Kona Reef, A Raintree Vacation Club Resort

My wife and I are just completing our 5th stay at the Kona Reef. This is an older resort property with units in the timeshare - Vrbo pools. We first discovered this property while browsing the RCI catalog. We were hooked after our first stay. This property is just feet from the ocean and adjacent to a family beach. Be advised that not all units have a beach / ocean view. Some units are updated while others are showing there are. That said, nothing else in the Kailua-Kona area can compare in location and value.

I have rented a condo at Kona Reef Resorts 6 times, having stayed in units - D8, D25, D7 and A11 - all booked through VRBO. Kona Reef Resorts consists of individually owned condos. I should mention Kona Reef Resort has its own in-house management office that rents some units on behalf of owners and I believe it’s called, Raintree Property Management. I have not rented this way as I was told I could not book a specific unit and I am not gutsy enough to get a random condo. It is important to remember that each unit is individually owned, decorated, clean and updated differently. Best part is you have a picturesque view of the Hawaiian Sunsets! Here is my breakdown of our visits. D-8 is a 2 bed/2bath ground floor unit in the D building.(far right side facing the ocean) Being 30 feet to the ocean from the very large sliding glass door is dreamy but at times I felt like living in a fishbowl as everyone walking past it feels the need to look inside. The unit is light, bright and airy and parking is just outside the door. The beds are comfy and it is updated. We really enjoyed staying at this unit twice when Ken and Dia managed it. When it changed to a new management company (Madeline) it was an epic fail. One broken television, one broken cable box, two broken ceiling fans, water heater going out, broken modem, all but two of the indoor lights were burnt out including the porch light and more. Imagine our surprise when Madeline commented that the previous renters complained of the very same issues and she thought the handyman fixed it all before our arrival. I have to say her response was quick, but it did take the handyman 2 days to show up and he had a ton of excuses. Knowing what it was like on our two previous stays in the same unit only heightened our disappointment. Upon returning home, I sent her a letter of all the items needing repair. Rereading it made me feel that a discount should have been offered (I didn't ask) because what I rented was not what I got. Months later, I was shocked reading reviews left by later guests complaining of the very same issues we experienced that were not fixed. It looks like when the negative reviews pile up, they are deleted or its relisted as a brand-new listing. Such a shame! If the owner is reading this - please bring back Ken and Dia and hire a new handyman who is not your best friend. Or maybe it’s the new owner and Madeline is doing the best she can. (This unit use to be for sale and we were considering buying it) So, I don't know who to really blame for dropping the ball. I really missed it the way it was. D7 is a 1bed/1bath ground floor unit. Strong new air conditioner and is completely upgraded and beautifully decorated. This unit is a WINNER! Ken and Dia are fabulous managers. We would book again in a heartbeat. Parking is right outside the door. Not a single complaint. Just pure Hawaiian bliss. A11 is a 2bed/2bath- a 2nd floor unit on the opposite side of the complex (Far left side facing ocean). This unit SHOULD BE CLOSED to any future rentals until the owner updates and repairs the unit. Where do I start...the air conditioner in front is worthless but maybe it’s because the louver glass window doesn't shut in the kitchen. We had condensation dripping from the wood blinds. I have pics for proof! There was so much condensation that the carpet was wet upon our arrival and we wrongly assumed it had been recently shampooed since everything was sitting on those plastic blocks after carpet cleaning. - WRONG! The sofa is a partial set and when you sit down it either tips up or you cave to almost the floor. Coffee