My girlfriend and I had a great stay in Kauai Garden Cottages (KGC) from 9-15 January 2014. We…read morestayed in the Torch Ginger suite, and it was beautiful. We also were fortunate that the second cottage was unoccupied, so the back porch, which is shared by both cottages, we had completely to ourselves. We wanted a place where we could hide away from the more "touristy" spots, and KGC was perfect. Kalaheo is a nice little village that's somewhat "off the beaten path," especially compared to Poipu right down the road. Also, the cottage is less than 10 minutes from the Kalaheo Cafe' and Coffee Company, a great little place where we ate breakfast daily. KGC was reasonably priced, clean and very comfortable. There is a laundry room, an ample supply of towels, both for showers and for the beach. They provide two complimentary beach mats which were very handy. The room has a small refrigerator and a microwave and a coffee pot. (They provide the first day's coffee.) Also, don't forget to look in the nightstand drawers. They have a copy of "The Kauai Underground Guide" which we found very useful. Some things to note. KGC was perfect for us because we didn't want to be in the more heavily populated tourist areas on South Kauai. However, from the front door to Poipu Beach is about a 20-25 minute drive, so if you have a late evening craving for Lappert's Ice Cream (which we did almost nightly), you're looking at about a 40 minute round trip. The wireless internet works great (we were able to stream Netflix with no issues), but the cell coverage is spotty. Also, if you've been to Kauai before, then you know about the chickens and the roosters. You'll hear the roosters crowing bright and early...but I think you'll hear that anywhere on Kauai. Overall, KGC was a great place to spend our vacation. If you're someone that wants to enjoy the beach and outdoor adventures by day, then retire to peace and quiet by night, then Kauai Garden Cottages will be perfect for you. One final thought...I met Thayne on the day before we left. Otherwise, we never saw or heard from the owners. I saw another review where the writer felt there were privacy issues, and I can tell you this is definitely NOT the case. Our room was very private and very quiet. Also, I accidentally left my Kindle behind in the room, and Thayne was kind enough to mail it back to me, even providing a tracking number. We couldn't be happier with our experience with Kauai Garden Cottages.

Our family stayed in the Torch and Orchid suites for three nights and they were wonderful. The…read morelocation was secluded enough to make us feel like we were far away from tourists, yet a short drive to all of the highlights on the south side of the island. We were greeted by the friendly owners who offered great tips about where to eat and what to see close by. Unlike Ashley B's nasty review, the owners were not intrusive whatsoever. It actually felt comforting to know someone was nearby to make sure nobody broke into the place while we were away. The patio was a great feature. Very serene and beautiful, BUT - the freakin' rooster should be on KFC's next dinner menu. Damn thing started crowing at 4:30 am. Kauai is inundated with the birds, almost to the point of being a plague. Bring a slingshot. The downsides: -No TV (kids were a little disappointed, but we were out most of the day anyway.) -WiFi was a little touch and go and we had no internet on one of the days. -No hair dryers (wife and daughter weren't too happy about that.) -Lighting was not adequate at night, even with all the lamps and overheads turned on. Despite the minor downsides, we had a great time and would recommend Kauai Garden Cottages to our friends and family. Mahalo & Aloha.

Luxe cleaning fulfilled all my expectations! They responded quickly to a request for service and…read morethe owner herself came to the location to review and price the job requested. Used them back in March for a move out clean and to save some the time and energy of doing it on my own. The quality of work was appreciated and they also completed the work on a weekend and within the contacted 2 hours. Thank you Luxe Cleaning and staff!

Angel was lovely to work with! We used the cleaning service during our one week trip to Kauai while…read morewe were staying at an Airbnb. Before arriving, Angel was easy to coordinate with and discuss our needs. When we arrived, the cleaning was thorough and it was a great way for us to feel like we were staying at a hotel, all while enjoying the perks of staying in our private Airbnb! I would highly recommend using her cleaning service.

We had such an incredible stay at Orchid Home! It was perfect for our large extended family with…read morelittle kids in tow. The moment we arrived the hosts welcomed us warmly. They were very responsive and helpful throughout our stay. The house is absolutely beautiful yet so comfy. It is bright, airy, and the ocean views are spectacular. We woke up early everyday just to see the sunrise! Many special touches like binoculars (enjoyed by us birders!), toys and games, well appointed kitchen (a cook's dream!), huge well-maintained pool, and an abundance of beach towels, beach toys, beach chairs, and coolers. Everything we needed! The location is 5 min away from beautiful Poipu Beach where we swam with turtles and even a seal, and 5 min to Koloa town. Orchid Home exceeded our expectations in every way. We made many unforgettable family memories and hope to return again. Nui Mahalo to the hosts!

