Modern, scandanavian, clean bright decor. Placed on the ocean with private access to Ha'ena shoreline. You walk from you lanai to the sand in seconds. Tight parking spots, one for each car on dirt road off the main. Owners very nice. Hale are not raised off ground on stilts like neighboring properties. Worth the prices. Cottage 3 our favorite. Really great full body. Shower too. This property is simply paradise.

This was my third trip to Kauai and the best thus far. The cottage was a big part of it. The fact that we did not have to get in the car to go to some of the most amazing beaches on the North shore was key to our relaxation. You can spend time right out front of the cottage or walk from the cottage down the beach to other spectacular spots.

The inside of the cottage was perfect for what we were looking for. Clean lines and modern yet comfortable.

I hope to return again next year. Thank you!!!!

For anyone on the business travel circuit--long airport hangtime, corporate hotels, airconditioning, expensive dinners at acclaimed restaurants--get ready for something a little more exotic, warm, and sweet all at the same time. Hale Makai is tucked under palms on a lovely lawn stretching toward a private beach. Kauai's famous rock formations line the skyline behind you. Lush waves and brilliant snorkling await just five feet (literally) off the beach near your cottage. This property excells in areas few of us find on trips: five fabulous cabbins where your whole family can enjoy separate cabbins or, for couples, a well-supplied kitchen and soft bed reside within ear-shot of waves rushing in the background like music. I like the way this property mixes high-end touches--modern soft showers, chefs stoves, nice tile work--with a setting that evokes simpler times like badminton on their manicured lawn (bring a set?) or book reading in one of the large hammocks. My friends and I enjoyed cocktails each night on the deck of my cottage, frequently migrating the twenty feet or so to the beach to take in the waves and glowing sunsets. After so many trips to all sorts of places, I find Kauai lingers in my mind more dramatically and feel Hale Makai preserved the right setting for processing the memories. Get your grocery supplies and stay 24/7 on property until the end of your trip, perhaps with a hiking interlude in the national park down the road. In any event, I will definitely return.

We chose Kauai for our honeymoon because of the exotic location, the beaches and the snorkeling. We were not disappointed. The Hale Makai Cottages served as an excellent jumping off point for some wonderful locations on the North Shore. The weather was wonderful: a constant gentle breeze and occasional rain every day lasting from a few minutes to several hours. We didn't have a washout during the ten days we were there but the locals said they were in the middle of a drought. I mention the weather specifically because everyone we talked to said that the weather on the North Shore was quite a bit wetter and the ocean unswimmable outside of the summer months.

The Hale Makai Cottages were a beautiful resting place for us. They have been renovated recently, so they are nicely appointed and very tastefully decorated. Our cottage (#3 - Orchid) was an excellent romantic bungalow with quick access to the beach. There are stunning views from the cottage and more amazing vistas just a few miles away. That said, there were a few glitches that made the Hale Makai Cottages less than perfect. The Internet access didn't work while we were there; not that we planned to spend much time on the web, but it is a useful search tool anywhere you go. There seemed to be a general solid waste problem across the island, and garbage/recycling was a little bit of a challenge. There is a lovely lanai with our cottage, but it does not have a roof, so you can't sit out in the rain. Moreover, when we tried to correct some small problems (light bulbs out) we realized we didn't have any contact information to get a hold of anyone. I managed to send a message via my cell phone, and received a response but the issues I mentioned weren't corrected.

I would still highly recommend the Hale Makai Cottages, but they are not inexpensive and my feeling was that one could find some other nice accommodations on the North Shore at a more reasonable rate. It all depends what you are looking for.