North Shore of Kauai VRBO question
 

Are any of you familiar with VRBO # 37829 Anini Beach Hideaway?

Link: http://www.vrbo.com/37829

I'm trying to find this on Google Earth, and I don't think the address is correct on Google Earth. Google Earth does not put this place near Anini Beach.

My husband, myself, and five year old daughter are looking for a rental on the North Shore of Kauai for the end of May, 2010. We don't need a big place (1 bedroom with fold out couch in the living room is fine), but we want a small kitchen and grill. We would also like to be within walking distance to a beach where our five year old can play. It seems like Anini Beach is a good beach for younger children?

I've been looking in the Hanalei and Princeville area. We'd like to keep costs around $1,000/week for lodging. Do any of you have any other suggestions on places to stay near mostly calm beaches (depending on weather and surf, of course)?

Thanks for your help!

I believe this is on the section of Anini before the polo field. There are periodic beach access paths that run between the houses from the road to the beach. The beach on this portion is narrow, but nice as there are very few people. The water here is very shallow as the rocks and coral are close to the surface. We snorkeled here and there were lots of little fish.

$1000 a week in Hanalei is not going to get you much, but there are some places in this price range. Here are a few links to places under or around $1000 a week. I have used napali properties. They have some rentals in hanalei in your price range. http://www.napaliprop.com/vr1.html

http://www.vrbo.com/216633
http://www.vrbo.com/26321
http://www.vrbo.com/162722

I have seen listings at Sea Lodge condos in Princeville in your price range as well.

Check with kauaivacationrentals.com and look at their Princeville offerings. Beach access in Princeville can be a bit tricky and not as accessible as Hanalei or Anini.

Thanks, Iamq. I'll look at your suggestions. We just started looking at the North Shore of Kauai, and I think you're right, $1,000 might be kind of low for the area. We don't need a lot of space, but I might have to readjust the price. :)

Anini is by far my favorite beach on Kauai, and a great option with a 5 year old due to the almost-always calm, shallow water. I've researched and considered rentals there, but never found anything with the features I want at a price I want to pay. My compromise is to rent a nice condo in Princeville and drive the short distance to Anini Beach every day. I like to park at the beach park where there are picnic tables, a nice grassy area, and easy access to the sand. I usually stay for 2-3 hours. For me, this is the best of both worlds since I also have access to a cool, refreshing pool at the condo. I have never attemped the steep trails to the Princeville beaches as I am afraid I would never make it back up!

I've also rented in Hanalei. That trip was in May a few years ago. We thought we would swim daily at Hanalei Bay Pavilion Park, which was walking distance to our rental house. There were riptides and red flags all week. It was a fabulous house, but no pool. Never again.

My most recent trip to the North Shore was this April.
We rented a lovely 2 bedroom condo for a week @ $1250. We mostly used the pool in the late afternoon or early evening. Each time small kids were there having a wonderful time.

Thanks, Barbara. I've been looking at Hanalei and thinking that may be a good location for us because it would be close to the shops and the bay might be good for swimming and playing in the sand. However, it doesn't sound like it was a very good location for you when you went in May.

Hmmm....

Hi kureiff

We've been to Kauai with our two young children twice and stayed in a Princeville condo both times. As Barbara5353 said, a pool would be a really great feature for a 5 year old. We always head out to the beach early in the morning and spend a few hours. Then back to the condo for lunch and pool time. Then back to the beach if we desired.

BTW, Princeville has a nice playground with swings, slides, etc.

Our last visit was late May 2008, and we played at Hanalei Beach every day. The water was calm the entire time.

Happy planning.

One more thing - we definitely drove to the beaches. We did not walk to any of the PV beaches.

Our condo was in the Nihilani complex. No ocean views. You may also want to check out Plantation at Princeville. Both are on VRBO. I know there are nicer condo's w/ great views, but I'm suggesting based on having a 5 year old in tow. These complexes have central air conditioning. There were no trade winds during part of our last visit, and it would have been really hot w/o a/c.

Thanks, jcb. I'll check them out. I'm not too concerned about having a pool. We've been once to the Big Island and once to Maui, and we've never used the pool. But I do want to be close to a sandy beach. We took our daughter to Maui a couple years ago, and as long as she had a big pile of sand to dig in, she was happy. :)

I'll keep looking. Hanalei is very appealing. Thank you all so much for your suggestions. Keep 'em coming. :)

Have any of you stayed in these vrbo houses?

