My wife and I wanted a quiet, romantic getaway, and that's exactly what we got! Well, there was the occasional rooster crowing at the oddest hours, and one night a wedding party kept us up for a while, but otherwise we couldn't have been happier. Our cabin faced the ocean, and sitting on the porch petting the local cats and reading was soooo nice. The cabin itself was old and small, but we weren't looking for luxury. The grounds were beautiful, and there was a hammock right by the beach in front where we spent several evenings cuddled together watching the stars and enjoying the sound of the surf. My biggest complaint was that they had closed the brewery, which we'd visited on a previous trip and had led us to come back. Oh, well... food and beer from the store is cheaper anyway. This is no luxury spa, but in our opinion, it's the most romantic getaway we've been to yet!

The idea of Waimea Plantation Cottages is better than the reality.
The cottages were plantation worker cottages that have been fixed up to varying degrees for guests.
The setting and grounds are lovely. The black sand beach is made for walking with views of Ni'ihau in the distance.
My group of 5 adults stayed in a three bedroom cottage which had had some renovation. The bathrooms were clean, but dated, and kitchen basic.
The beds were fine, sheets nice, but the problem we had at Waimea had nothing to do with the cottage itself, but the roosters on the property.
Roosters are everywhere in Kauai, and the ones on the grounds started crowing at yes, 12:30 a.m., and did not stop all night.
My group was quite bleary-eyed come morning.
Other than the roosters, the place was cool and funky.
We did not eat at the Brew Pub, so can't comment on that.
Staff were very nice, and the free coffee in the morning was good and strong.
If they dealt with the roosters, it would be worth going back; otherwise, I don't think so.

I spent a week in one of the studios (#82). It was a pleasant little duplex with a great view of the grove.

However, there were two aspects that made it one of the noisier choices.

First, it is near the main drive and parking area, so I heard a lot of the car noise.

Second, it is right next to the main building, which includes a hanging-out area and the restaurant and bar. I could hear the music from the bar nearly every night. When it wasn't that, it was people playing the piano in the porch area late at night . Not the quiet evenings I was hoping for!

Other than that, it was a terrific visit, and I plan to return. I'm just going to make sure to pick a cottage farther away from the noise!

We spent the week before Christmas here, and loved it. In the past we've stayed on the North Shore and the West Side is definitely a less-touristy experience.

We stayed in Cottage 59 which is a 2 bedroom, 2 bath ocean-view cottage. I agree with everyone who said if you're going to stay here and can afford it, upgrade to an ocean view cottage. All of the cottages are cute but I really think it's probably a whole different experience staying in one of the cottages set further back on the property. Also, that's where all the roosters seem to congregate in the morning--back in the garden-view cottage area.

The grounds of this place are just lovely. From our lanai we could sit and look at the beautiful lawn, a coconut grove, banyan trees, and of course, the ocean.

Another reviewer said to ask for a new cottage. None of the cottages is new...they are all former plantation worker's homes from the 1920's-1930's. We loved the simplicity of the interior design, wood floors with straw mats, rattan furniture and kitchy, vintage Hawaiian paintings.

We will definitely go back, but I can share some lessons learned. The North Shore, where we usually stay has more tourists so there are more restaurants/shops that cater to them. In Waimea...not so much. There are two grocery stores in town but the selection wasn't great (Finding cheese that wasn't "processed cheese food," was impossible.) When we go back we'll get our supplies at one of the bigger grocery stores in Lihue. As most everyone else said, the Waimea Plantation Brewery is just awful. Skip it...I wish we had. We waited an hour to be served our lunch and it was just bad. Wrangler's restaurant in town was good, as was The Shrimp Station. Most nights we grilled outside our cottage.

It gets buggy at night, so I'd go armed next time with lots of bug lotion/spray. Swimming isn't safe at the beach in front of the cottages, but if you go back toward the airport to Hanapepe there's a nice swimming beach at Salt Pond State Park...it's just a ten minute or so drive.

And lastly, the service was really friendly at the front desk. We'll definitely be back to our little ocean view cottage!