We spent this past week at the newly reopened, Kona Village (now a Rosewood property), and it was one of those magical spots and special family trips I’ll hold in my heart forever. It was sure hard to leave! It’s also one of those places I hope we can continue to go to over the years and bring R & W back for nostalgia.
The past few years we’ve stayed pretty local in California for our family vacations (the roadtrip phase of toddlerhood) so this was our first longer flight as a family of four since Willow was born which felt like a real win in itself. And a first for us on Kona. Those black lava / volcano views!!! Just so rad. It was the most ideal family vacation… Hawaii is just so easy with young kids. We played tennis and pickleball every morning (Rex has been playing all summer and I finally caught the hype too!) followed by pool / beach time (and banana coladas) on repeat.
It was also the first vacation with kids that’s actually felt relaxing! I even got to read (and finished) my book! Finally at 4 and 6.5… have we rounded a corner?!
We quickly adjusted to that slower island pace… rolling with the ease and pace of what Rex and Willow wanted to do. We had no plans going into the week but had thought we’d get off the property at some point for a hike… but that never happened. We just didn’t want to leave Kona Village… it was that special.
Our Stay at Kona Village |
We booked this trip back around Christmas time when we decided we wanted to take the kids to Hawaii for our family summer vacation. We love the Rosewood hotels and were following the reopening of Kona Village in anticipation. We had high hopes it would be amazing, especially after hearing how magical that part of the island is and how iconic and great for families the original Kona Village was (originally a historic fishing village that was turned into a resort which was destroyed in the 2011 tsunami)… and it sure lived up to the hype. The design is so good, and it’s a Rosewood so of course it’s luxurious and amazing service but the fact that it was so kid friendly was what made our trip so relaxing for us.
Highlights |
Since it was newly opened (just a couple weeks prior) we practically had the resort and beach to ourselves as the hotel was just at ~ 30% capacity. It was pretty special and something I don’t know if we would be able to recreate. Now is the time to go!! Although they only have 150 Hales (huts) so it will always be a pretty private escape.
The spa!
The setting of the spa is something special… with views of the lava and volcanos in the distance. The showers and locker room have an outdoor / indoor vibe to them that I just love. I’m not usually one for a cold plunge but I was talked into trying a circuit… cold plunge then the sauna … three times. It left me feeling so energized and gave me such an amazing all body buzz that Tanner and I were both looking up at home cold plunges on the flight home.
Talk Story Bar
The sweetest ocean side bar that serves the most delicious Painkiller cocktail. We grabbed drinks two different afternoons while Rex and Willow played games, and it just stands out as such a highlight… to feel like you’re on a date with your husband with your kids is a real win.
And the poolside poke bowls. I love a good poke bowl and I think I tried them all and they were all delicious!
