If I could leave ten stars for this place I would. from the get go, the staff here was wonderful…read moreand so welcoming. You can tell they put so much effort into the little touches and details of the cabin. We stayed in the skylight house, and were greeted every day with fresh fruits and pastries, fresh flowers, and the most dreamy and beautiful setting we have ever seen. Literally cannot recommend this place enough!

Stay here for an amazing experience! My husband booked this place for our honeymoon/vacation and I…read morecannot have been more happy to stay here. Wish we stayed here a little longer to enjoy the hot tub! Our host, Jenny, was very helpful and inviting. She gave us a tour of the grounds and provided some information about Volcano National Park. The sanctuary provides all the amenities you'll ever need: mini fridge, sink, bowls/plates, heater, utensils, TV, DVDs, books, plug ins, coffee maker, coffee grounds/tea, juice, milk, creamer, cream cheese and spreads for the baked goods, soap, dish wash scrub, etc. You name it, they have it. The bed was so comfortable, clean, and relaxing. I enjoyed the outside shower and hot tube! Enjoyed the nature all around us. The only downside was the WiFi connection. We were only able to get 1 bar inside the cottage. Our host was able to reset it in which worked great for awhile but returned to the same bar later that night. If we ever come back to Hawai'i, I would love to stay again!

We had a unique and wonderful experience at Volcano Village Lodge. The rooms are located in the…read moremiddle of a rainforest with floor-to-ceiling windows so you feel you're right in the middle of nature. The friendly and helpful staff made sure we had a great experience. Breakfast each morning was filling and delicious. They were even able to accommodate my dairy-free diet, which I really appreciated. If you're lucky, the moist and rich homemade brownies will also be available in the lobby. Just be sure to stock up before the office closes each day. We ordered picnic lunches from the lodge for our day hiking at Volcanoes National Park. While the sandwiches were average, the lunches included wine and an impressive number of snacks. The snacks lasted all day and we even had enough to bring some home on the plane. The property is only a 10-15 min drive to Volcanoes National Park making it easy to get there. One thing to note: the wifi was very unreliable during our stay. This could be a pro or con depending on your needs.

First question first: would we stay here again? Yes. It's a charming, quiet, unique place to…read morespend a few nights in a rain forest. The Volcano Village Lodge rates high on the cool factor. You get your own suite separated from the others and you're positioned up into the jungle in a glass room. The surroundings are quiet, and at night, even sort of magical as the frogs begin singing. Everything is wood and natural looking. You're at an elevation because of the volcano uplift so while there's no air conditioning, the place cools off nightly at night. There's no TV signal (though the room has a TV with DVDs) and there is a wifi signal, but it's spotty. You decide whether this is a plus or a minus. Personally, I find being insulated from modern digital interruption to be a plus, though I suppose that could be achieved anywhere by just turning things off - which I never do. The staff here are friendly, funny, and wonderful. A definite plus. The Volcano Village Lodge buildings themselves are a bit shopworn. They're clean, but just a little tired, I'd say. The place looks like it hasn't had a major reinvestment in a while, and the jungle dampness must be relentless on the wood. The "town" of Volcano has some rough spots. I refer to them as meth-houses, but I don't really know. There's a nearby sign installed by a property owner asking people not to dump pig guts on their property. I give it four stars out of five.

BE WARNED ABOUT THIS PROPERTY!!! We booked through Expedia and searched for units with a hot tub…read moreand this one came up. We booked, only to find that the hot tub wasn't working. We had no warning whatsoever and the owners never reached out to tell us. We NEVER would have booked this if we knew the hot tub wasn't working. The owners did NOTHING to offer restitution for the problem. If you book be sure to check to make sure everything is working properly or you will be sadly disappointed on how they handle the problem!

What a lovely place with gracious hosts. I reserved the two rooms for my father in laws birthday…read moreand Father's Day in March. Then in May the volcano starting erupting and the park closed and hearing about the air quality and earthquakes and potential explosions put a pall on our plans. Chris emailed us the entire time giving us updates and options and really just so responsive. We decided to go anyways and glad that we did. We reserved both rooms and really it felt like we were the home owners bc we had the place to ourselves. The rooms are beautiful and the landscaping amazing with beautiful orchids and plants everywhere. Each room has a fireplace that we used every night and again in the morning. We had so much food for snacks and breakfast and it was actually better than going somewhere they serve breakfast daily bc it was at our own pace. Since my in laws have dietary restrictions it was better to have cereal and instant oats and yogurt and fresh fruit and banana bread at our own leisure. Plenty of coffee and tea to make. I had planned on going to nearby cafe to get breakfast but it wasn't necessary. We ate out on the deck and had the it to ourselves and ate in pajamas and prolly made too much noise for chris and eric. I was full and ready for the day every morning before we headed out. Since the park was closed the location seemed silly at first but then when we came down to Hilo and up to Onomea Bay and then up to Waipio Valley I was glad to be up in Volcano. It was so hot and humid and oppressive but up in Volcano it was cool and misty and comfortable. Our hosts were gracious and attentive but not overbearing in any way. They were kind and we appreciated the time we got to spend with family there. I'd suggest staying here bc the weather is so much nicer up here and it's a neat place to get away from it all. If you're just going to rent one room get haiku which is in the back. More private. Bc the room is two walls of just windows surrounded by tropical vegetation. Pretty amazing. The metal roof made a perfect sound machine to fall asleep to. They provided ear plugs in case it's too noisy but we loved it all. Even the small earthquakes were mini adventures.