We just returned from an incredible week at Orchid house. The large 5 bedroom house was perfect for…read moreour 8 adults and 4 teens. The views take your breath away every single morning as we watched the sunrise over Shipwreck Beach. The kitchen has lots of cooking and baking items, plenty of dishes and cutlery, 2 large refrigerators to hold so much food and beverages. Restaurants and food shopping are close by in Koloa. There's a large dining room table inside next to the kitchen, plus another large table on the front porch by the large BBQ. The salt pool and deck are spacious and beautifully maintained. The garage has lots of pool toys, beach towels, even a wagon to carry things to the beach. The bedrooms are large and comfortable and all have an ensuite. The house is in a very quiet and safe neighborhood that overlooks Poipu Beach. Another great asset is Evan, the house manager. He's absolutely wonderful and quickly responds any time you have a question. I would stay here again and I very highly recommend Orchid house for amazing accommodations in the Poipu beach area.

I've rented from Chris at Classic Vacation Cottages several times. Only once for me, because I Iive…read moreon the island, but a couple different times for viisiting family and friends (I live in a 1 bedrm).. Chris is professional but also really friendly, and his units (a couple of studios, two 1 bedrooms a 2 bedroom and a stand alone 3 bedeoom cottage) are always clean and neat. These are not high end condos, they are perfectly respectable local style homes and apartments that are tidy, comfortable, extremely reasonable and get the job done. Did I mention extremely reasonable? :-) Chris' units are generally in Kalaheo, about 10 minutes west of sunny Poipu. I always recommend Classic Vacation Cottages to friends who are traveling to Kauai. I mean, why pay through the nose for some generic hotel when you can stay in an authentic local-style place and have gobs more money to spend on activities and dining? Unless you're planning to stay at the Grand Hyatt, you're not coming to Hawaii to spend much time indoors, right? Staying at one of Chris's places allows you the freedom to explore more of the island. Happy travels all, and aloha!

I have booked 6 different homes with Parrish Kauai for a total of 10 visits. I have nothing but…read morepositive things to say about Parrish. They always get back to me promptly and have always taken care of any needs I might have. The houses have always had what we needed and been clean. Two years ago I booked a house inland with 5 bedrooms and a pool as we were taking our 2 sons and their families. A week before we were to go the house had damage done to it as a result of a storm. Parrish booked a different house on the ocean with a pool for us at no extra cost!! The kids got to watch the turtles from the house. My husband and I were coming back in 2 weeks and asked Parrish if they could keep some non-perishables in their office until we came back. They said sure and then even had them at the house when we arrived. This last trip the internet wasn't working and I messaged them on Sunday not expecting to hear back until Monday but they got right back to me and said someone would be out that day to check on it and that we didn't need to be there. In the meantime one of the umbrellas on the lanai broke off the stand due to rust. I was going to mention it to whomever came out for the internet but we were gone. When we got back I messaged Parrish and let them know about the umbrella. They sent someone back out on Sunday to take care of it. Again I wasn't expecting to get help on a Sunday. Parrish is great to work with and I would highly recommend them. I've already booked my house for next year.

