Hawaii Island Retreat — Hotel in Hawaii

Staying at Hawaii Island Retreat was one of the most incredible experiences of my life (I turned 48 yrs old while there, for reference on how much life experience I'm comparing to), and it was every bit what my wife and I needed at this time. Expressing everything that I loved about and benefitted from this place will be a challenge.

If you're looking for a place-to-be, "luxury," full-service resort where your designer bathing suit will be admired, your kids will be distracted with activities all day, and/or you'll get a slice of action away from a life you otherwise find mundane, don't come here. That's not what it's for. During our stay we ran off to the famed Mauna Kea for my birthday dinner, and while it was quite nice, we couldn't wait to get back to Hawaii Island Retreat. Living in downtown Los Angeles and working in entertainment and design, we get enough of what places like that other hotel offer. The magic is in the match: if you want a lovely environment to enjoy solitude, reflection, personal/spiritual healing, bucolic experiences, breathtaking views, ancient Hawaiian ruins, constant gentle cycles of rain, wind, and sun, inner peace, and a reminder of how fragile and beautiful Earth is, consider this place.

This is a family-owned property, and that family, along with their farm hands and volunteers who are there to learn about sustainable agriculture, are the people who will be serving you. You'll get to know your hosts on a first-name basis over the course of your stay. Meals are served in quiet open-air dining rooms off a courtyard that constantly wafts a cocktail of exotic floral scents across your table, while tropical plants glisten in the garden under the flower trees and small curated ponds lie impossibly still beside you.

You'll find yourself speaking in hushed tones like the few others you'll encounter occasionally on the grounds, because the environment naturally encourages you to respect the space and the moment. There's not much to say anyway...better to quietly enjoy the food, the birds, the sounds of the crashing sea nearby, and the tranquility of the locale.

We stayed in one of the yurts and relished the percussion of the rain and winds on our roof and walls each night. We swam daily (and didn't wear much at night!) in the soothing infinity pool, which we never had to share with more than one other person. In the afternoons we hiked the property—visiting the farm animals, freeing overly-ambitious goats' heads from fences, trying to name the many fruit trees, admiring the archaeological stone arrangements and their petroglyphs, and watching wild baby pigs sprint through humid fields dotted with snowy egrets and startled, stampeding cows. Past extraterrestrial-looking prehistoric lava boils we crawled out on the rocky beach at the valley's termination and wet our feet while fearing the powerful surf that dragged huge stones noisily back toward the sea with each recession. On the high bluff in utter seclusion at the property's farthest reach, we sat in tall cliff grasses under a thin, bent forest and gazed out over the ocean far below, letting ourselves be repeatedly wet and dried in the climatic cycles, and wondered aloud how it was possible to have that place and moment to ourselves.

For these experiences I have nothing but gratitude.

Two hours from landing, we crashed our rental car into a bighorn ram on a highway in the middle of nowhere in the center of the island, and were lucky enough to be taken the rest of the way to our destination by the very kind local police. Our hosts at Hawaii Island Retreat repeatedly arranged local transportation for us the few times that we did need a car, which was less expensive than what we would have booked on our own; sometimes they had their own farm hands drive us in the owners' own cars. To help us recover from the stress, we had the humbling privilege to be massaged—excellently, I should emphasize—by a direct descendant of King Kamehameha.

Perfect? No. Some things in need of replacement or repair? Sure. Didn't care. Healed. Thank...