What a beautiful luxurious and romantic place to stay in Volcano. Don't think twice about booking…read morethis spot, you won't regret it! We stayed in the white lotus suite and this suite was 5-Star hotel material if not better. We loved everything about it: the king size bed, private parking, views of the rainforest from inside with all the glass windows, breakfast is provided, full jacuzzi bathtub that comes with bath salts and bubbles, double shower, double sinks, heat lamp above tub, and access to private patio to enjoy breakfast with a view. I would go back here in a heartbeat next time I come to visit. The owner is very sweet and you can tell that he is very attentive and thoughtful when it comes to the rooms that he builds himself.

Amazing in every way! We had the most magical four day adventure and loved everything about our…read morestay in the Rising Moon suite. John is the most gracious of hosts and went out of his way with so many thoughtful touches. The breakfasts were different every day and so very delicious. The soaking bath tub was such a welcome treat after long days adventuring. Highly recommend this little slice of paradise!

We booked online for a Kama'aina rate for two nights at the Rainbow Falls Cottage and it was a…read moremagical experience: no TV, no wi-fi (there is, but you have to be in the main building for it to work), no phones. Instead, you will hear chirping birds, maybe the meow of the resident cat Pumpkin, the purring and cooing from the group of domesticated pheasants that roam the property, and the coqui frogs at night. Ownership changed from Hale Ohia Cottages to the current Volcano Village Estates after COVID. RAINBOW FALLS COTTAGE: Rainbow falls was larger in person than what it looked like on their website to me, at least. The cottage has small two-person porch, a bedroom, a kitchenette area and bathroom. The porch was small but just right for 2 persons. The chair cushions were kind of worn down but who cares, you're outside! The table had an uneven surface so we put our wine glasses on the porch rails. The main room had a queen sized bed which was rather soft and gave us backaches, but some people may prefer a softer bed. I ended up sleeping on the chaise lounge one night, mostly due to husband's snoring, but I did like the firmness of the lounge chair. Lighting in the room was very well thought-out. You can tell the owners have traveled to hotels and places with poor lighting and made sure this didn't happen on any of their properties (read my review for the Royal Kona Resort); there were many lamps and side-lights which you could use for mood as well as reading/packing. There's a gas fireplace you turn on with a remote, and it kept the room comfortable at night at the end of April, when temps went down into the upper 50s. There's no air conditioner as the temps up by volcanos are cooler. KITCHENETTE: Very well thought out, with small ceramic dishes, bowls, coffee cups, glass drinking glasses and wine glasses and silverware. I packed disposable paper plates because most places I've been to don't supply dishes/utensils, so this was a classy and nice surprise. There's a coffee maker with the inn's signature coffee blend enough for two cups; a mini-fridge with a freezer and a microwave. Breakfast is placed in the fridge daily for you so you can eat it whenever you want. First day it was 4 banana pancakes and a fruit platter. Second day was my favorite with "Volcano Blossoms"; eggs in a tortilla cup (vegetarian) or ham cup, which was very well thought-out and separated with waxed paper. My husband loved the egg in the ham cup. It was super tasty, wish I had the recipe! It also came with a fresh fruit plate. BATHROOM: The shower was a bit dark and small, but it's an old cottage and this was it's charm. There's a flexible shower hose that sometimes started making dripping noises at night, so I'd put the shower hose head down toward the floor and that took care of the problem. Shampoo/conditioner in dispensers on the wall. Mini bar soaps and fluffy, clean, amazing towels provided daily. Very comfy bathrobes also provided and we used those for the hot tub. Hot water plentiful. Toilet has dual-flush system. Seats are cold in the morning, but hey, you're in a rainforest! OTHER: Parking, free, no ridiculous "parking fees" like at other resorts. There is a carport with 3 covered spots but we just parked outdoors on the property. Hot tub near the cottage for use, large towels in a bin. Very relaxing in the early evening hours with a glass of wine, listening to the coqui frogs. The cottages provides you with a flash light so you can walk a few feet back to your cottage without a problem. Most of the cottage lights are already on at night on the porches, so it's not a big problem. We didn't get to see any stars in the night sky when we went as it was overcast, as a treat for us is to see the sky without city light pollution, but if you're able, go out into the evening and see the bright stars and maybe some shooting stars as well. A full moon night would be an extra bonus for ambience. We had a housekeeper named Valerie who kept our cottage spanking-clean. I actually had never seen a cottage or inn-type place that clean before. SPOTLESS. Even the mirrors, every corner, clean. Of course the carpet was a bit worn, but that's due to time, and you're supposed to take your shoes off, Hawaii-style, but I am sure some guest trudge in with shoes, a big no no in Hawaii. Valerie was super friendly and answered all of our questions regarding places to eat, things to see, etc. The lady that checked us in and who was there daily was also very nice. We got texts daily asking us if everything was OK, now that is FIVE STAR!! Although there were other guests, we didn't hear any noise. It was very quiet, serene and calm. At times we found ourselves whispering for no reason at all to preserve the quiet of the place. No mosquitos that we encountered here, as we were prepared with repellant but didn't need to use it. RETURN FACTOR - 100% YES, next time in the Pineapple Ohana Cottage as it has it's own private hot tub.

