Waimea Plantation Cottages — Hotel in Kauai

It wasn't what we were expecting, but it wasn't bad. Read on for an honest review!

My husband and I stayed in a garden view cottage for 6 nights during our honeymoon, although we originally booked an ocean view. The first cottage we arrived in had an absolutely god-awful smell inside. It smelled like a family of toads had died in the AC and rotted. The first cottage was horrifying and did not look like the photos online. They had painted over the wood flooring with this ugly brown paint that seemed to show every speck of dust and grime. No picture frames on the wall, it really felt sad in there. There was only one AC unit for this oversized 1BR. I almost started crying imagining we would spend our honeymoon there. The smell wouldn't go away. We barely unpacked because we were pretty upset, then decided to talk to the front desk.

We let them know politely that the cottage we had been given keys for smelled so bad and we wanted to be moved. We offered to pay more to stay in ANY other cottage but that one. Part of me was afraid that it just smelled bad inside all of them. Luckily hotel staff was able to move us to a garden view cottage and honored the price (which had significantly changed in the last 10 months since we booked the first one, even though it was supposed to be less expensive than an ocean view). I must say, we REALLY appreciate that they were able to move us. Because the second cottage was completely different.

The garden view cottage we moved to still had an ocean view - actually, it was a better one than the first cottage! Everything about the second cottage was as advertised, although it was a little smaller than the first one but we didn't care. The flooring was kept natural looking, the decor was much more appealing - cute furniture and art in frames on the walls. And best of all - it didn't smell bad. The beds here are VERY comfortable and the second cottage had 2 AC units, one in the living room and the bedroom and worked very well for being window units.

Biggest takeaways - I think if you're planning to stay here, be prepared for it to not be anywhere close to luxurious - it's rustic and feels off the grid. But that's what makes this place special. We weren't expecting luxury, but for the amount we paid I think we were expecting a little more than what we got. If the staff hadn't been able to move us to the second cottage, we would have eaten the loss and moved to a hotel elsewhere - that's how bad it was. We still loved our experience here and it made for a memorable story. Not to mention, the grounds are stunning! The giant trees, fruit growing everywhere, sweet cats roaming around, beautiful flowers - very picturesque, authentic Hawaii. It's quiet and peaceful at all hours of the day. I loved walking over to the beach to lay in the hammocks and read my book.

Some other things to be aware of... laundry machines are shared with other guests and they work great if you only do a small load. My husband did one big load and none of his things dried, so we had to hang dry all his stuff. The ocean nearby is not swimmable, very murky waters and if you walk down the shore a bit it gets a little dicey near the pier. The restaurant on site has the BEST buffalo wings! But they do use a virtual ordering system, which was a little annoying. The TV's do not have streaming ability, so bring a Roku device with you if you want that. We purchased one at the Walmart in Lihue for about $30. There is a DVD rental machine in the main building, but not a ton of options on there. There are also lots of creepy crawlers on property hiding out in the porches/in between spaces. Great walking distance from the town where we walked over almost everyday for a shave ice.

Overall, I think some of the cottages here could use a little love and upkeep. Let guests choose their cottage, because we'd love to come back and stay in the same one (#33). I don't think this place is for everyone, and could definitely be a bad value if you got a scary cottage. But we made the best of it, and...

On average, I would give 4 stars. I came across Waimea Plantation Cottages when I was trying to find a place to stay where my two boys could each have their own bed. This was one of the least expensive options we could find that still had a pool.

You are off the tourist path when you stay here which we loved. A lot of the resorts in Kauai could be found on any tropical location. This Waimea Plantation Cottages isn’t your run of the mill resort. If you read their bio, you know the cottages were former housing for sugar plantation workers. The location is walkable to the town of Waimea. Our first day we saw dolphins jumping in the water off Driftwood Beach. No it is not a swimming beach but that was ok for us. One of the draw backs of the location is all the driving you will have to do if you plan on sightseeing. And to top it off gas cost a fortune.

The staff that we talked to were all friendly and I have no complaints here. I will have to say the people of Kauai for the most part were all friendly, relaxed, and accommodating despite working with needy tourists. I loved their sense of humor.

We rented a three bedroom cottage which was pretty spacious for of four person family. Our garden view, while close to the front of the property, still had a great view of the ocean. I enjoyed sitting on the back porch and watching the wildlife. The inside of the cottage left a lot to be desired. The inside smelled like a really old building (which it is). There was a laughable Glad plug-in in a corner of the main room. The smell got worse in the rooms where we ran the AC units. The smell wasn’t as bad in the main room when we could open the sliding doors. The curtains in the cottages are more like cotton sheers. The floors are painted brown which isn’t surprising considering the age of the building. Not sure the last time the interior was painted. The walls looked dingy and the baseboards looked dirty but didn’t look and better when I wiped some down. I am pretty sure that bathroom off the primary bedroom hasn’t been updated in a VERY long time if at all. The shower had a large rust (?) stain in the shower and the sink was worn down and beat up. The Jack and Jill bathroom my boys shared actually looked like it had been updated sometime in the last 30 years. Both shower had windows with those horrible cotton sheers. When you try to move around in the shower, the curtains would stick to you. The furniture in the main room was not comfortable. We would have to grab pillows of our beds to watch TV in the evenings. Like other reviewers, we had an issue with ants getting into some food. All this being said, the biggest issue was the smell. If they could fix the smell, the cottage would have had at least one more star. I believe we got what we paid for otherwise. Make some basic updates to finishes and maybe a comfortable sofa to sit on and the cottage would be stellar.

I would actually like stay at The Waimea Plantation Cottages again, just in a...

This is not a resort on any level but rather a well maintained historic property that is beautifully laid out with separate cottages of varying sizes. If you would like to step back in time this is the place to be. The cottages are well maintained though they could be cleaner in terms of window sills, base boards and those smaller deep cleaning spots that are often overlooked but make a big difference in feeling that they are well cleaned. The cabin had gorgeous wood floors that are well maintained without a speak of sand. The whole property is meticulously maintained to preserve the historic feel of old Hawaii. The beach is a huge disappointment with a brown murky surf washing up on a mix of dirt/clay/sand leaving an unappealing beach. I was to find out that the Waimea River empties into the sea a mile down the road bringing with it a lot of the wash from Waimea Canyon. If you want to spend time in this area while exploring the Waimea Canyon this is probably the only decent place to stay and probably why it commands the price that it does for its accommodations. Also, if you are looking for a peaceful place to stay and a historic step back in time this would satisfy on that level. I can see why it is a pretty wedding venue. The restaurant was barely occupied and everything was served on paper plates with plastic utensils. The food was okay. I'm assuming this had to do with Covid-19 protocol but it made the dining experience tacky and I worried about the impact of all this garbage on the small island of Kauai. I would hope that management would be more environmentally conscientious. I think the price is high for what the experience is here and it was insulting to be charged a $30 resort fee for a place you couldn't swim at the beach and for a pool that is just okay. I would recommend this place to stay with noted qualifiers just stated.The Waimea Canyon is an amazing place to explore for a few days and it is very convenient to have an interesting place to stay while investigating the Canyon. Also, there are some nice beaches 15 minutes drive down the road if you feel do want to ht the beach for the day. I would come back and now knowing what to expect I think I would settle into the 'feel' of this historic place a little bit more easily. It is a...