Trip Review on RCI of Lawai Beach Resort--hysterical, and very offensive as well

nice and not so nice Date: March 16, 2010

Best things about resort
Every room has an oceanview, beautiful to listen to and see the ocean and sit out on your balcony enjoying it.

Best attractions or restaurants nearby
None that I liked. I went to Costco and cooked all my own food and it was delicious, despite the fact that I had to keep everything, including food trash in the fridge till I threw it out. Potatoes, $10.00 for a 10 pound bag....I just bought the same bag here in socal for .99Cents!


Review
I began with a rental car infested with cockroaches. Was told that was common on this island...got that replaced, major hassle... They weren't in the trunk where my luggage was, they asked me to drive it back....I told them to bring me a Lincoln Town Car...on a tow truck. Guess who got their way?

I carried a few into the unit in a bag of magazines I brought from the airport that were on my passenger seat.

The resort was hard to find in the pouring rain late at night. Actually, a nightmare. Kept thinking I was going to drive into the ocean any minute...and never be found alive.

There were roaches everywhere. I sat down on my couch enjoying some of the Hawaiin tea in a can and went to pick it up, and there were roaches climbing up from the underside of the table and onto the can. So, I dumped the drink and freaked out. This was AFTER the first spraying of the roaches.

There were geckos cliimbing on my wall...heard they eat roaches...they were the fast ones that hide in crevices AND IN YOUR LUGGAGE.

I had the place exterminated three times while I was there for a week. They were in the lobby, and always in the bathroom off the lobby.

Everyone just shrugged them off. Said they couldn't get the exterminator out..was only ONE ON THE ISLAND....great business for anyone needing a job I guess.

Washer and dryer worked good. That's nice because I washed every single item in my luggage and bombed it before leaving for home. I took my trash out after every meal. Hid my toothbrush in the fridge...this was the top floor too.

Kitchen was decent, older furnishings...Hawaiin rattan ugly stuff...but ok ....beds, old fashioned bedspreads, no new linens...but comfortable enough bed once I inspected it every time I got in it.

Bedroom had weird shutters, that worked for the tradewinds I guess, but if you left them open on the bottom, everyone walking by could look into your bedroom...so you open only the tops and watch the tops of heads go by and hear the talking. I had a one bedroom and it was in the back of the unit.

It was hotter than you know what, with no AC...WET AND MUGGY...with four of the days no trade winds. They should have AC for if you want it. They came in and shut off my ceiling fans....hello? Carpet was dirty, definitely don't take off your shoes unless you want to step on a roach. A dolly of curtains and bedspreads, and vaccuum cleaners, sat outside the elevator in the same spot the entire week I was there.

Bathroom was the worst part of the unit, old and ugly. Had to turn on the light in the middle of the night to get the roaches off your toilet LOL.

I just kept the light on.

Use the main building pool..it's the best one...and barbecue grill will have roach legs stuck to the grill.

But still, other than the roaches, the place is great IMO. IF they just stop making stupid excuses and get it exterminated and keep it done on a regular basis. they will have a halfway decent resort. And remodel the bathrooms please...the tile looks like it's from 1970. Gross.

PS I found a lot of the locals to have bad attitudes, theft signs in all parking lots, and the nicest places I visited was a restaurant at the end of the road on the north east shore, and the beautiful animal shelter not far from the resort. I went to visit the animals every day. I'm not kidding.

Bring an unbrella and rain coat. It rains constantly.
4 of 11 people found this review helpful.

OMG, that is hilarious and kind of sad at the same time.

I'm sure we can all think of ONE person that could have written that review - the type that are happiest when they are making themselves (and everyone around them) miserable by complaining about EVERYTHING.

Another funny thing is that a review like this is of absolutely no help. The negativity of the person clouds out any realistic criticism.

Apparently she was by herself, because it was all "me" and "I." Gee, I wonder why she has to travel by herself? And why do I picture a woman? I just looked at the review again, and the name on it is Kristy, so it's a woman.

A trip to Hawaii is totally wasted on someone like this!

Plus - many of the things she complained about are things she should have known about if she did any research before her trip.

Another unfair review, and this person gave it 1 star for every category

The view is great, the rooms are awful! Date: December 21, 2009

Best things about resort
It has a decent view of the Pacific Ocean and the rocky lava shoreline.

Best attractions or restaurants nearby
There is one nearby restaurant, but I did not visit.


Review
This is a very, very old, outdated resort, very small rooms, and not clean. I walked into my room. It stated to take off your shoes. My white socks turned black in about 5 minutes - this was a bad idea. I sat down on the couch and fell down so far that it threw out my back. I put my toothbrush out in the bathroom and came back about 30 minutes later to find a cockroach on it. The furniture is old - painted and chipped, the carpeting looks like indoor/outdoor carpeting, there is no air conditioning. Even in December, it was way too warm for comfort. The pools are very small and large pieces of tiles are missing from the inside of the pool. It's nice to have a kitchen and washer/dryer in the unit, but the kitchen wasn't clean. The cupboards were sticky to the touch on the outside and there were crumbs in the drawers. The utensil trays hadn't been cleaned in some time. There is just a small beach area at the far end of the resort, but the rest is a rocky shoreline. If you don't rent a car, it is quite a walk to the store in Koloa. The beds are ok, not the best, but the bedding looks like an inexpensive motel, not a nice resort. This was a far cry from my Gold Crown Resort in Cabo and nothing like my Marriott resort in Palm Springs. If you are expecting a Motel 6 type room, you'll be pleased. When I left, no-one even asked if I enjoyed my stay. I travel extensively in a number of states and I found this resort truly disappointing. If you have other options for a resort on Kaui, I suggest you take them.

