Christmas on the Big Island

[Gary]

This is a pretty well traveled group, so thought I'd query the populace for some advice.

Planning a trip to the Big Island of Hawaii, maybe mid-December or January (flexible on timing). Did visit a while back in Hilo, loved the area but this time shooting for the Kona Coast as we've not been there. Perhaps a week or so. Not a fan of the hustle and bustle of the big hotel/resorts, prefer a smaller house or maybe even a condo/small hotel in a quiet area. Would be four of us, so two bedrooms would be fine. Don't need marble showers and gourmet kitchens, just comfortable and quiet. Beach within walking distance is a big plus. Will have a car for transportation, so away from town isn't a problem. Browsing through Air B&B and VBRO indicates lots of choices, but personal experience is far better than pictures and write-ups on the internet.

Realize this won't be cheap, generally you get what you pay for... Any particular location strike y'all as a quiet get away type place?

 

[catmandu]

Can’t help you on the base camp (visited friends), but my favorite ‘away from the crowds’ things to do during our trip there were hiking the Pololu trails and going to South Point (stop at Hawaii’s Local Buzz on the way, you’ll gain five pounds given their generous sample policy!).

 

[Ghery]

For a "as little as possible" trip to Hawaii, we go to Kauai, not the big island. We're there now (and will be for another almost 4 weeks). The place we stay is right on the water. Full kitchen in each unit, along with laundry facilities. And if we don't feel like cooking there are plenty of places to eat within easy walking distance, even more if we are willing to drive a mile or so. The only downside is I haven't found a place to rent a plane on this island. I have on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii.