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May 2024 by Manuel Drews
It's getting a bit old and doesn't seem particularly tidy in some places. The room is completely sufficient, John is a super nice guy :)
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November 2023 by Katherine Kirkland
This place is so cozy and lovely. The view alone is worth it and so is Uncle Spirit-he and John made our little trip lovely. It is rustic, outdoor living-so yes, there’s bugs, and yes, you cook and eat outside. For those of us that enjoy such things it’s a wonderful place! We stayed for three nights and had an absolutely lovely time and are looking forward to returning during whale season! A big Mahalo to the owners for letting us stay in your lovely home!
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September 2023 by Jade McBride
I’m what people might call a “country girl,” and this place was the perfect stay for my husband and I. We really enjoy visiting with the owner, John. This has been our first experience in Hawaii and he has been so helpful during our stay. We walked down to the beach from the guest house, it is close to a lot of hustle and bustle but out of the way enough to where it is a quiet and peaceful place to retreat. I am loving waking up to complimentary kona coffee and listening to the birds make their morning calls.
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June 2023 by Chris Overgaard Pedersen
Good place in a great area close to nice beaches, coffee and adventure
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April 2023 by Kellie A.
Every Hotel listing sight and company needs to not refer this place. This is not a professional establishment. The website is completely miss leading and miss representing the offerings. When others have reviewed this place, they are not kidding. This is in a housing area and is an older house converted to have "suites". If you want something Air BnB on basic level, that is what this is and is a fit for you. If you only want a crash pad, this is for you. The only thing is they require you to stay 3-6 nights minimum. If you think its a nicer converted home professional Inn or Bed and Breakfast, its is not at all. Some specific miss leadings directly from their website: *3 out of the 4 rooms state "with Breakfast". There is no breakfast or anything of the sort. We asked the owner about it once we got there (since he won't respond to any form of communication) and he said there is no breakfast and its the hotel booking sites that say that. When I informed him we booked directly from his website and showed his website to him he said he doesn't know how to change it or how it got there. They did have coffe and a coffee maker * "Free off street private parking only", hell no, it is a narrow driveway about 100 feet long and then a flat spot directly in front of and next to the "Ocean Studio". The owner has 2 cars parked there and when we were there 2 guests had to park on the street since there is only room to part 2 other vehicles. If everyone has small cars, maybe 3, but we had to play shuffle and bother the other guests even when the others 2 cars are parked there since they block one another. The streets around the home say "no street parking" so that probably why they make the statement on the website. We asked the owner about this as well, he said its fine to park on the street, the neighbors are used to it. *"Balcony with ocean views" is a stretch. *Deck w/ outdoor microwave, mini-oven, gas stove- this is a joke. These exist. The microwave doesn't work and the stove is in front of the "Joyful Dolphin Studio" so you either need to disturb them making noise in front of their door or its only for that studio. We let the owner know the microwave doesn't work and he says its due to the Geckos laying there eggs in the outlets. I'm not disputing its true, then don't advertise a working microwave. *"We have "aloha" quiet time from 9pm to 8am for peace and quiet." - this is everywhere on the website and the confirmation email, but its not enforced, and one of the families staying there did not respect this. The reason you need this is because you hear EVERYTHING, especially if people are outside. Plus, the room we had has no closing windows on one side so you can never try to block the outside sounds even a little. * "10% donation every stay"- I can not verify, I hope this is true. What is completely truthful is there are bugs and geckos. We don't mind this at all, but be aware since they are in the room including the Cane Spider, which is totally harmless but they are huge and can startle you being in the covers, shower curtains, or other places. I attempted to contact them many times using different methods on communication before our trip with questions and wanting to book services. No one responded for months. Finally the owner responded once and was short and did not answer my questions and was a bit rude. We tried to book some of the "experiences" and packages. They don't exist at all. The owner was more friendly when we arrived, and did respond to text messages once you are there. We stayed in the "Happy Whale Studio" and the facility was fully booked when we were there for 7 days. With the mandatory cleaning fee (where I'm not sure what that is used for), for us its expensive for what we got and would have been better off camping or going to a cheap hotel. There bath towel feel like they are washed in salt water as well as the sheets. There were particles of s
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March 2023 by Dawn Neumann
My husband and I stayed at the Kona guest house for 7 days and it was awesome. John was so friendly and fun to visit with, telling us about the Island and places we should visit. Spirit the guest house kitty was adorable. The guest house is at the end of a culdesac with beautiful foliage all around. No noisy traffic and I loved waking up to all of the chirping birds. Down the hill is a great walking path to get your steps in before your adventures of the day. Our room was the Dolphin room at the top of the stairs, we had beautiful sunsets and a nice breeze in the evening. It was a wonderful stay. Thank you John.