Parrish -- Do Not Trust Them With Your Special Trip…read more We booked Poipu Sands #521 through The Parrish Collection for our 25th wedding anniversary -- a milestone we'd planned carefully, choosing a building 5 unit specifically for its unobstructed view of Shipwrecks Beach. We are not naive renters: we owned a condo at Poipu Sands for over a decade and know the property well. Parrish still managed to ruin our trip. The problems announced themselves immediately. Every screen in the unit was torn, with gaps large enough to invite insects indoors. The portable AC exhaust ducts were sloppily routed through louvered windows, creating additional entry points. The rattan headboard in the downstairs bedroom was visibly embedded with dust and grime. The window shades were moldy. And the twin beds making up the "king" in the downstairs room were fully made up as individual twins beneath the king bedding -- meaning the next guests would sleep on sheets a stranger had already slept in, separated by a single layer of fabric. Charming. But the detail that stopped us cold: ten roach traps scattered across both floors of the unit. Not one or two tucked discreetly in corners -- ten, throughout the property. Parrish's website had described this unit as clean and well-maintained. Ten roach traps tell a different story. We had been traveling since 6:30 am and had specific reasons for choosing this exact unit, so we attempted to make it work. We shouldn't have. On night three, our son found a 3.5-4 inch cockroach in his bathroom. We immediately texted Parrish -- the contact method they told us to use for concerns -- and waited. And waited. An hour and a half passed with no response. We packed our bags, found rooms at the Marriott, informed Parrish by text that we were leaving, and requested a refund for the two nights we would not be staying. Parrish refused. Parrish had every opportunity to inspect and maintain the property they were charging premium rates to rent. They had every opportunity to disclose that the unit had an active pest problem requiring ten traps. They had every opportunity to respond to a guest text - as they had instructed us to do. They did none of these things. Then, when a cockroach the size of a small rodent drove a family out of the unit on the eve of a 25th anniversary, they declined to return two nights of rent. This is not a property management company that takes care of its properties or its guests. It is one that takes your money, sends you a glossy description, and hopes you don't look too closely at the headboard. We looked. Don't make our mistake. In response to JP: You're still fussing over the request for a refund - complaining about what we told you and when we told you. We should have complained right away about the condition of the property. But that's the catch-22 for the traveler - you want to make it work because you have limited time...until you can't. So, we're passed that. Now we're telling our story about our experience with Parrish, so others won't make our mistake

The place was amazing. Very clean and well stocked kitchen. It had everything we needed and plenty…read moreof towels and supplies in the condo. The condo was nicely set up with plenty of bathrooms and a washer and dryer. The view, The view, the view! Can I say again the VIEW was amazing!We watched the Turtles and the dolphins outside on our balcony and eating area-both are incredible! Very close to the beach and easy driving to most of the wonders on the island. We appreciated the quick responses and support when we did reach out to the management ( new coffee maker in minutes) and hour extended check out!

Start to finish amazing process and communication! Easy trips and amazing properties!read more

Terrible experience. Started with the toilet being turned off and the toilet tank empty when we got…read morethere. Reached out to the property manager and they said everything was working fine before we walked in the door??? Took them 18 hours (8:51 p.m. to 3:03 p.m) to fix it so we didn't have a working toilet through the night. I had to find a bucket on my own to use to fill with water and get it to flush. We also could walk about 8-10 minutes down to the beach and use those filthy toilets or ask the local restaurants. Next issue was a concern of our privacy in the bathroom. There was a large hole in the wall (partially covered with a picture) and I mean LARGE that led to a closet/storage area. If someone was in the closet, they could see directly into the shower. The hole was big enough to where someone could tip the picture out and literally grab you. Pictures attached. When I raised this with the property manager (who you never actually see on site), they simply said that nobody was in the closet so don't worry about it. Lastly was the bathroom was disgusting. More pictures attached. I asked for a partial refund and they said they would mail us a check (even asked for the mailing address). No check ever arrived and they stopped responding to my follow-ups.

The host, "Pete", double booked our room, shut the door in our face when we arrived and refused to…read moregive a refund. We arrived the day after the start of our rental agreement. He claims we "No Showed", but we clearly showed up and stood face to face with him as he fumbled through an explanation as to why it was our fault that he rented our room to someone else. VRBO failed to honor their rental guarantee which states we 'have the right to enter the rental for the ENTIRE duration of our rental term'. Throughout the process of trying to get a refund, Pete repeatedly sent multiple inappropriate text messages to my wife telling her to "F$#% You"... "Sh@# Head". He only stopped after we filed a harassment report with Kauai Police. We are considering pressing charges. Pete is very two faced and what he says to in front of you is not how he feels or what he thinks about you when he is behind a computer screen. Don't let him SCAM or BULLY YOU. GO ELSEWHERE

Beautiful place to stay on Kauai! Can't get any better than staying right on the ocean! Everyone…read morehere at whalers is super kind and helpful with anything and everything! This place is paradise and is a very special place to my family! Mahalo whalers cove!

Whalers Cove is an amazing location for any island seeker. Located right on the waters edge, the…read morewaves crashing on the shore will rock you to sleep at night. The staff is very friendly and helpful. The GM, Maryanne, has done a great job keeping up on maintenance and numerous projects around the facilities. I would definitely recommend this resort!