Hali’i Kai at Waikōloa — Hotel in Hawaii

We stayed at Hali’i Kai in Waikōloa for two weeks. The property manager, Michelle, at Kohala Coast Properties was outstanding and very helpful. We had to extend our trip by one day to accommodate an unexpected flight change. Michelle was extremely helpful in getting booking us for an additional night at the last minute and even answered her phone after hours.

The reason for the two star rating is because of an issue caused by the staff at Hali’i Kai. We dropped our two access cards in the drop box at the front office at approximately 8:45am on the day of our departure. I took photos of me dropping the access cards in the box just in case something happened and they tried to say we didn’t return the cards. There was no one at the office at the time and the sign said they would not return until 10.

Sure enough, we received a call from Sadie at the front office at Hali’i Kai that only one card was returned. We insisted that we returned both cards and I offered to send them the pics of me returning the cards. Despite all of this, she insisted that we would be charged $50 for a lost card.

After a lot of back and forth, my wife got on the phone and insisted that Sadie check the box again. This also took quite a bit of convincing as Sadie had said she just checked it. Finally, she decided to check the drop box again. After being on hold for several minutes, Sadie let us know she had found the card stuck to the bottom of the drop box. No apology from her, just a “thank you for your persistence” before she hung up.

If the front office isn’t going to be staffed and the drop box is not reliable, they should consider another system of returning the access cards. Or, at the very least, be more willing to double check the drop box. The fact that we had to repeatedly insist that the card was in there and ask her to check the box again was very frustrating. Had we not been so persistent, we would have been charged $50 for a card we did not lose. I would highly suggest that other guests take video of the cards being dropped into the box and to make sure the card numbers are visible when doing so.

Other than that, our stay was fine. The condo was nice and mostly well equipped for a two week stay. There are some pretty draconian rules at the pool and it isn’t really great place if you have active kids. They should consider making it an adult or senior citizen pool.

Due to the “no fun zone” at the pool and the failure of the staff at the front desk to properly account for the returned access cards, I will not be staying here again. We’ve been coming to the Big Island for many years and have never had these issues with any of our...

We stayed at Hali’i Kai in Waikōloa for two weeks. The property manager, Michelle, at Kohala Coast Properties was outstanding and very helpful. We had to extend our trip by one day to accommodate an unexpected flight change. Michelle was extremely helpful in getting booking us for an additional night at the last minute and even answered her phone after hours.||The reason for the two star rating is because of an issue caused by the staff at Hali’i Kai. We dropped our two access cards in the drop box at the front office at approximately 8:45am on the day of our departure. I took photos of me dropping the access cards in the box just in case something happened and they tried to say we didn’t return the cards. There was no one at the office at the time and the sign said they would not return until 10.||Sure enough, we received a call from Sadie at the front office at Hali’i Kai that only one card was returned. We insisted that we returned both cards and I offered to send them the pics of me returning the cards. Despite all of this, she insisted that we would be charged $50 for a lost card.||After a lot of back and forth, my wife got on the phone and insisted that Sadie check the box again. This also took quite a bit of convincing as Sadie had said she just checked it. Finally, she decided to check the drop box again. After being on hold for several minutes, Sadie let us know she had found the card stuck to the bottom of the drop box. No apology from her, just a “thank you for your persistence” before she hung up.||If the front office isn’t going to be staffed and the drop box is not reliable, they should consider another system of returning the access cards. Or, at the very least, be more willing to double check the drop box. The fact that we had to repeatedly insist that the card was in there and ask her to check the box again was very frustrating. Had we not been so persistent, we would have been charged $50 for a card we did not lose. I would highly suggest that other guests take video of the cards being dropped into the box and to make sure the card numbers are visible when doing so.||Other than that, our stay was fine. The condo was nice and mostly well equipped for a two week stay. There are some pretty draconian rules at the pool and it isn’t really great place if you have active kids. They should consider making it an adult or senior citizen pool.||Due to the “no fun zone” at the pool and the failure of the staff at the front desk to properly account for the returned access cards, I will not be staying here again. We’ve been coming to the Big Island for many years and have never had these issues with any of our...

Just getting home from a wonderful week on "The big island" with my hubs and 4 kids. We chose the Halii Kai for the same reasons most people will, it's advertised as a condo like unit with amenities in a good location for a reasonable (* Hawaii Reasonable*) price. There are some little details that I need to share that I didn't see in any other reviews that I hope will help others booking after me make a more informed decision. First and foremost the unit was clean and in a great location. We had a partial ocean view and while the mattress was firm and the furniture a little worn I felt that the property managers did a decent job keeping the place up. We were given 2 remotes for the gate and a keycode for the door. The office hours are 10am to 6pm so make sure you get extra coffee and creamer at your check-in because there isn't anyone on site "after hours" to get anything you may run out of like trash bags, towels, etc. There is no cleaning service at all. This place is not a resort. They do not have a concierge, front desk, or maid service, this is a VRBO style place so they set it and forget it. Also, our A/C stopped working the night before we checked out so by 9:00 am the next morning it was 86 degrees in our unit. We are frequent travelers so I know upfront that there will be resort fees in addition to the points used to book the unit and I am OK with that. What I am not ok with is additional cleaning fees and surcharges not listed on the website ($400 worth) that we were told about and charged for during check-in. After having flown for 11 hours and faced with that additional charge I just bit my lip and let them give me the "Chase, Expedia and the Owners had this negotiation" spiel. The issue isn't their negotiation but that no where on my reservation was this extra charge explained and the way it was presented gave the impression that this is a very common occurrence. It...