HomeAway, one of the leading vacation rental marketers, launched the first vacation rental advertisement during the Super Bowl.  They brought back Chevy Chase and portrayed the hotel experience as a really bad one.  Not only was it great for HomeAway, but it also increased awareness of vacation rentals as an option for vacations.

The Bachelor is a television show that has been aired for years.  I think they have had close to a dozen seasons.  As the show comes to an end the setting is typically in a beautiful location and they stay in one of the finest hotels there.  This year it was set in St. Lucia in the Bahamas where many people are familiar with the hotel chains such as Sandals Resorts that operate there.  Instead of staying in these notable resorts, they stayed in two and three bedroom luxury vacation rentals with private pools and jacuzzis.  It was not something that they really publicized, but it just once again built peoples awareness of vacation rentals.

Location

Kolea is located on A’Bay, the only sandy beach at the Waikoloa Beach Resort. The two hotels and the Waikoloa Kings and Queens Shops are also within ¼ mile of Kolea. Halii Kai is located on the signature hole of the Waikoloa Beach golf course in a more private setting and is roughly a mile from the beach at A’Bay and 1/2 mile from the Waikoloa Kings and Queens Shops..

Views
Both complexes have a wide range of views. The front row condos at Kolea offer ocean, beach, and mountain views. The condos nestled in behind them offer mostly mountain and garden views with a few condos offering ocean views. The condos on the oceanfront at Halii Kai offer spectacular solid ocean views. Other buildings towards the front of Halii Kai offer a view of the signature hole of the Waikoloa Beach Course and the ocean. As you travel away from the front of the property most of the condos have fairway and garden views.

Interiors
The standard finished within Kolea condos are better than what you will find in a Halii Kai condo. The furnishings within each condo are supplied by the owners so that is not better in one place versus the other. The average condo at Kolea is much larger than the average Halii Kai condo. A Kolea condo ranges in size from 1200 to 2200 square feet and a Halii Kai condo ranges in size from 1000 to 1400 square feet.

Pools
Although both Kolea and Halii Kai have nice pool areas, the Halii Kai Ocean Club is a step above the Kolea Beach Club. The Halii Kai Ocean Club is situated on an oceanfront bluff and features a multi layered resort style pool. You will also find a restaurant, which has a very nice menu, and an open air fitness hale overlooking the ocean. The Kolea Beach Club has access to the beach at A’Bay. In addition to an infinity pool and lava rock Jacuzzi, the Kolea Beach Club has a sand bottom kids pool with a waterfall which is great for toddlers, an open air fitness hale, and a shaded lounging area there.

The cornerstone of the Waikoloa Beach Resort is the Hilton Waikoloa.  This expansive hotel spans over 62 acres and consists of four towers and two large resort style pools.  Within the hotel you will find seven dining choices.  KPC is the nicest restaurant and is located on a bluff giving an amazing ambiance.  The Kona Pool is the most popular pool and consists of multiple jacuzzis, a grotto, and a waterslide.  The Kohala Pool is comprised of two pools connected by a “lazy river”.  You will also find a few smaller slides at this pool.  Since the Hilton Waikoloa is not located on the beach, they designed a lagoon area fed by the ocean.  Enjoy water activities and snorkeling here.

The Marriott at Waikoloa Beach Resort is the other hotel and is located on the beach, A’Bay.  You will also find shopping just a short walk from the Marriott.  The Marriott was just recently renovated and features a large infinity pool and with a small slide.

If you choose to stay in a vacation rental, the Waikoloa Beach Resort has the best selection on the Big Island.  From vacation rentals as low as $100/night to luxurious beachfront rentals as high as $600/night, there is a vacation rental for everyone.  Kolea is the most luxurious destination with some of its beachfront vacation rentals spanning over 2000 square feet and just minutes from the beach.  Halii Kai offers the best views and has the nicest pool area of any vacation rental complex on the coast.

Within the Waikoloa Beach Resort is the Kings Shops and Queens Shops.  You will find dining as well as an array of boutique stores here.  The Queens Shops has a Marketplace where you can do all your grocery shopping as well as get great local food.

There is a shack at the beach, A’Bay, which has beach toy rentals as well as snorkel gear.  The Hilton Waikoloa is home to DolphinQuest, which is another popular activity for children.  Here dolphins are raised and it gives you an opportunity to get to know them better as well as have close encounters.  If you are a golfer, the Waikoloa Kings and Beach courses offer a challenging game amongst a beautiful setting.

Please contact Waikoloa Vacation Rentals at WaikoloaVRM@aol.com or (808) 987-4519 if you have any questions about the Waikoloa Beach Resort.

Contact us at (808) 987-4519 for more information.

We added an interactive map to the home page that allows you to select Kolea rentals based on their location.  This map is fully updated to show the completion of the private homes on the lots in front of the vacation rentals.  Currently there is no construction going on at Kolea on the private lots in front of the vacation rentals at Kolea.

You can come back to this map for any updates regarding construction or updates to rentals in our program.

Just recently one of my friends came and was eager to do everything and especially see the volcano.  We left Waikoloa Beach Resort at about 10 am and went along the north part of the island.  We stopped at Akaka Falls to enjoy the waterfalls there.  We got to Volcano National Part at about 2 pm and hiked around for a while.  I had been there before so it was not anything special to me.  Around 4 pm we left Volcano National Park and headed to the area where you can walk in and see the lava flowing into the ocean.  We took about a hour hike in across lava rocks and reached an area where it was roped off and a lot of people were watching the lava flow into the ocean from the distance.  We decided we would take our chances and hike in down by the ocean.  Once we hiked about 15 minutes further and got down by the water I was pleasently surprised to see a beautiful black sand beach down there.  We were probably about 25 feet from the lava and the ocean water was a warm.  As we decided to come out we found dozens of people coming to see the beautiful site.

Since then they have predicted that some of the land around their may break off soon so I would not recommend getting too far in or reasearch it first.  I would also recommend taking water, pants, hiking boots, and a flash light.