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March 2023 by Carrie Thompson
It's rustic, quiet, and perfect for our needs. If you are looking for a hotel/ motel/ resort experience... then this place is not for you.Johnny is helpful and eager to help. He wants your hawaii experience to shine. The rooms need to be updated a bit, & they are a work in progress. but the bed slept well. We had the Dolphin room. There is plenty of room for 2. I was a bit leery when i read other reviews, but I'm coming in with knowing it's rustic.... made for a wonderful trip.I wouldn't recommend that this place would be good when traveling with children.It's the simple little treasures that I seek, and I find this to be a gem. It may be a diamond in the rough, but it shined for us.
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March 2023 by Jessica Hennequin
It was really nice place to stay, we love Hawaii and the nature, really nice received, good room and good sleep but we are not difficult too... so be ready for everything is Hawaii not new York, you have to accept it with everything, yes there is little bit mosquitoes, or other living creatures, and weather is weather can be a bit humide, but everything was really nice for the price and Hawaii life style ??
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March 2023 by Dena Lewis
This place was disgusting! I had to stay there for one night. The next morning I booked another hotel. It’s dirty, they want you to use dirty cooking utensils that are outside. There is no air conditioning. I paid for 5 days and couldn’t get my money back. DON’T GO THERE!!!!
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March 2023 by Andrew Parnes
Who doesn’t like fresh papaya off the tree for breakfast every morning? Great place to stay for people who don’t want the resort experience and are cool with seeing a few geckos climbing around outside. Owner and keepers were more than friendly and gracious. If I come back to Kona, I wouldn’t stay anywhere else!Also they have the nicest cat.
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March 2023 by Indiana Brown
My fiancé and I had an absolutely lovely time at the Kona Guest House. We were in the Happy Whale Studio and had a stunning view of the sunset every day from the balcony! Other reviews of this place complain of insects, mold, clutter... first of all, I did not smell or see any mold and I'm really sensitive to bad smells. Yes there were a few bugs and critters (namely adorable geckos) but I think that's the trade-off when you're in a beautiful wooded neighborhood with papaya and lilikoi fresh for the picking for breakfast. If you're looking for a sterile hotel with no personality, then book there for double the price, but we were pleased to stay here at a very reasonable price and enjoy some great aloha vibes. Plus, the guys working at the guest house were very gracious and chill and accommodating whenever we needed something or had questions. Best of all, there's an adorable black cat who loves to hang out with you and get pets while you hang out outside the room ?️
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March 2023 by Alex Reini
Horror!!! I don't want to exaggerate, but this was my worst accommodation ever in a long time. It was dirty, smelly, not tidy, no service and the information and photos in the advert were perfectly staged. But see for yourself, pictures say more than words.
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March 2023 by Damon Zarifé
John's hospitality is a FIVE stars hospitality. He is such nice guy and very helpful in giving tips on where to go, what to do and what to eat. Also in the morning, he will pick a fresh papaya and deliver it to your window. We loved it. The three stars rating here is for the room. The room was clean and everything in order, but you could feel that it has not changed much in many years and could use revamping. I am guessing though if John's revamps the rooms he would need to increase his rates which are probably the most competitive out there. The view from the room upstairs is a million dollar view.
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March 2022 by Denise Okolo
Room was nice and private. Host John was very helpful.
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March 2022 by toocutsy
I would have given 5 starts but I didn't get much sleep last night as there was a drunken couple verbally fighting it out last night outside my bathroom window. I think they actually live there under the tarps behind the bamboo fence next to the house. Otherwise it was a wonderful place to stay.