This one is near the elementary school in Hanalei:

http://www.vrbo.com/global/siteFrame.aspx?l=26321&k=1

I'm waiting on an email from the owner to find out the location of this house:

http://www.vrbo.com/18278

Thank you!

Will she be more interested in swimming in a pool now that she is a little older? A few years ago she was just 3 yes?

My dh stayed at Princeville many moons ago when his son was a toddler and he was a single Dad... he said it was fine with a toddler but he prefers to be able to put his toes in the sand from where he is staying in general and was bummed about the big cliffs etc.

I love the North Shore of Kauai Kureiff - what a great trip! I have tried to rent a house there a few times and it was tough for me to find what I wanted within my budget.

Happy hunting :)

We stayed at Anini Beach cottages as have several of our friends a few times. Check them out. We stayed at Lily Pond and others have stayed at Mango. You will love Kauai.

I don't think the pool will be a big issue. She swims a couple times a week at our gym's pool. Seeing the ocean and being near the ocean is such a novelty for us, too. When we were in Maui, she thought the ocean was a giant river. :)

I'm getting excited for this trip! Thanks for your recommendations, Pam!

Kureiff - if she doesn't have the pool it won't be a big deal... meaning if you stay in a house without one - it is what it is. :)

Our children did not miss not having a pool when we stayed on the N shore of Oahu and I surely do not miss not having one - I like the Ocean when I go to Hawaii - not resort pools but that is me. I was just thinking at 5 she might like it :-).

Kauai is by far my favorite island and the N. shore of Kauai my favorite... I am no expert only know that it is magical. There is something in the water. I hope that it is calm enough and she can swim well enough to see the giant turtles... I felt like I was in finding Nemo :-D

I hope she'll be able to see the turtles, too. We put her on one of those view-finder boogie boards when we were in Maui, but she was a little too small and little too freaked out. So she missed all the fish and turtles. I have a hard time not smiling when I'm snorkeling and then all the water leaks into my snorkel. :D

There was a turtle very close to the shore at Anini Beach when we were there in April. It delighted kids and adults...all of whom were respectful of keeping a decent distance away. Magical!

Oh~and wait until the three of you see Tunnels Beach! It is absolutely magical. The water is so clear and it's a wonderful beach for kids.

Shhh...Pam! Tunnels is a dump...right?

kureiff, we stayed at the place at the second link. We thought the location was great. It is on Aku Road, which is the main atery from the highway to Weke Road. It is just back from the corner of Aku and Weke on a flag lot. We could walk to the beach in about 60 seconds. The owner lives on the second level and her rental is on the first floor. It is a large studio unit with a large, fully equipped kitchen. There is a bank of windows facing the mountains that give you a lovely view. It was a good deal for the cost, but I had a few issues with it. There is really no real functional outdoor deck area. There is a small entry deck with a lounge chair, but I like a place with a nice covered lanai and this did not have that. It got pretty warm in there in the afternoon as the afternoon sun hits the property full on. It cooled down eventually and the ceiling fans helped, but there is not a lot of shade on the side of the house that gets the afternoon sun. The other issue for me was that the bath and beach towels that were provided had seen way better days. We mentioned this to the owner and she said she would buy us new ones that day. We never got them, so we ended up buying some new beach towels on our own. The beach chairs had also seen better days and broke after one use. We bought new ones. It wasn't that big a deal, but I thought I'd mention my complaints. Would I stay there again? Maybe, just because the location was great, but I'd keep my expectations a little on the low side. email me at bquarre at yahoo dot com if you'd like any more information on the place.

The first one is on the mountain side of the highway, so it would be a little farther walk to the beach (5 minutes longer maybe), but closer to town. I don't know that area that well.

kureiff~The name of the house we stayed in is Lily Pad not Pond. I just checked and it is $195/noc. It is a single room so l'enfant would have to sleep on the sofa. It does have a lovely lanai so that could make for some alone time for ma & pa if need be. BUT~It is absolutely charming!!!Do yourselves a favor and find the American Playhouse (PBS) DVD called "Hawaii's Last Queeen". It's must see viewing.

Then..check back with all of fans of Kauai(despite the howling roosters) and we give you a list of must sees. Look for a book called "Hidden Kauai". It's a great resource.

the cottage also has a weber on the Lanai.

Pam, I'll check out Hawaii's Last Queen from the library, and I found the Lily Pad...thank you! It looks like there are two studios, and the price is very good. Thanks!

iamq, I'll send you an email. I emailed another owner who has a place on Aku Road owned by a Canadian surfer, but it was a bit too small for us. Thank you again for the detailed information!