May 31, 2009–Kahalu’u Bay

This weekend, we ventured down to Kahalu’u Bay. We have just added two new condos to our vacation rental program which are located at the Beach Villas at Kahalu’u  and needed some pictures for the website listing. The vog’s still here , but, as the pictures attest, the scenery in Kona is second to none. Check out the Honu pictures and videos which were taken from the overhang at the Outrigger Hotel. They are beautiful creatures and amazingly graceful! The last video is of Ka’aloa Beach, commonly referred to as Magic Sands. All of these pictures and videos were taken today.

Kahalu'u Bay Beautiful Water

Nice Colors!

Lush Vegetation

Red Hibiscus

Honu

Kahalu'u Bay looking south

St. Peter's Church at Kahalu'u Bay

Heiau

Watch a Swimming Honu:

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Boogie Board at Magic Sands (Ka’aloa Beach Park):

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May 23, 2009–Kailua Bay

This weekend was the opening competition of the Big Island paddling season at the Kailua-Kona pier at Kailua Bay. It was a beautiful day with blue skies and crystal clear water.

Getting ready to launch

Koa canoe

Close race

Beautiful Kailua Bay in Kona

just wanted to say thanks…………this place is fantastic and is everything we could have asked for and  more.

Andy M

We had an amazing stay in unit 16B. Your condo is beautifully furnished making us feel right at home. Very clean & nicely decorated. Spacious bedrooms that can easily accomodate six people. We enjoyed using the Viking grill on the lanai, made it very easy to throw a few steaks on & have a glass of wine while you take in the amazing sunsets. Great location, just a short walk to the clubhouse pool or Anaeho`omalu Bay. Nice white sandy beach where you can soak up some rays or go for a nice stroll. Various boutiques & restaurants at the Kings’ & Queens’ Shops, all within walking distance. What a great place for a vacation, to be able to unwind, relax & enjoy spending time with your family. It was hard to leave but we will definitely be back soon!

Jan M

Unit 16B is PARADISE!! The owner has taken great care in making sure that the unit is well decorated and equipped to reflect the island style that we all love. As soon as you walk in the condo invites you to kick off your shoes and relax! You will LOVE the island decor, I can’t stress this enough. Unit 16B is on the 2nd floor and the coveted corner unit so you enjoy windows all around. Open them up! The clean ocean breezes will make you forget that there’s air conditioning. The kitchen has everything you need, very clean utensils, just bring your own food. Don’t forget the spacious lanai with the grill, you won’t want to eat inside. Lots of extra pillows in the closet, air beds, even a playpen for the baby! You won’t get this at the Hilton down the road that’s for sure! Head for the pool at night, see the stars then run over to the lava hot tub…. you won’t regret it. My little niece enjoyed the pool made just for kids especially. Nearby lots of shops and restaurants, Macaroni Grill was great. Overall, I give this place a high 2 thumbs up with a “will DEFINITELY be back” kind of review. MUCH MAHALO for a wonderful time!!

David & Daysha

We’ve made countless visits to Hawaii over the years and while we’ve stayed mostly at hotels, we have rented condos on two occasions. When we stayed at this condo, we had a whole new appreciation for condo vacationing in Hawaii. Especially THIS condo!

The location of the Kolea complex itself in Waikoloa is nearly ideal. Every place we wanted to go in Waikoloa was within walking distance for us. We especially enjoyed the selection at the new grocery store and restaurants in the Queens Marketplace. For years we’ve enjoyed the shopping and free, live, local music & dancing in the evenings at the King’s Shops. It too was a short walk from 16B.

Probably the most enjoyable short walk for us was to the Kolea Ocean Club Pool and ‘A-Bay’, just a stone’s throw from the pool. ‘A-Bay’ offers perhaps the nicest beach experience in the Waikoloa area with its calm, protected waters, sandy beach and abundant marine life.

The condo itself offered many luxury options that were never available to us at resorts we’ve stayed at. First the condo was so spacious and lavishly funished that we really felt at home. We had the options of cooking indoors in the well equipped kitchen or outside on the large lanai using the Viking BBQ. I loved the fact that in the early morning I could enjoy my coffee on the lanai in my pajamas.

