Where to stay and dive in Kailua-Kona

[sea2sea]

:dazzler1:

My husband and I are headed to the Big Island the first week of July and want to get some good diving in.
Seems like most posts on the board suggest staying in Kailua-Kona rather than Kohala for the proximity to the boats/dive-ops.
Can anyone recommend a clean and modern place to stay in the area. Right now we don't have a particular preference re: condo versus hotel, but any advice is welcome.

Also curious on the dive-ops. Lots of good info on the board- it seems like there are some good reccs . I have more experience than my husband, and neither of us have gone diving in more than 8 months ( :frown: ), so we want to be sure to go with an op that is safe yet fun. Any advice?

 

[KidK9]

Jack's Dive Locker is pretty awesome. They go above and beyond what a great operator should provide!

 

[Wildcard]

Maybe thing about booking a scuba tune up class? I don't think there is a bad operator in Kona, just too much competition from good operators. Enjoy your visit! Aloha

 

[friscuba]

:dazzler1:

My husband and I are headed to the Big Island the first week of July and want to get some good diving in.
Seems like most posts on the board suggest staying in Kailua-Kona rather than Kohala for the proximity to the boats/dive-ops.
Can anyone recommend a clean and modern place to stay in the area. Right now we don't have a particular preference re: condo versus hotel, but any advice is welcome.

Also curious on the dive-ops. Lots of good info on the board- it seems like there are some good reccs . I have more experience than my husband, and neither of us have gone diving in more than 8 months ( :frown: ), so we want to be sure to go with an op that is safe yet fun. Any advice?

For clean and modern hotels... most of the hotels in Kona are roughly 25-30 years old or older. The Keauhou Outrigger (think that'w what it's being called these days, used to be an Outrigger Ohana but they dropped the Ohana name, think it was so they could raise the prices) was completely remodeled 4-5 years back and is a fairly nice midrange-lower upper end hotel. The Marriot (formerly the Kona Surf) has gone the full resort route and after remodeling and opening last fall, had it's official grand opening this last month, expect resort pricing.

There are too many condos to list. They'll probably give you your best bang for the buck. Check out VRBO.com, Cyberrentals.com, A-1vacations.com and others like them and you'll find tons of 1 and 2 bedroom apartments for rent in the Kailua area.

Hope this helps some,

 

[RonDawg]

I can't recommend any dive ops as I haven't dove on the Big Island, but in terms of reasonably-priced (for Hawaii) lodging I'd recommend the Kona Seaside Hotel.

http://www.konaseasidehotel.com/Kona_Seaside.aspx?HotelID=1

It's an older property (I'd guess the 1960's) but it's well kept and definitely not run-down. It's not a luxury hotel by any means, but if all you need is a nice, clean, safe place to sleep then it fits the bill perfectly.

The rooms are huge and they all have a balcony/lanai. They have both ceiling fans and real A/C, along with a fridge. Parking is free (unlike many Hawaii hotels) but can be a bit tight if you get to the hotel late. The hotel is walking distance (though a steep uphill) to a shopping center containing numerous shops and restaurants, and the property backs up to Ali'i Street which runs along the coast and has more shops and restaurants.

 

[mccabejc]

I agree with Ron on the Kona Seaside. I just stayed there in Feb., and while some reviews of the place are pretty bad, I found it just the opposite. Loved it. Inexpensive, right in the middle of everything, lots of shore diving sites close by, walking distance to Jack's Diving Locker, etc.

I vowed that when I return to Kona, I'm going to stay just across the street from the Seaside at King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel. It sits adjacent to the Kailua Pier, and right outside the back door of the Kona Beach Hotel is a nice small beach, which leads to a very nice, very easy dive site. I didn't get around to diving there, but reports are that it's great. Gear up in your room, take the elevator downstairs, out the backdoor and into the water. Sweet. Though I think you'll want to use a dive flag, since there are a lot of cruise ship tenders and sightseeing boats in the area.

By the way, here's a link to a webcam which is pointed at the Kailua Pier (scroll down, its the one on the right): http://www.konaweb.com/

As far as dive ops, we did mostly shore dives, which were great (though the dive shops don't like to talk about them), but www.wanna-dive-kona.com gave us a great manta ray night dive.

 

[bluemagoo]

I agree with Ron on the Kona Seaside. I just stayed there in Feb., and while some reviews of the place are pretty bad, I found it just the opposite. Loved it. Inexpensive, right in the middle of everything, lots of shore diving sites close by, walking distance to Jack's Diving Locker, etc.

I'll third the motion... The Seaside's old but it's clean, a deal, and hard to beat the location. The backside was the old Hukilau with a small pool (now cemented) which is cheaper but without the a/c and kitchenettes of the front high-rise. If you want more peace and quiet and a base further south, near Kealakekua/Captain Cook, consider the family-run Manago Hotel; ono-lichous homemade pork chops -- traffic can be a problem tho' especially when the schools let out. Steve mentioned the Keauhou which I also used a lot before it shutdown and got renovated -- the tidepools out back were one of the few places I've found that still had little glass-bodied opae (shrimp) that was great bait for small-kid-time bamboo fishing poles.