Kapoho/Hilo cottage rentals??
 

I was wondering if anyone could recommend a private cottage rental in either the Kapoho area or Hilo. I have searched vrbo and a few other sites like that, but I was hoping for a personal recommendation. Thanks!

I've stayed in the Bamboo Bungalow, between Hilo and Kapoho in Puha, and it was lovely. I found it on the VRBO site.

Aloha Christy! Thanks for the response. We have been considering the Bamboo Bungalow. If you could provide me with more details about the Bamboo Bungalow, as well as the area, I would really appreciate it. What the cottage as nice as the pictures? I have read so many negative comments about the area that I am a little nervous. Mahalo!

The house is actually a lot nicer than the pictures show. It has a better view than the website indicates, and the home's interior and gardens are just lovely. You can hear the waves pounding against the cliff from the bedroom as you fall asleep at night. The kitchen is very well equipped (there's nothing worse than the rental houses that provide only the most basic, cheap pieces of cookware) and the bathroom with the lava rock shower is absolutely gorgeous. Even though it was really warm and humid, the ceiling fans kept the place nice and cool.

I'm not sure what kind of negative comments people have about the area, but I wonder if Puna isn't spiffed-up-for-tourists enough for some people. The Bungalow is in a large development (though much of the development is not built up yet) that mostly just has regular houses for regular people, though the homes along the ocean view drive look like vacation homes. There's certainly no luxury feel to the area in general, so if someone expects their Hawaiian vacation accomodations to be surrounded by lushly landscaped grounds, golf courses, etc, then Puna will look a little ragged.

I was working on a project at Volcanoes National Park and I didn't want to stay up in the cooler temperatures of Volcano Village, so staying in Puna made sense for me. Hilo would have worked for me too but I couldn't find a nice ocean view rental that took credit cards that wasn't booked. I dislike very touristy areas, so I also enjoyed Puna (and Hilo, where I did my shopping) for that reason. There's a neat weekend farmer's/craft/flea market right on the highway, north of Pahoa, btw. BUT, as a base for touring the Big Island, it's a little remote. If you plan to spend a few days at Volcano, it makes sense, or if you have been to the BI and are trying to get off the beaten path a bit, it also would work. It took 20-25 minutes to get to Hilo and about 35 to Volcanoes NP.

Mahalo Christy! I appreciate your additional comments. We have been to BI before but only made day trips to the Hilo side. This time we wanted to explore a bit more of the area, so we are planning on splitting up our time between Kailua-Kona and the Puna area. I don't care about the area being "touristry". Our concern is whether it is safe in that area or not. I have read numerous negative comments about burglary, bb guns, etc. etc. Did you have any concerns at all while you were touring in that area?

Hmmm, no, I hadn't heard anything like that. In fact, I don't think I closed and locked the sliding glass doors or windows in the Bungalow the entire time. No one I worked with at Volcanoes, after asking where I was staying, expressed anything like that either. I should probably also point out that I've lived in cities my entire life, have traveled solo extensively and am not a paranoid person at all.

Maybe consider your source of information? Is it Hawaiian residents who are very familiar with the area that are telling you its unsafe, or people on this board that aren't as familiar with the island or who had one bad experience there (burglaries happen even in 5 star hotels, too)? If you are very concerned, perhaps you could call the local police precinct there and ask about crime rates, say, compared to Kona? At least you would have a reliable source of info to make a decision.

We live in California, but have owned a home in Puna for 4 1/2 years. Our son lives in our home there and we are there a lot. I feel very safe in Puna, but it has a little bit of a wild west reputation. I would not leave my door unlocked when away from home, as there is a lot of theft all over all of the islands. Puna is a really beautiful place, I love being there and am hoping to move there in the next couple of year. Have a great trip - if you are not into touristy, Puna will be lovely for you. My very first stay in Hawaii was in Kapoho - I loved it. That's where I learned to snorkel.