Hanalei

Maggi,
I am thinking about renting Hale Maluhia. The owner told me it is an oceanview unit. Is this true? It seems from the pictures and your descriptions that the lanai is mountain view. Where do you get the oceanview? He said it is OV because it's not behind any Pu'u Poa unit. How do you get to Hideaways Beach. I believe this beach has two sections. The west side can be accessed by walking down a very steep trail from Pu'u Poa (?), which is dangerous for children and when it is wet. I read in Kauai Revealed that the section to the east side of Hideaways is accessed by the cement trail, but only avail. to Pali Ke Kua guests. If we are not Pali Ke Kua guest and do not want to use the steep trail, the only way to get to this beach is by Kayaking from Hanalei River ? Any other addl info about Hale Maluhia is greatly appreciated.

Mahalo,

Maggi

Hi! Glad to answer your questions about Hale Maluhia. The location is right across the small road directly across from the scenic overlook to Bali Hai and the ocean. We would take our coffee over to sit on the bench and watch the sunrise. The house has many windows with beautiful views from each one, some of which you can see the ocean. The back of the house where there are two lanais, upstairs off the living room and downstairs off the master bedroom has the mountain view. That too is beautiful. It is all green and flowering trees, and the mountains. The chirping of birds (who visited us on our lanai) and the scent is heavenly. We felt completely private sitting there. We never wanted to leave this spot! As for the beaches, yes, you can use the trail across the street at Pali Ke Kua. The first part is paved and the rest is dirt. I was all alone down there, except for a family of black crabs which scurried to the rocks when they saw me. You would want to be careful with small children. It was drizzling when I went down, no problem for me. I don't know about it connecting to Hideaways from here, unless you swam part of the way. The steep trail to Hideaways behind Pu'a Poa has handrails and stairs for the first part and steps out of dirt and roots the rest of the way. It was particularly strenous from my husband or I, and we are both middle aged and not fitness buffs. It's worth a little effort, because is a great payoff when you are on this idyllic beach almost alone. Sunset was spectacular! (On to Part Two.)

Maggi

The house itself was comfortable, beautifully furnished, simple, contemporary but with tropical touches. It was super clean. People on this forum have written about cockroaches, even in hotel rooms, but we didn't see a single bug anywhere. Just one little gekko that slipped in when we came home at night and he stayed up on the ceiling of the stairwell. I am bug-phobic and he didn't bother me in the least. There is a bathroom on the main level and two bathrooms on the lower level (one in the master bedroom.) There is cable TV in the living room, a VCR and video tapes (all of the movies were filmed on Kauai - a cute touch. We watched "6 Days, 7 Nights", "Jurassic Park", and "Raiders of the Lost Ark".) All the beach equipment you will need is there, including snorkel equipment, beach chairs, coolers, umbrella, etc. We loved the north shore location and it was no problem getting to Poipu or Waimea Canyon. We just made day trips to visit other areas. It was so nice to come "home" though! Can't think of anything else. Feel free to ask any other question as they come to mind. Aloha!

Hanalei

Thank you Maggi for your detailed reply.

I know rentals are different. I've rented some in Hawaii where you have to buy everything, some you don't have to.

As far as dishwashing liquid (for handwashing), paper towels and spices, are they available in the condo?

Thanks,

Maggi

Yes, there are paper towels and dishwashing liquid in the kitchen. There were no spices, beyond salt and pepper. That was not important to us, actually preferable. A couple other places we rented were cluttered with things people had left behind in the fridge and kitchen cabinets. It was kind of gross really. We bought fish one night at Hanalei Dolphin and grilled on the little electric hibachi on the lanai. They gave us the spices to put on it. And the Princeville supermarket is really close and has everything one might need. We didn't take the time to make elaborate meals, so we didn't need to buy a lot. Hope this answers your question.