We found Mountain Cottage through Hawaii Volcano Vacations online and stayed there for two nights. The online site displays detailed information and pictures of Mountain Cottage, so we had some ideas how the inside is like before we left for our trip to Big Island. This was my first time staying at a cottage, and the whole experience of staying at Mountain Cottage was amazing. After driving through rural and quiet road following the direction we received, we finally found Mountain Cottage. Because there is no street light in the whole area, if it is your first time going there and you arrive after dark, it will be difficult to find the cottage. We were feeling lucky that we made it there before it turned dark.
This cottage is inside a gated area and surrounded by fern trees. The outside of the cottage looks nice. After walking up the stairs, I peeked at the inside through the window, and I immediately felt in love with this cottage, because the inside looked so cute! Although the space is small inside, everything is very clean and organized! It is equipped with every standard thing you may find at a regular hotel (i.e., refrigerator, microwave, heater, coffee maker, etc.). And there were a few handwritten post-it notes from the cottage owners to pass messages to us. Besides this, the cottage owner also provided a flashlight for us to use, which was thoughtful. In the morning, the cottage owner provided us blueberry muffins and fresh-cut papayas to start out our day.
During the two nights we stayed there, I felt I was staying at a friend's homey place instead of a rental cottage. Because this experience was so great, I was actually feeling a bit sad that we had to check out from the cottage after two nights. If I am coming back to this area again, I would want to stay at the same place! read more