maker was broken. The portable air conditioners in the bedrooms were useless with the louvered window stuck open in the front room plus they are NOISY. Pillows were like 99 cent store pillows with no covers for sanitary cleanliness. When you sat on the end of the master bed, it tipped up. The beach chairs were broken. And the biggest issue was the sliding glass door that has the track broken and you must lift the huge heavy door to slide it open causing a huge thump to the unit below. (I don’t think an elderly person could life it up). This unit overlooks the beautiful public beach. Sadly, we witnessed the homeless doing drugs, selling drugs and sleeping in hammocks and then came the yoga classes. Every day after school, the local teenagers hung out below our unit on the Kona Reef property leaving trash and cussing up a storm. The parking lot was a bit further away compared to the D building, but it does have its own lot and doesn't fill up like the other. The only redeeming thing we liked was it being on the 2nd floor because no one could peer in our windows. Ken and Dia are excellent property managers and they are aware of the problems, but they can’t make the owner do the repairs. People need to stop booking this unit so the owner will be hard pressed to do the repairs. As of June 2018, nothing was repaired. Raintree knows of the complaints as well but they cant make the owner do the repairs either. I will not be back to this unit ever! Frankly, I am surprised Ken and Dia agree to manage this property. D25 is a 2 bed/2bath unit. 3rd floor up. It is a clean, updated end unit. Light and bright. Mahi is the manager and was exceptional! Great communication! It was updated, and we had a very pleasant stay. Personally, I liked being on the 3rd floor but my other half liked the ground level best. I liked everything about this unit from the location, the property manager, and the furnishings. I only had one very silly complaint. The ONE trash bag left for an entire week. I just think that if I’m spending $2,550 for my stay of a week, why not leave a box of trash bags instead of one “starter” trash bag. But none-the-less I would book in a heartbeat! I just now know for our next booking. Lastly, the floors at Kona Reef are crazy. No matter what floor you're on, the elevator stops at half level meaning you either must climb up or down 5 steps. The ground unit is 5 steps down. The Pool is nice and people do enjoy the BBQs by the pool. There is a weekly wine party there. I really like Kona Reef and I think it offers the biggest bang for the buck….that is - if you’re in a nice unit. But what makes it even more delightful is the 10-minute walk to all the shops, restaurants, historical monuments and farmers market. (free parking is just beyond the pay lot - if you drive) There is so much to do on this island and it seems Kona Reef is centrally located. The Warf for the day excursions is within walking distance. Don the Beachcomber with its famous Mai Tai's is just about "next door". We rented snorkel gear at Snorkel Bobs (I don't like to pack it) The spinning dolphins will dazzle you every morning around 9am as they head back to Captain Cooks Bay. Most units have binoculars. Go canoeing with Bayside Adventures and swim with the dolphins there - Manini Beach near it is a worthwhile stop.. The Beach Park has excellent snorkeling with turtles but we also found giant turtles resting at the Alopio Fish Trap pond (Park on kealakehe Pkwy -in the Kona Sailing Club-parking lot and walk the path near the Honokohau National Park). We also used Dolphin Journeys for a small group dolphin excursion- excellent!. One thing we did notice is that in June, there are tradewinds so outdoor eating is pleasant . When we go in November, it is hot, stuffy and practically no wind but there are no crowds either! PS- There use to be a roaming guard during the night at Kona Reef. I don’t know if this has been discontinued. One morning we had a homeless person sleeping on our porch chaise lounge. I think I surprised him as much as he surprised me. He left quickly. Overall- if you have a good unit, the Kona Reef Resorts is an excellent choice!

