Megha A 10/04/2018

Stop here for a great view of the crater (no glow/lava flow now), check out the gift shop and thats pretty much it. Restaurant was closed when we went in early October. You could get a cup of coffee but not much else to do/see here.

daveW6414PP (West Berlin, New Jersey) 08/19/2018

Sleeping Next to a volcano we could see the red glow all night out our window ...we traveled through the areas now cut off or covered with lava 2018 I am happy we went when we did. We could not go into some of the areas because of the gases were too strong

RGaitherHI (Pahoa, Hawaii) 08/15/2018

My husband and I loved a Saturday evening out to include an early dinner at Volcano House's Rim Restaurant, and then a short drive to the Jaggar Museum. The food and the service at the restaurant have been excellent. Unfortunately, the hotel and restaurant have been closed since the Kilauea eruption in May - August 2018. While the facility is still standing, it's unknown when the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, where Volcano House is located, will reopen.

JPDMR (San Francisco, California) 07/19/2018

This was a great splurge to be near the volcano for a couple of nights. I'm not sure what's going on now, but the feeling of being so close to the crater was incomparable. Dinner at the restaurant is a must, with the light-off show. Again, this was before the recent eruptions. Hopefully, someday it will go back to how it was, as it was a memorable stay.

judith l (Westminster, Colorado) 07/08/2018

I am sure that this review is no longer worth much as so much as changed since the eruption has changed the landscape considerably. We walked and visited and appreciated being on the Rim of the Crater. This year, we look at that and say- right there- we were right there!

Janie4359 (Round Rock, Texas) 09/26/2018

This is a lovely, gated community and the Aston management property employees were extremely friendly and helpful. Hailey was very nice and helpful with our check-in process. There's even a free movie rental box in their office to take some movies to your unit. We got lucky and were placed in a Villa (#18). Villas are grouped 4 together; 2 upstairs units and 2 main level. We scored an upstairs villa that had nice furnishings. Since these are privately owned properties, each unit will be different. The villas have a carport for one car for each villa. 2 separate carports for the building of 4 villas. If you can be lucky enough to get placed in a villa, you will have an ocean view overlooking the golf course. The lanai was very large with a table for 6, a couch and even had access from the Master bedroom as well as the 2nd bedroom. Each night we were treated to a beautiful sunset. This was a 2 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath condo. The extra 1/2 bath came in real handy with 4 of us getting ready. Both bathrooms were large with the master having a large, 2 headed shower and the other bathroom having a garden tub and lovely shower. Both bathrooms were double vanities. There's a safe in the master closet. You are close the the Kings Shops and Queens Marketplace as well as the Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. The only minor issue was some pesky sugar ants which the management company were quick to come and spray. Central air so it was very comfortable. We will definitely return here on our next visit.

Redoak1977 (Jamestown, Pennsylvania) 09/16/2018

We spent a week at the Shores. It was clean, roomy, and comfortable. A wonderful condo with beautiful grounds. The staff was very helpfull and friendly. If you are going to be on the Big Island, I highly recommend staying at the Shores.

vegewalk (Santee, California) 07/22/2018

Our two bedroom condo was overlooking the golf course. It was way bigger than I imagined. We booked through Costco and feel like we really got our money's worth. Having a washer and dryer in unit saved us from bring more luggage. It was clean, service was great for check-in and check-out. We chose not to get daily maid service. We used the condo as a launching pad for most of our adventures driving around to other places, so we didn't do much on property. When we needed to stay in and relax the condo definitely suited our needs.

John H (Fullerton, California) 07/14/2018

The units are very nice, AC is good, and lanai is very nice. Units are spacious. The pool is very nice, clean, and has a range of depth from 3-5, but not much 3 feet. Little kids will need floaties. Hot tub is nice although the jets are not very strong. In July the place felt deserted; might be due to weather (90), volcano, etc. The area is very touristy and pricey. It's about 0.5 miles to rocky shore and 1 mile to sandier A-bay. The grounds feel safe and are green, but everything is spaced out (ie, need a car to get around comfortably), and it feels 100% tourists. If you want to mingle with locals, this is most definitely not the place.

familytravellerz (Victoria, Canada) 04/29/2018

We had a two bedroom condo that we booked through VRBO so we did have any interactions with the Aston staff. The condo was spacious (with the exception of the outdated and cramped kitchen) and comfortable with a large lanai and its own BBQ. The Shores is a beautiful complex in a good location. The grounds and common areas were well maintained. Pool was good. The fitness room is small but very clean and well enough equipped. The resort seemed to have a lot of full time residents.