I would rank my recent two-night stay at Volcano Village Estates one of my worst hotel experiences…read more My complaints center in four areas--food hygiene, safety, room cleanliness/condition, and total lack of owner communication. On day two of our stay, there was a cockroach on our breakfast inside our refrigerator. The innkeeper told me that in a rain forest, it's common to have insects in the rooms. I told her my concern was that the cockroach came in on the food, which raises significant concerns about food preparation and hygiene. (As an aside, I would not recommend opting for "breakfast", which was meager. For example, our first breakfast for two people consisted of two small burritos, which you had to heat yourself in the microwave, a kiwi, a tangerine, and a dozen grapes.) My safety concern was that there was a non-functional smoke alarm in my daughter's room when we arrived. Because there is no HVAC system, portable heaters are provided for heat at night. The innkeeper addressed the issue, which was due to a dead battery. A quick AI review (and yes, AI is not perfect!) says, "Hawaii requires functional smoke alarms in all residential dwellings, including hotels, rental properties, and multi-family homes. These alarms are generally mandated to be hardwired with battery backups, interconnected, and tested regularly." The system was not hardwired and obviously hadn't been tested. There were significant issues with room cleanliness/condition. My daughter's unit had a half eaten/half melted ice cream treat in the refrigerator when we arrived. Our room (called Papa) had unfinished plywood floors and walls except for the bath area, which was finished. The innkeeper said the owners "preferred it that way". On each side of the bed, there was a small carpet remnant that was dirty and stained. In our bath area, vanity lighting consisted on a single low wattage pendant light that was inadequate for shaving, make-up, etc. I raised all these issues with the innkeeper on the day of our departure and suggested that an adjustment on our room fees would be reasonable. The property manager responded promptly with an adjustment of about $100. I then suggested that a single night refund of one room fee would be more reasonable, but she said that the property owners would have to approve that, and I could expect a response in 2 days. Not receiving any response, I have since texted the innkeeper multiple times and was assured on each occasion that the owners would respond. Nothing has happened in three weeks. I write this review as an experienced traveler (over 50 countries) and as a vacation rental property owner. There are a multitude of problems with Volcano Village Estates compounded by the owner's indifference in addressing legitimate concerns. I would not recommend staying here.

There are good things. Very clean and good quality beds etc. Plus right next to national park…read more However, all the pictures showed a wonderful breakfast and setting. But NOT a good breakfast...even for basic needs. A McDonald's style sausage patty, some papia. They said we'd get some French toast but never got any. Then got half of a bagel with it. Small amount of papaya, coffee...that's it. So can't give more than 3 stars. Give a 3 because of how cute and clean it was. But I was interested in one of the many nice breakfasts shown/ indicated on their web page. Else it was very nice.

Good location with Volcano NP just down the road. We've stayed a couple of times here over the…read moreyears with variable experiences. Communication with management can be a bit spotty. Rooms are nice and the verandas are wonderful - be aware the walls are thin - beds are comfortable, though on the softer side. Heat is via a space heater and this has come in handy for the drizzly damp days on this side of the island. The floors can get cold though since we observe the Hawaiian custom of taking shoes off in the house - so bring several pairs of socks! We did experience a day where hot water was limited. Just be aware this is a family business and not a big corporate hotel with all the bells and whistles. Aloha goes both ways.

