Kona Billfisher — Local services in Hawaii

Disappointed and misled — unacceptable conditions and poor customer service||||We used two full weeks of RCI exchange points to stay in both a one-bedroom and a two-bedroom unit at Kona Billfisher. On the first night, the two-bedroom had eight active roof leaks — water dripping throughout the unit. A photo I took clearly shows the roof had no covering. The entire complex was under construction, yet this was never disclosed in advance prior to our booking. Bill Fischer claims they were unaware of any construction until July 28th. Well that is a complete and total lie. The HOA and owners of the units would likely have taken months to get bids, select a contractor and proceed with construction. They had several months to disclose to people booking and to RCI that they were going to be under construction. They failed to notify anyone.||||To make matters worse, we had cockroaches in our rooms— a clear sign of poor maintenance and sanitation. When we raised concerns, the explanation given for continuing to rent out these units during construction was that they “needed to protect their owners.” But putting guests at risk of harm, discomfort, and health issues is not protecting anyone — it’s a failure of responsibility, basic hospitality and the tenants rights to quiet enjoyment of their stay.||||Lisa, the General Manager, showed zero empathy. Her idea of compensation was simply moving our family to a non-leaking unit — no apology, no discount, no acknowledgment that our vacation had been severely disrupted. Signs were posted throughout the property requiring full access to our rooms from 8am onward for construction crews. We felt like an inconvenience rather than guests.||||Thankfully, RCI stepped in and credited us 2 weeks back to our account due to the property's complete lack of accountability. We appreciate RCI for making things right even when it was Bill Fischers responsibility. However, we still paid $600 in exchange fees that were not refunded — a frustrating loss for a vacation that was anything but relaxing. We hope RCI will remove Bill Fischer from their list of exchange properties, as Bill Fischer simply does not meet the quality standards we have come to expect and received through RCI.||||The only reason one might choose this location is its proximity to downtown Kona — it’s walkable to restaurants, shops, and the waterfront. But that convenience doesn’t make up for the poor management, lack of transparency, and consistently bad customer service. If you have other options, I strongly recommend...

Disappointed and misled — unacceptable conditions and poor customer service

We used two full weeks of RCI exchange points to stay in both a one-bedroom and a two-bedroom unit at Kona Billfisher. On the first night, the two-bedroom had eight active roof leaks — water dripping throughout the unit. A photo I took clearly shows the roof had no covering. The entire complex was under construction, yet this was never disclosed in advance prior to our booking. Bill Fischer claims they were unaware of any construction until July 28th. Well that is a complete and total lie. The HOA and owners of the units would likely have taken months to get bids, select a contractor and proceed with construction. They had several months to disclose to people booking and to RCI that they were going to be under construction. They failed to notify anyone.

To make matters worse, we had cockroaches in our rooms— a clear sign of poor maintenance and sanitation. When we raised concerns, the explanation given for continuing to rent out these units during construction was that they “needed to protect their owners.” But putting guests at risk of harm, discomfort, and health issues is not protecting anyone — it’s a failure of responsibility, basic hospitality and the tenants rights to quiet enjoyment of their stay.

Lisa, the General Manager, showed zero empathy. Her idea of compensation was simply moving our family to a non-leaking unit — no apology, no discount, no acknowledgment that our vacation had been severely disrupted. Signs were posted throughout the property requiring full access to our rooms from 8am onward for construction crews. We felt like an inconvenience rather than guests.

Thankfully, RCI stepped in and credited us 2 weeks back to our account due to the property's complete lack of accountability. We appreciate RCI for making things right even when it was Bill Fischers responsibility. However, we still paid $600 in exchange fees that were not refunded — a frustrating loss for a vacation that was anything but relaxing. We hope RCI will remove Bill Fischer from their list of exchange properties, as Bill Fischer simply does not meet the quality standards we have come to expect and received through RCI.

The only reason one might choose this location is its proximity to downtown Kona — it’s walkable to restaurants, shops, and the waterfront. But that convenience doesn’t make up for the poor management, lack of transparency, and consistently bad customer service. If you have other options, I strongly recommend...

It’s with mixed feelings I write this review. We’ve been going to the Billfisher for years and love it. However in chatting with a family who are renting a second floor unit, I’m wondering how ‘family friendly’ the place is. The buildings are from mid 1970’s and the floors creak etc This family had checked in from a late flight with two excited girls (ages 8 & 10) on first trip to hawaii. They had to unfold sofa bed for the girls, haul a large suitcase up a flight of stairs. The next morning the occupants downstairs came up and rang the doorbell and complained about the noise. Upon checkin later the couple found he’d complained to the office as well. ||We have had families with children staying near us before and experienced noise but never complained because duh kids do make noise. The buildings are old and creaky. ||It certainly left a bad impression on the family making their first trip to Hawaii. And I’ve noticed the past couple years that there is a ‘clubby’ component to some folks (‘owners’)who come back year after year. Like the Billfisher is a retirement community and ‘no fun aloud’. ...