We loved this resort. We were right on the ocean on the main floor. We saw a whole bunch of dolphins right outside our window and a cruise ship on another day. The Property Manager and the Maintenance staff were wonderful. Anything that needed to be done was done immediately even before we could make it back to our room. The room was clean and had everything I needed. I cooked quite a bit when we were there and had no problems finding what I needed. We were walking distance from Kona so you can go to the shops and the farmer's market. It was nice to hear the ocean right outside your door and the sunsets were amazing. I would definitely recommend staying here and would stay here again.

The condo was very nice. It was clean and the location was perfect. We had a room that faced a small beach so our patio had an ocean view even though it was not considered an "ocean view". I loved sitting out there drinking my coffee in the morning. The reason I did not give it a five star rating was because the bed was worn out. I had a "butt dip" that was at least 6 - 8 inches deep!!! Also, the sofa was worn out and the cushions kept sliding almost off but we did not spend that much time in the room so it did not matter. The grounds were well kept and the staff was friendly. I would recommend this place but make sure the bed is ok when you first check in.

The location of the resort was ideal being right at Ocean front. The resort activities and the maintenance staff were extremely helpful . The problem was on arrival because your directions did not give complete instructions. The resort needs to be sensitive To the fact that many people arrive after dark. The instructions that were left for late arrivals were in accurate. There was no one available at the resort

Book this, especially the upper level rooms with an ocean view/breeze! You’re walking distance from ‘downtown’ Kailua-Kona, it feels safe and welcoming, it’s clean, there’s a real kitchen and laundry facilities in each unit, AND there’s a hot tub!

We stayed in unit A5 at the Kona Reef from Feb 22-Mar 4 2019 and it was nothing short of spectacular! We love Hawaii and the Big Island is one of our favourite islands for many reasons. The Kona Reef resort fit our needs perfectly: Walking distance to the shops and restaurants in Kailua, great pool and BBQ area right on the water, and friendly folks of all ages. The only complaint I have about the resort itself is that kids under 12 can't use the hot tub. I had a few battles with my 5 and 2 year-old and it's enough to make us look elsewhere next time. A5 has been nicely renovated. The ground floor location right on the water is spectacular and we loved listening to the waves. We chose ground floor with the hopes that our young kids could run around on the lawn out front but there is a wall at the edge of the patio which impedes the view and restricts playing for the kids. It helps with privacy though which is good so there are pros and cons to this. Although the unit has been renovated, some of the design choices were a bit funky, such as the toilet being in the same room as the shower with only a shower curtain separating the two, and the sink being outside of the bathroom. Some functionality is lost due to this but it wasn't enough to impact us. What did impact us is the lack of useful items that could have improved our experience: No kettle, condiments, boogie boards, sand toys, umbrellas, beach mats, coolers, cleaning products, etc... Some of this stuff was available at the office for rent or to borrow but we had to return it each day. There was also no closets in the entire unit, just a wardrobe in the bedroom, so there was almost zero storage space. This is fine for a couple but with two young children it led to lots of clutter! The booking process was easy, however we had a few communication issues with Ken and Dia Peters, who we thought were the owners of the condo but it turns out they are more of a management company, which we found misleading. We didn't receive check-in instructions from them so when our flight landed at midnight it was up to us to figure out how to use the after hours phone to check in. We also couldn't find a broom/vacuum and they suggested we pay for extra cleaning or ask to borrow one from the cleaning staff. It turns out they were tucked in behind the wardrobe but we didn't find them until the last day! In summary, we loved our stay but there is room for improvement. I'd recommend this unit for a couple.

The view from our room was of a brick wall; it felt like we were staying in a cave. Check in process was horrible, maid never came; so no new towels. We moved to an alternate hotel for the last 3 days of our stay. Couch was very uncomfortable; would have been better if the bed was a king.

We booked a condo (F-26) at Kona Reef through VRBO, and couldn't have been happier with our stay. The one-bedroom unit was perfect for our family of three, and we took full advantage of the amenities available to us throughout our stay. We stocked up on groceries and had toast, fruit, cereal, and tea each morning. The bathroom had plenty of hot water, and our daughter reporting good sleeping on the pull-out sofa bed. We used the washer and dryer throughout our stay for beachwear and towels. We enjoyed the view from the 3rd floor deck, and witnessed some amazing sunsets, which never get old in Hawaii. We had a nice view of the cruise ships that came into port, and knowing when they arrived gave us a heads up on when to expect additional tourist congestion in the downtown shopping area. Although hot while we were there, we made due without using the air conditioning by opening windows and allowing a breeze to circulate through the condo at night, knowing how expensive power is on the island. The condo is well-situated for an easy walk to several restaurants in Kailua-Kona and the main tourist shopping district, along with easy access to Alii Drive and points south. It was an ideal location for us and we would happily return to stay at this condo again.