My husband and I stayed here for a week in June. What a peaceful place. It is very specialand…read morereally cool. You are surrounded by beautiful rainforest and complete privacy. I think they have everything you could possibly need that you might forget like bug spray or babdaids. There are plenty of books to read too. We were less than 5 minutes from the volcano! And we were spared the lines of traffic when we saw eruption 24! We will definitely be back to this beautiful, one of a kind place! Loved the muffins too and the little chocolate!!! Beautiful garden and artworks too and the little kitchen was perfect

Spent 3 days there in November 2020. Great location close to volcano national park. The owner…read moreclearly put a lot of care into setting up the cottage so that you have everything you need. It was clean and cozy and the private hot tub was amazing! Highly recommend and would definitely stay there again.

What an amazing place to stay. So close to Volcano National Park. We were able to catch this mini…read moreeruption and arrive within 10 mins. The Coffee and banana bread were spot on. Would recommend staying here 100%. The Staff was so friendly and accommodating. We didn't actually check in until 10pm. Very easy to find. The room was clean and comfy. The only thing we missed out on was asking for their banana bread recipe.

About the only positive thing I can say is that it's close to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park…read more The issues: - Upon arrival around 5ish PM, there was no one around to greet us. Finally someone was running around and told my travel buddy to look for an envelope in the basket. - The room: Small, kind of musty/moldy kind of vibe. The bed was small and squeaky. You need a key to turn on the electricity. Also, there is no TV! - No potable water in the room. The provided water in the carafe had mold on the lid. - Bathroom: The shampoo, conditioner, and shower gel were all filled about 1/4th of the way. The shower gel wasn't even labeled. Very little counter space for toiletries. - Breakfast: I was expecting something a little more substantial. There were papaya boats and banana bread. - No shoes inside policy. Sorry, I wasn't leaving my shoes outside the room. Rain? Bugs? Heck no! All in all, I didn't see the value for $285 for a single night. This was my first time ever staying at a BnB and I didn't feel like it was very hospitable.

Don't be afraid! This place is great! We stayed in room 6, the orchid suite. It was very clean, the…read morebed is sooo comfy. I really appreciate that everything we needed was in the room- mini fridge, microwave, silverware, plates, cups, coffee maker, soap, shampoo, conditioner, space heater, snacks (apples, granola bars, oatmeal, top ramen), ground coffee and sugar. I LOVE funky places, and this was right up my alley. Our room had a separate entrance, so it's not like a traditional bed and breakfast where you're required to awkwardly mingle with other guests and the owner. I never even saw or talked to the owner, it was super easy- you just park in front of the room (reserved for you), and the key's in the door for you. One warning! - watch out for the step in the middle of the room! The step separates two levels. I almost rolled my ankle twice, thankfully I didn't . I highly recommend this place. It's affordable, it's clean, it's only 5 minutes away from vnp.. I didn't have time to see their lava tube, or the hot tub. But the short time I did stay there was very enjoyable. Also, as far as VNP goes - it's so worth it (the drive)! We brought small flashlights, cheapo monoculars and we went at around 9:30 pm. It was fantastic - we saw the active fountains spewing up a bit. Spectacular also, walking through the lava tube at VNP is really cool.

The place was a good location for volcano, not worth it though…read more When we arrived the female host was a bit aggressive toward us and made us feel uncomfortable. The house very much looked as it does in the photos on the outside The host said since we had a dog she was going to remove the rugs since they do not have time to clean them between guests, (this is posted on her ad" but the rugs were on the floor when we arrived and were filthy. The bedding as far as the sheets and pillow cases smelled and appeared clean, but the top blankets were clearly not cleaned recently and were dusty as well as smelled like mildew. The throw pillows were unable to be washed so we didn't not use them. They were dusty and mildew as well The floors were disgusting. The only sponge for dishes and the "kitchen" was stored unpackaged on the floor by the toilet scrubber and dish soap. Beware This is not a kitchen it's a bathroom sink with a mini fridge and some dishes. The hot tub could be a nice touch but it was very dirty in the water and the vents were gross so we spent little time in there. When we went to rinse off after the hot tub there was no hot water or pressure. We told the host and they said there was. I guess just not while we were staying there. Then some creepy guy who I assume was the make host tried to come into our room and he was always staring and creeping around. The shared walls are thin to the other Airbnb. After we complained and asked for a partial refund the host left a dishonest review of me as a guest on my Airbnb saying we had more people Then we actually did and that we trashed the place. She said it took them two hours to clean it, but fortunately I expect to interact with dishonest people in this world and I was smart enough to take photos of the place and how we cleaned it and left it in better condition then we found it.