Gerald R (Oakland, California) 08/19/2018

Prior to this past May I've never been to Hawaii. Last February my family and I booked our trip to Hawaii to attend my nephew's high school graduation in May. We planned to stay for five days at the Big Island. We were going to stay at Royal Kona Resort through a family discount. However two weeks prior to my Hawaii trip we ended up not getting the reservation. Desperately at the eleventh hour on Friday before Cinco de Mayo my cousin's girlfriend booked this place. Even though we were about 45 minutes away from our original destination to stay we had no choice but to book the reservation at this place as everything else was booked. Where you stay affects your itinerary. By staying here I had to change my itinerary. If things don't go as you plan you have to make the most of it. Even though I wasn't able to stay at Royal Kona Resort there were some benefits of staying here. First this place is about 2 minute drive away from Queens Market Place, which not only was the pickup destination for the Kohala Waterfall Tour but also there was grocery place Island Gourmet Markets and Starbucks that serves Kona Coffee, which you can't find at any Starbucks on the mainland. Second unlike the busy resorts full of tourists this place is separated from all the noise because you're staying at a condo. Third this condo is very safe as you don't have to worry about theft as this a gated facility. The house we stayed at was a two-story with 3 three bedrooms. In this facility there is a tennis court and swimming pool. During my 5-day stay here on the last week of May I had a relaxing, quiet time here. There are drawbacks staying here. First unlike the resorts that are situated next to a beach this condo isn't close to a beach that is walking distance. Second is this condo is more expensive than a resort. Third and the most important is you are responsible for cleanup through the usage of the kitchen and bathroom. By staying at a resort you don't have to worry about the cleanup. I'll be honest my rating had to do by not staying at a hotel and ended up by staying here at the last minute. This place isn't for everyone. If you're with family I believe a resort would be more beneficial. However if you plan to have a bachelor or bachelorette party this place would be more useful and convenient than staying at a resort. At the end it all depends on you where to stay.

tarajog (Visakhapatnam, India) 06/18/2018

Great Beach services. It supplies all snorkeling gear, beach gear and chairs. It provides super market just out side the villa area called Queens market. Accommodation is very nice with scenic view, clean and neat. Tennis court and swimming pool facility is available. There is Beach next to it called Waikoloa.

Buttons560 (Beaverton, OR) 06/13/2018

We have stayed in several condos in the Waikoloa area but we thought we would stay somewhere new. It was very nice. Where we had to check in at the Queens shopping center was quite a ways from the actual condos. The staff was very helpful and friendly, especially Emmie. Every time we interacted with her, she was so willing to help us with anything we needed. You had to go into Aston's office to get extra coffee, shampoo, soaps, detergent , etc.. which was kind of a pain. The condo itself was very nice, parking was kind of an issue. Not a lot of spaces for people that rent in the facility, I think it was more owner occupied. The swimming pool area was very slippery and dangerous when wet. I saw several little kids falling down and the edge of the pool was very sharp, saw a man cut his foot. All in all it was a nice place to stay.

snowseekerWA (washington) 04/24/2018

We made our reservation through Air B and B and a group called Resortica. This is the same property, but possibly different units than those available through Aston, but it's the same overall development/neighborhood/property. Wiakoloa village is a great place to stay and this condo complex was perfect for the price, location, and amenities. The unit itself is a well designed townhome with minimal shared walls, was spacious and very comfortable. The bed arrangements were perfect for our family (two singles for the kids, a queen for grandma, and a king for mom and dad), the kitchen/dining area was well stocked and had more than ample space, and the living room with very tall ceilings had a great feel to it. There was a HUGE grass/green space out the back sliding doors, which was perfect for the kids to let themselves out and play. The appliances were new and efficient making it as easy as being home to get the dishes and laundry done. The only thing I would change if I were building it myself would be to increase the outdoor patio space. Also the owners/managers go out of their way to say you get a "starter" amount of laundry detergent/dish soap etc... We were very pleasantly surprised to find enough supplies (garbage bags, soap/detergent, shampoo, etc...) to probably last a month. Lastly, it was really great to have a nice collection of beach chairs, beach umbrella(s), boogie boards, tennis equipment, some sand toys, and towels galore. All this stuff is really hard to travel with and we were very happy to have it in Hawaii waiting for us without having to spend a bunch of money to gear up on arrival. They even had some basic cooking things like oils (vegetable and peanut), salt, pepper, balsamic, and a few other things. The kitchen supplies, pots/pans, dishes, were better and more numerous than anything we have at home. This particular unit was nice in that it was across the street from one of the pools. The pool was also wonderful. It was warm, but refreshing. It was really fun to swim under the stars without being too cold. The hot tub was large and accommodating. The grills around the pool made making a poolside lunch/dinner easy and fun. My wife enjoyed the work out facilities and there are many paths and lots of space in the roadways for running/biking and kid play. Having the pass to the Hilton was the icing on the cake. While it's a bit of an outing/effort to navigate the resort because it's so big, it is a wonderful perk to have. We had one day where it was too windy to be on the beach and we were able to retreat to the Hilton for more fun in the sun instead of feeling like we had to retire to the room or condo pool. It's a very easy to walk there from the rental, however, with two younger kids and LOTS of pool and sand toys it was only practical to drive. The kids (ages 3 and 6) did scooter with me to the Hilton while my wife drove and we met up in the parking lot to gear up. It's also easy and fun to head over to the Hilton for their luau and its nice to have free parking for the event, too. In the end I would highly suggest the Wiakoloa Village Resortica as an excellent location and we really enjoyed this rental as an outstanding place for your Hawaiian adventures.

