This was a time share rental and apparently the couple that we went with are used to better but I thought that it was great. We were lucky to have an oceanside room. I am not sure that I would be as enthusiastic if we were facing the parking lot or the tennis court. The room was 2 bedroom and 2 bathrooms so we had plenty of room. Could have used more than 1 lounge chair on the patio.
The people upstairs were smokers and nocturnal. Also sounded like they were playing Video Games a lot, loudly. They would go outside to smoke and it would come down to our room which was very annoying.
The great thing was that it was on the bike/walking path. We could also walk to town and bars and restaurants. Just about every place has a happy hour. The traffic in Kapaa is horrible so it was nice to walk to dinner or the grocery store. Plus they have so many cute shops that you can purchase locally made items at.Glass Blowers,Soap,Bamboo,coffee etc.
Went to Big Wave Daves for cocktails. Kind of divey but I like that. Full of locals. Then went to the Eastside for dinner. Excellent! Cooked in a lot and the grocery stores are very close by. They could use a few more Barbeques. We had one right next to us but if someone is barbequing ribs for 2 hours it is a long haul to the next barbeque. All in all the location rocks. Love being able to drink and not drive.

I read the reviews of some before actually going to the resort. Wow people is funny! This resort met and surpassed any and ALL expectations! First if you don't like CHICKENS, GO TO MAUI!!! The resort is walking distance to stores restaurants and it truly is a jump off in two directions for the best of KAUAI! The grounds were meticulously kept! Never a wait for a CLEAN barbeque grill! The pool was nice, adequate and the spa was fun, a lil crowded at times! nice saunas too! The front desk were ALOHA ALL THE WAY! "Morgan" in the adventure department booked our excursions. (You have got to ADD THE KAUAI PHOTO TOUR to your tours!) The rooms were clean, neat, well stocked in the kitchen. Is this place a 5 star private resort (NO) But who wants to hang with rich, I drive a BMW, snobs! This place was built several decades ago. Its ol school Hawaii! I'll be back, Miss the roosters "good morning" already!

Privately owned condo, on VRBO, well maintained, clean , comfortable, with modern decor. Oceanfront building, with unobstuctive views. The east coastline gets a lot of wind. We found it difficult to enjoy the lanai, for meals,etc, due to the coolness, and constant wind..... However it is winter season in hawaii...
The view would be better if there wasn't an ugly delapatated orange construction fence along the shoreline..... Which has been there for years.... The Kauai county dept has been working on retaining wall, do to erosion problems...at shoreline.... It needs to come down, and either post signs of danger, or construct a better looking barrier..... I am surprised the PONO KAI property managers dont complain about it....because it is ugly, and distracts from the view....access to the beach shore is not easy for the older folks.... As I watched many stumble down the eroded , exposed tree root embankment. The beach isn't great, very sloped.... Not a swimming beach, but a few people ventured in, including myself....on a calm day, as water can get pretty choppy.
A great asset to the PONO Kai is the easy assess to the walking/ biking coastal pathway!
The pool area is located out of the wind, and was nice , a lot of people complained about the pool being too cold, but it was tolerable. The grounds are well maintained, and clean . The front desk staff were always friendly and helpful. The Sunday, and Thursday 8 am. orientation at the pool , were very informative and entertaining, great 2 for 1 deals ..... If u were lucky to win!
We found the location conveint, to assess both north and south shores. Close to grocery stores.
Kapaa traffic can be a problem a certain times of the day.... So plan for that , when heading out.
We spent a month here, and enjoyed and explored the entire island....

I've been to Kauai many times over the years. I've stayed in Princeville (the rain coast) and Poipu (the sun coast), but for some reason, had never stayed in Kapaa (the east coast) until my last visit, when I spent 3 months at Pono Kai.

In my opinion, Kapaa is the best location on the island: it's central to everything - you can drive to Princeville or Poipu in about 40 minutes, whereas if you're in Princeville and want to drive to Poipu - or the reverse - you're looking at an hour and a half of driving. Princeville is too rainy and Poipu is too crowded. Weather in Kapaa is ideal and it doesn't have the over-built feel of Poipu.

Also, Kapaa is very convenient to most of the best beaches on the island.

As for Pono Kai itself, it's not a swanky resort. It was built in the 1970's, so it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of a chain resort. But it does have lovely, spacious, well-kept grounds, instead of the sort of resort hotels where everything is crammed together.

My personal feeling about vacations in Hawaii is that one need not pay for things one does not use, like huge swimming pools and over-priced restaurants. From that standpoint, Pono Kai is a great place to stay. It's reasonably priced (we've booked a two-bedroom ocean-front condo this coming April, at $178 per night, for a spacious unit that sleeps six). We'll have a fully-equipped kitchen, so we can cook most of our meals instead of paying sky-high prices in mediocre restaurants.

Yes, the units are a bit dated and the walls are a bit thin, but the units are clean and well-maintained, the staff is helpful and courteous.

Another plus is the fact that there is a Safeway supermarket nearby. Affordable food and decent produce is hard to come by on Kauai, so having that Safeway is a godsend.

Pono Kai is right on the beach and there is a bike path running along the ocean, so you can pedal your way to three of the nicest beaches on the island - Kealia, Donky Beach and Wailua.

To summarize, I've been all over Kauai and, having spent 3 months at Pono Kai, I wouldn't go anywhere else. If you absolutely insist on staying in a 4 or 5 star resort with all the amenities, this place isn't for you. But if you appreciate value and spacious accommodations in a great location, give it a try.