From July 20th - August 3rd 2017 We stayed at the tranquil and Soul-full (spelling intended) Retreat. Upon arrival we were greeted by 70 lbs of warmth and love (or Elaine) the resident Stafford Terrier who quickly became our best friend during our stay. We entered the large glass doors that led directly to paradise, (and the main office) where we were warmly welcomed by Jeannie (owner) and introduced to the facilities. We were escorted to our room which was brightly colored (yellow - my favorite) and very clean and spacious. The shower and bathroom were designed with an open shower in mind (no guilt when you get water on the floor...just brilliant!) Our Lanai (and patio doors) faced the ocean through a forest of tall pines (which did not take away from our ocean view...only enhanced it.) The breeze was priceless and constant. We often opened the patio doors and the front entrance door and let the wind funnel through - PARADISE!! We enjoyed the breeze and the sounds of the ocean all through the night. Another sweet gift was waking up with the sun shining on our face. (If you like the sun in your face that is? ) Can you say exhale? The best part of these accommodations is "NO INTERNET" in the rooms!! That message was really for my husband who has to be surgically removed from his computer-ipad-iphone-laptop- etc..etc..Thank you Jeannie. The sounds of birds singing and the bullfrogs at night - wow they were huge but fascinating to see in the ponds and on the footpaths. Carry a small flashlight at night and get a glimpse. The food was "superb" and served buffet style in the main dining area. The resident cook (Jeremy) was welcoming and friendly, serving a variety of amazing organic dishes. All our meals were very flavorful and delicious be sure to take advantage of the healthy organic meals during your stay. Coffee and Tea as well as fresh water and fruit were always available during the day. They offer a lot of treatments which I regret not taking advantage of more. I did have hypnosis therapy (not hypno-therapy) which was nothing short of amazing. I also had Reiki which I absolutely highly recommend. . I could dedicate a whole review on the grounds themselves. With access to 50 acres of history and stunning views. From the cliffs of the Pacific to organic gardens, lush forest, tall pines, stone circles, goats, cows and the rare wild pig siting, all the way to the infinity pool, you can't help but exhale as you spend time in this hidden little gem of the North. You never know what you'll find... The most treasured gift and aspect of Hawaii Island Retreat is the people! Jeannie is not only the owner and a gifted healer, she is a friend. With a warm generous spirit that is reflected in every corner of the resort. Michael is just an"AMAZING ENERGY" upon sight and it's impossible to feel anything but positive around him - he is definitely a part of the success that makes up this special place. I promise to sign up for your dance classes upon my return!! Judy, what an angel on earth you turned out to be. Such a kindred soul. My fondest memory was my impromptu conversation with Judy and Jeannie in the office. These women are gold! These reasons and many more are why we are returning to Hawaii Island Retreat next April. We can't wait to nestle in nature and enjoy the spoils of your nurturing... This place attracts beautiful positive people...(staff included.) The long dirt road that leads into the resort begins your re-connection with nature...and self! Enjoy....you...

Horrendous and disappointing.

We rented the entire facility for 4 days of events including my daughter’s wedding for 130 people. Let me start by saying that the proprietor here (Jeanne) went a long way towards RUINING the entire process for my wife and I. Her (in my opinion, phony) aloha spirit when you meet her is quickly replaced by a very inhospitable and bordering on rude attitude for the rest of the process preparing and executing the rehearsal, wedding day, and post-wedding day brunch. In my opinion, she did not demonstrate the skills of a person in hospitality. The ONLY THING that saved the weekend was our wedding planner and the fact that the grounds are picturesque.

I want to be very accurate in my appraisal of the weekend. The food that was provided for breakfast in the morning and the brunch was good. We had the wedding food catered by another company. The grounds are beautiful. The rooms were fine but very warm due to the lack of A/C so it made getting ready for a wedding difficult since we were all sweating profusely by the time of the events. Our bungalow was filthy in places, bugs everywhere.

The real problem was the lead-up for months to the events. I’m not sure what we would have done without our wedding planner (Hannah) who literally saved the day. The owner was so incredibly uncooperative...it was hard to fathom. On multiple occasions she told us things that she did not follow through on or downright lied. Some examples: She sent us a diagram of the grounds which included a space for tent erection that she had listed as 100 feet wide...in truth it was less than 25 feet wide. When we originally toured the facility, she told us we could use the “yoga room” for a variety of uses including a “back up” if it were to rain...then she reneged on that promise. (The yoga room, which is one of the better spaces in the facility, had drapes up the entire weekend even though we rented the whole facility). The selection of the beer and wine from long distance became an ongoing ridiculous process whereby the owner INSISTED that I provide her the wines that I wanted and she would see if she could get them... why not provide a list for me to choose from that she has available you ask?? God only knows. After $300 of wine purchases and multiple trips to my local wine store to try to select wines that she MIGHT have...the process became almost unbearable when she said to me on the phone, “look if you don’t want beer and wine at this wedding, it’s ok with me”. Really?? She insisted that she was going to “pass through” the wine and beer at her cost but then refused to show me the invoice of what her cost was...and that she was including “fees” but would not tell me what those fees represented. I have been involved in countless large and small events in my career. I have been involved in bringing hundreds of people to destination-events in the past. NEVER have I run into someone who literally put hurdles up at every turn to make things more difficult. In spite of this woman, we were able to have a nice event due to the picturesque grounds and OUR diligence. Good luck to anyone who chooses...