality.
Whichever way you read it I think there%26#39;s alot of good info in Moani%26#39;s post.
Of course, everyone%26#39;s experiences are percieved differently... I was interested to read this one.
Thanks for the input
Tina
wow!!! what an exhaustive, honest glimpse into Kona. thank you for contributing so much.
i thoroughly enjoyed reading it!!!
And a big thanks to warf for helping to make it a little more readable!
Moani - no more posting after those double latte%26#39;s from Starbucks, LOL!!
Moani,
Kona Islander Inn needs to take on this problem, they need to get security in there and get these unwanteds out. I hope you post on the Kona Islander Inn review so others know and Kona Islander Inn is put on alert. Owners do read these reviews and it will help to turn things around.
I am so sorry you had this experience with Kona, I travel to Kona 4 times a year and twice a year I go with my daughter. I stay at my condo right down town Kona and have never had the scary feelings you did. It makes me so sad to read this. In fact, if you have it in you, send along an editied copy to West Hawaii Today letters to the editor at 75-5580 Kuakini Hwy, Kailua Kona, HI 96740 Let%26#39;s get the town involved and let them see how tourist, the only reason unemployment is at 2%, feel about our town.
Thank you for the post, Moani.
It is always interesting to get differing views on a place that is obviously a pretty special for most of us.
I just hope Kona does not take such a drastic downturn that it will have us saying in a few years ';I remember when...';
Hey bluefan!
Thanks, moani. It will be interesting to see what we find next month. I haven%26#39;t been back to Kona in about 10 years.
Thanks, warf for sprucing up the post; it did make it easier to read and comprehend. Live long and prosper.
Hey moanie,
Thanks for your candid review. We are going to the Big island in June and it is our first time in Hawaii. I have already written down your restaurant recommendations. Could you send the name of the local car rental company you used?
Thanks again
I also wanted to say mahalo to moanie for the very candid review and for the recommendations.
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