Koa Kea Hotel & Resort

Brand new, upscale, contemporary, stylish boutique hotel on the beach in the heart of Poipu. My wife and I stayed eight days, and I would not change one thing. If you want a very big, busy hotel that caters to family activities, try the Sheraton or Hyatt. But if quiet, sleek, and stylish is what you're after, this is your hotel. Restaurant and bar are fantastic; the staff was perfect; and the rooms are beautiful (the bed was the best I've ever slept in). The pool area is ideal--very quiet and private, but roomy with a sophisticated, yet casual feel. In sum, it's one of the best hotels I've ever stayed in, and I've stayed in 5-star hotels many times.

We just stayed at KoaKea for a week and had a very relaxing time there. It is definitely not the place for someone who wants a "total resort" experience, but that is not what we wanted. The rooms are spacious and very nicely appointed--the bed was one of the most comfortable I have ever experienced. The bathroom was large and had a great shower. They are located adjacent to a beach (which is shared with other properties). The waters are more suited, however, to surfers and possibly snorklers rather than casual swimmers and bathers (but this is also true of many beaches on Kauai). Nonetheless the sunsets are beautiful from this point. The hotel has a very nice pool area and beautiful (albeit small) lobby. The gym was one the best I have used at any hotel--large or small. They have one main restaurant called Red Salt--we ate there twice, but I have to admit that I was very disappointed with the selections on the menu and the quality of the food. It was also extraordinarily expensive compared to other comparable restaurants on that part of Kauai. Room service also had a limited menu, but the selections were more interesting, tasted better and were more appropriately priced. They have Nespresso coffee machines in the rooms, but they only provide six pods of coffee (three regular, three decaf) for the entire stay. Housekeeping (and front desk staff) referred us to the "boutique" where we had to purchase a box of ten for a little over ten dollars. Despite my criticisms, this is a very nice hotel and we enjoyed staying there a great deal.