Jay

I'm planning a honeymoon to Kauai in late September. Which of the above resorts / condos would you recommend / rule out? I know some of you will think this is redundant (sorry), but I've read about 200 messages on this message board, and I still can't get a good feel. Here are my concerns from the research: Sheraton -- only worth it if ocean front; Marriott -- noisy location (airport), and possible construction (?); Radisson -- not as nice and unswimable beach; Kiahuna -- not as many amenities and noisy if close to construction area. Can anyone shed light on these concerns and make any recommendations? Thanks.

sarah

The Sheraton at Poipu is oceanfront and on the same beach as the Kiahuna Plantation (one of the only swimmable beaches in Poipu). It's a large hotel and you could ask them about the different wings or even different rooms. Some are gardenside. One wing has rooms facing the rocks over the water - would probably be the best for you. Another wing faces the pool and families like it provides easy to the pool for children. The Kiahuna Plantation is a very large complex. Maybe you can find a map of it on the internet. It has many two-story units with maybe eight condos apiece. Some units could be near the construction (to the east, I'd guess), and some away; some near the beach, and some away. The big difference is the Kiahuna Plantation is made up of condo units with kitchen facilities. So, if you don't want to be eating out all the time, you might prefer the condo set-up. It abuts the Sheraton property, just to the east. I don't think it has a pool. The Sheraton does. We stayed at a small condo complex west of the Sheraton called the Alihi Lani. It might have more space than you would need. We have friends who've stayed at the Sheraton and the Kiahuna Plantation. All have been happy. Couples choose the hotels more than families, who don't want to have to be eating out so much. You can easily ask about the Sheraton, if you call there. The units at the Kiahuna are managed by different companies and it would be more difficult to know what the scoop is.
I dont' know about the Marriott. Believe it is on the east side of Kauai and has a great pool? Nor the Raddison.
Good luck. Do lots of searching! You won't go wrong.

sarah

Jay. Here's a web site with a map of the Kiahuna Plantation:
http://www.kiahunakauai.com/wsn4975.html
This is from an individual unit owner who is trying to rent out his unit. I found it by searching for Kiahuna Plantation map. You can also search for the Sheraton in Kauai and see that property. The Sheraton is a low-rise (maybe 2 story) which is nice - low key. Hope this is helpful. (I don't know much about the construction. I assume it is of the prime beachfront property devastated by Hurricane Iniki to the east of the Kiahuna Plantation. You might ask when you call the Sheraton. If this is the property, the Sheraton is farther from it than most of the Kiahuna Plantation.)

lori

Jay, I stayed at the Sheraton in Feb. with my husband and two kids. We really loved it. We stayed in an oceanfront
room overlooking the pool and beach. Our fourth floor room had a cathedral ceiling so it appeared to make the room look larger. As far as decor it was like any other hotel. It was clean and everything was in working order. I agree with the other poster who said to stay in the other wing overlooking the black lava. That area appeared to be quieter. Actually, after dark the whole resort was quiet. I think the Sheraton would be just fine as long as you don't mind other people being around. I guess it just depends on what your definition of a honeymoon is.

We have some awesome sunset pictures from the resort grounds. The restaurant
is overlooking the ocean. We only ate there for breakfast which was okay so I can't really comment on the dinners.

Great view of the ocean from the pool and beach bar. The beach was very nice and had just enough wave action to do a little boggie boarding.

While we were there we looked at almost all of the beach properties from the Sheraton on Poipu beach all the way to the Hyatt at Shipwreck Beach. For us the Sheraton location won hands down.

Kiahuna looked fine but there is construction going on next door at the new Marriott timeshares. We ate dinner at Dukes at the Marriot in Lihue which was very good. That area was much busier than the Sheraton and Kiahuna.

Kauai is so beautiful. Good luck and have a great honeymoon.

Robert

We just returned from a two week stay at the Kiahuna Plantation - we had a Royal Garden View (no ocean views available)situated on the East side of the property and we could hear some construction noise during the weekday but not enough to cause any annoyance. We also stayed at Kiahuna Plantation Resort in Jan 2001 in an oceanview unit (#159) an excellent unit and well situated. A great beach at the Plantation. If you want some place with lots of privacy and also have the capability to cook breakfast/lunch, etc. I would highly recommend this facility. Allthough we didn't inspect any of the rooms, we did visit the Sheraton, it is a lovely hotel BUT it is a HOTEL. It all depends what you prefer. The Beach at the Marriott can't compare with those at Poipu. I wouldn't stay at the Marriott.

zachary

Stayed at the Sheraton last summer. It is very nice, BUT, I wouldn't stay anywhere but ocean front. The garden view rooms are in a section of "wings" across the street. But again, very pretty.