By the time you read this review, the Volcano House will have been closed for remodeling for approximately 9-12 months through most of 2010. This is a long overdue remodel.

On the one hand, the Volcano House has a kind of cool retro-lodge feel....on the other hand, it's pretty run down. But, even run down, the location on the edge of the volcano crater can't be beat.

So, a year from now, check back and see what the renovation reviews look like.

I hope they keep their chef. The prime rib in the dining room was delicious.

We stayed in Volcano House at the most expensive rooms, and still it was relatively cheap. There was a view of the Kilauea Crater blocked by scrubby trees. This was a great rustic room with 50s-style furniture by looks, but soft comfy beds, hot water and a great location. The restaurant is $$$ for breakfast and lunch, and more average (still $$) for dinner, mostly because you have to drive into Volcano Village for anything else. A local quilting club came here for their annual dinner, so the locals like it too. It's a great National Park Experience.

The staff was super-attentive and helpful, even when I told them that the electric heater in the room was installed sideways . Within 20minutes it was replaced. Every single person here (rangers, cleaning staff, manager, desk personnel, shop salespersons) was extra friendly and genuinely wanted to be helpful, regardless of the crowds, other shoppers, etc. I'd come back.

Volcano National Park is a must-see place; so staying there and not having to commute was a big bonus.

We've stayed at other National Parks hotels (Yosemite, Zion, Bryce) and they were rustic but clean and quite comfortable. However, the Volcano House was the absolute pits. We stayed in the old section of the hotel, the original building. The first impression was - this place stinks like an old rotting house. Musty, mildewy, the room was minature, only 10' x 10'. The lighting was bad. The bed was squeaky and lumpy. The walls are paper thin and you can hear people in other rooms coughing, etc. The tile in 4'x3' bathroom was old and cracking. The shower stall was 2.5' x 2.5', same condition. There's no exhaust fan, so when you do take a shower, everything steams up and because it's so damp there, nothing dries out. Getting into bed is like camp in the rain, the sheets are clammy. We had to go to Walmart to buy pillows because the ones provided are hard and lumpy. It was like staying at a really bad boarding house. Other than the accomodations, the restuarant is pricey and just so-so. Had we taken others advice about the VH, we would have stayed elsewhere and driven into the park each day. Ah well, live and learn - at least the rest of our Hawaiian vacation was awesome.

if you want to stay in the volcano park, then there is no choice. This hotel is ok, but they seem to know that you have to stay with them if at all.