Puakea Ranch

We had a wonderful 5-night stay in the Miles Away cottage at Puakea Ranch! The resort was so peaceful and beautiful. Our 9-year old daughter enjoyed swimming in the pool and playing with the cats. We loved relaxing in our cottage in the evenings, cooking and soaking up the gorgeous sunsets. I would recommend this beautiful spot to anyone visiting the Big Island.

I wish we never booked here. The list of issues we had during our stay was very long, and some of them were extremely concerning (I will be discussing only the major issues). To make matters worse, the owner, Christie, is terrible at communication and is extremely difficult to work when we had any issues and in turn has made our wedding memories a nightmare for us. We, along with our wedding party, stayed on-site as we figured this would be a great way to spend quality time with one another. For starters, Christie changes what is advertised and agreed upon at the time of signing/making a deposit and could not care at all to update her website even after I showed her the discrepancy. Just a few days before arrival, I was sent an email regarding check-in/check-out along with some notes regarding what is regarded as “ranch life” (scorpions, ants, etc). The check-in and check-out time listed in the email was different than what was advertised online, and she made sure to put in red bold print to be checked out promptly by 10am. Then, she then texted me asking if I wanted the twin beds to be changed to a king size bed for a charge. What charge? There was nowhere listed anywhere of there being a charge to change the beds to a king size. I was confused so I declined even though originally I had wanted to. We were also notified by our wedding planner and Christie that she has had issues with her neighbors in the past, which we can tell why now. We had major pest issues IN ALL the cottages – from ants to roaches to rodents. Also, on our wedding night, at around 10pm all the water on the property was shut off. (No warning, no explanation. We texted the owner about it and did not hear an update until the next morning.) Mind you, our wedding had finished at 9pm and we were still cleaning afterwards, so obviously hardly any of us were able to shower/clean ourselves before bed, including myself. Water was not restored until around 9am. Christie argued with me stating that there was more than enough time for all of us to have showered (4 showers and 17 of us!). When I emailed her after our stay regarding the numerous major issues that we had, she took zero responsibility/accountability for being the owner of the ranch, arguing that the water shut off was out of her control and that for us to say that there was a major pest infestation on the property simply could not be true and told me that my group and I were being dramatic and that we were coercing into getting a huge refund (we asked for about $4k back in compensation, when we paid over $11k for a three night stay). She also ignored issues she could not refute such as the safety/security issues we had – the gate to the ranch being unlocked at all hours, doors struggling to close/lock, and a smoke alarm being unplugged from the ceiling in one of the cabins. Anything I tried to bring up to her as concerns regarding the ranch, she blamed on anyone/anything other than herself, showing zero compassion for all t

I booked our stay for March '24 in November 2023. I received the final billing shortly before our travel time. The stay was booked through VRBO. When I received the final billing was shocked to see a stay tax of $700 and a service fee of $500+. I looked up what a stay tax is and couldn't get the math to pan out. Guessing the service tax is something VRBO gets? To better understand these charges I called VRBO. The rep reiterated what I had learned about the stay tax but when I told her the math didn't equate she suggested I talk to the property owner to see if the location of property had a higher tax jurisdiction. She also had no answer for the service fee. Disclaimer... the definition of stay tax mentioned nothing of tax percentage adjustment due to location. Guessing she passed the buck. So I reached out to Christie who I had talked to previously about the number of people staying. When I booked I arranged for 5 but later noticed the confirmation showed less, I wanted to make sure Christie was aware that that many people were coming. She mentioned she would arrange for a futon. This was the 1st and last time any communication with property owner/caretaker was had. There was no futon. There was no conversation about tax charged. Realizing property owner doesn't control what VRBO charges, offering the warning that you might not want to book through something like VRBO. We quite possibly paid at least $1000 more booking through VRBO. We did receive automated texts from the ranch that made it seem like someone was checking in on our stay but when responding and questioning about futon, there was still no response or follow up. Other than the lack of communication, we absolutely loved our stay here for all the reasons others have mentioned. It is rustic in a quaint way. So if you need ur pillows fluffed with mints on top, this isn't your place. The individual who ended up sleeping on the couch the entire time might have a differing opinion. Loved all the 4 legged and feathered friends. I learned to speak peacock & believe I struck a friendship with one of the males 😆