Although other people were staying in neighboring condo units, we never heard a sound from any of them. This condo was very quiet.
Although it was just the two of us, we both felt that it could comfortably accommodate 6 people. Our bed was comfortable and the bathroom spacious. When we have the opportunity to return to Hawaii we are planning on staying in this unit again!
Mahalo Nui Loa for allowing us to stay in in your hale (home).

Sam and Brenda

Everyone who comes to Hawaii has at least one cherished memory that is indelible. In this post, we would like your favorite memory of the Big Island. Click on the number to the left side of this post to enter your comment/memory. It can be short or long, a feeling, meal, or actual experience that you had. We would even like those thoughts of persons who have never visited here, but may have had memories shared with them by others, or dreams of coming to Hawaii in the future.

For example, my father, Paul Watts, was a marine stationed in Waimea (“Camp Tarawa”) for two years prior to and following the invasion of Iwo Jima. For the first forty years of my life, my Big Island “memories”, were those shared with me by my father. He loved to describe the wonderful, cool weather; the warm, friendly Hawaiians; the unbelievable scenery; and the preparations for the invasion.

One of the memories he related most often was hiking up to the top of Mauna Kea on Christmas Day, 1945. He and a group of fellow Marines, drove up Mauna Kea until their Jeep would no longer go (about 10,000 feet)–purportedly stopped by “the thin air at that altitude”. He spent the rest of the day hiking the final 3,000+ feet , and was the only one of the group who made it to the very top. Sixty-two years later we attempted the same feat. We discovered that our Jeep actually became bogged down due to a vapor lock in the fuel line. By untwisting the gas cap, we were able to continue to the top without any problem. We really got a chuckle realizing that my father could have done the same and avoided the strenuous (and dangerous!) hike up to the peak alone. Sadly, he passed away a three years ago. At least we didn’t ruin his memory by informing him of this fact!

Attached are a few images from the top of Mauna Kea:

Our stay in Villa 16B at Kolea Villas could not have been more perfect for our family of four! We were greeted with a canvas beach bag full of lovely gifts (Kona coffee, sun tan lotion, and other things Hawaii) that let us know that we were truly welcome. The condo was immaculately clean and well equipped — the Viking grill on the beautiful lanai was convenient and great to have for grilling local fish. The condo had more than enough room and was very comfortable. The 5 minute walk to the pool and A-bay beach was hard to beat. A-bay is a GREAT and beautiful beach for a family with young children.

This was a great place to stay and we would highly recommend it to anyone. It is convenient to many of the attractions and beaches on the western side of the Big Island. It is also situated in the heart of the resort area and close to some great shopping. Did we mention that it is just a 5 minute walk to the beach?! The view of the mountains from the lanai is spectacular. This condo is beautifully appointed and decorated and is comparable to staying in a luxury hotel but with much more room! Our return back will not be soon enough! Thank you to Carole for great service!

Harold and Sue V.
West Chester, PA

February 28th, 2009

Hi Carole,

Was texting you from the airplane on the runway, but never finished!

We had the most incredible time — thank you so very much for helping to make that possible!

We loved Kolea 16B.  It was comfortable and clean — I have chronic allergies to dust, dust mites, etc.  Not once did I feel bad — the place was very well maintained!  The kitchens, indoor and outdoor were very well equipped.  Who likes to cook while on vacation?  Well, if the kitchen is beautiful and well-equipped, I don’t mind at all!  I didn’t even mind doing laundry!   ;-)

The 2 bedrooms were tastefully furnished, and the baths were luxurious!  After day trips around the island, we looked forward to coming back to relax in a beautiful home.  We loved hanging out at the pool and having the A-bay beach so close by — the kids went snorkeling and saw sea turtles.  Sunsets were gorgeous at the beach.

A-bay beach had chairs, but we were able to make use of the cooler and beach chairs provided in the unit, to take with us to nearby Mauna Kea beach, a pristine beach.  There really wasn’t much that we were missing, to make our stay comfortable!

Being situated in Waikoloa was an ideal distance from Kona, Kings Shopping Center, Hilton, Mauna Loa Beach, Waimea, etc.   Having walking access to the beach from the unit was great.

The only comment from our family is that the pool was not heated — so the kids did not enjoy it as much as they’d like.  The ocean was much warmer!  We did go spend a day at the Hilton with a day pass to make use of their facilities.  It turned out their multiple pools were not heated either.

Overall, I would highly recommend renting this condo!  Great value in a beautiful home!

Mahalo to you and the owners!

Eileen & family