loveDCA (Seattle, Washington) 03/18/2018

Our AirBnB was part of the Colony Villas in Waikoloa and was perfect for an adult family of four. Our unit was a two story townhome with two bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms. The community is quiet and well-maintained with one outdoor dedicated parking spot and a garage. The fitness center and pool aren’t open 24 hrs but they are both well-maintained. In terms of location, it’s an easy walk to the historical lava falls that are inscribed by early indigenous Hawaiians and the nearby resorts.

pickartm (Cedarburg, Wisconsin) 10/19/2018

Fully enjoyed our stay and location. Amenities were as expected, good price, and view was fantastic. Liked the location in a more residential area. Kids really enjoyed the pool. Mom and dad enjoyed listening to the surf. Can’t wait to go again.

JustineFW (Christchurch, New Zealand) 10/18/2018

Absolutely stunning. Room exceeded expectations- beds were super comfy and slept all of us. (last hotel was lacking beds) the room was a great size - decent living and dining room, lovely balcony, two nice rooms with two bathrooms. a little laundry and a full kitchen. This has been the best accommodation so far. I wish we could stay longer. The pool was great - warm and a good size. I would stay again if I could. The only thing this far that was frustrating is the concierge who could not help with any questions we had about transportation on the island.

mini_d51 (Sydney, Australia) 09/20/2018

Before making our booking at this resort I had read some mixed reviews but our apartment (309) really exceeded our expectations. For two people it was incredibly spacious: a huge bedroom with TV and ensuite, another bathroom, full kitchen, combined lounge/dining and big balcony that had a beautiful view over the ocean. It also had very convenient underground parking and the grounds of the resort were absolutely beautiful and meticulously maintained. An added bonus was that we were given a card to access free DVDs from the machine near reception - nice to watch after dinner at night. The staff were very friendly and helpful. From our point of view there was nothing that we didn’t like. If you are thinking of staying here please note that you will need a car as there are no restaurants or supermarkets within reasonable walking distance.

harrodsfan (Newport Beach CA) 09/02/2018

Aston kona by the sea We totally enjoyed our 6 night stay at this ocean front property. The property is immaculately groomed with beautiful gardens and a welcoming staff. Our two bedroom ocean front room had a master bedroom with a full ocean view. Stunning. The balcony was large and had a table to seat 4 and one lounge chair. We spent many hours there enjoying the spectacular view. The kitchen was smallish but well appointed. The only thing missing was placemats. The decor was bright Hawaiian and in good shape. I loved the colors as it was the same as my home. The pool was a perfect temperature and it was never hard to find a place to lounge on the comfortable lounge chairs. There was a Beach front area with sand and loungers too. This property has no beach as the shore is very rocky here and not really safe for swimming. But Two nice beaches are ten minutes by car. The only restaurant in walking distance is Ajs barbeque which is number one rated by trip advisor. It is located in a craft filled shopping area called Ali gardens. Tons of shops and restaurants are less than ten minutes away by car.

tkjoseph (Chicago, Illinois) 09/01/2018

Enjoyed our 4 days stay there we had a spacious Ocean Front/Facing room which was comfortably furnished. Big enough for family of Four with two teenagers. - I was considering a two bedroom. But a single bedroom with 2 baths was very comfortable. Receptionist were very friendly and gave us good information of the lay of the place and surroundings when we checked in. There aren’t many places to eat nearby. So will need a car Of course with a full kitchen not a problem if you plan. I would definitely stay there provided you get a ocean front. The ocean is close by so it is great to hear the crashing of the waves in the morning. Place is well maintained!! We got this place as a selection from Costco package.