My comment on the above review: Don't compare Kauai to Cabo resorts, and Palm Springs probably would have to offer a roach lst class service to get one to live there, because it's so dry. So what if you saw a roach or two, it's tropical and not a hotel-type place.

I continually crack up when I see Kauai spelled "Kaui".

Today in my classroom, we were reading a story on volcanoes. I played the CD which reads the story as the class follows along, and in the reading it was describing Kilauea on the BI. Well, the "professional reader" from the publisher pronounced it Kil-ow-a, and I just had to stop the cd right there and do a grammar/vocabulary lesson on the proper pronunciation.

Go figure.

Great review, other than the roaches.

MichaelColey said:

Great review, other than the roaches.

Click to expand...

Okay, Michael, let us in on why you think this is a great review.

LBR is a favorite among TUGgers, and many TUGgers own and wish they could own there. These reviews are rather odd, considering the other reviews are mostly 4's and 5's.

How can a person go to Kauai and not like the restaurants? :rofl: There are so many great restaurants, we literally leave without going to some of our favorites sometimes.

Great review because it had me rolling. About the cockroaches. Every sentence seemed to mention the cockroaches. Even the grill, with cockroach legs.

rickandcindy23 said:

The view is great, the rooms are awful! Date: December 21, 2009

Best things about resort
It has a decent view of the Pacific Ocean and the rocky lava shoreline.

Best attractions or restaurants nearby
There is one nearby restaurant, but I did not visit.
Review
This is a very, very old, outdated resort, very small rooms, and not clean. I walked into my room. It stated to take off your shoes. My white socks turned black in about 5 minutes - this was a bad idea. I sat down on the couch and fell down so far that it threw out my back. I put my toothbrush out in the bathroom and came back about 30 minutes later to find a cockroach on it. The furniture is old - painted and chipped, the carpeting looks like indoor/outdoor carpeting, there is no air conditioning. Even in December, it was way too warm for comfort. The pools are very small and large pieces of tiles are missing from the inside of the pool. It's nice to have a kitchen and washer/dryer in the unit, but the kitchen wasn't clean. The cupboards were sticky to the touch on the outside and there were crumbs in the drawers. The utensil trays hadn't been cleaned in some time. There is just a small beach area at the far end of the resort, but the rest is a rocky shoreline. If you don't rent a car, it is quite a walk to the store in Koloa. The beds are ok, not the best, but the bedding looks like an inexpensive motel, not a nice resort. This was a far cry from my Gold Crown Resort in Cabo and nothing like my Marriott resort in Palm Springs. If you are expecting a Motel 6 type room, you'll be pleased. When I left, no-one even asked if I enjoyed my stay. I travel extensively in a number of states and I found this resort truly disappointing. If you have other options for a resort on Kaui, I suggest you take them.

My comment on the above review: Don't compare Kauai to Cabo resorts, and Palm Springs probably would have to offer a roach lst class service to get one to live there, because it's so dry. So what if you saw a roach or two, it's tropical and not a hotel-type place.

Click to expand...

...a "decent" view of the Pacific Ocean...:hysterical: :hysterical:
Oh well, you can take a horse to water...
....one nearby restaurant that she didn't go to....gee, would that be the Beach House?? Yeah, probably not worth a visit...:rofl:

Need she say more? I know her opinion won't hold water with me already...
(Must be tired, keep coming up with "water" sayings)

Oh well, glad neither of these reviewers are likely to return... let them keep spreading disinformation...Keeps the island/resort for those of us that appreciate it. (Not that I've stayed at LBR, but would in a heartbeat if given the opportunity. Great location, people who return over and over, plenty of Tuggers happy there...)
I look at the general negative impressions of Seattle the same way - if stories of dismal rain keep some people from visiting, that's not necessarily a bad thing...

MichaelColey said:

Great review because it had me rolling. About the cockroaches. Every sentence seemed to mention the cockroaches. Even the grill, with cockroach legs.

Click to expand...

Gotta agree with you, Michael, in this respect - the grill with the cockroach legs had me cracking up!

Although I don't live in a warm climate, I've been told often that without a freezing temperature you can NEVER get rid of cockroaches. Is this true? I was told in Florida they're called palmetto bugs.

Anita

Kona Lovers said:

I continually crack up when I see Kauai spelled "Kaui".

Today in my classroom, we were reading a story on volcanoes. I played the CD which reads the story as the class follows along, and in the reading it was describing Kilauea on the BI. Well, the "professional reader" from the publisher pronounced it Kil-ow-a, and I just had to stop the cd right there and do a grammar/vocabulary lesson on the proper pronunciation.

Go figure.

Click to expand...

I know a California valley girl who can't pronounce Kauai even after being there a week.

It always comes out COW' EYE

Another friend told us of her visit to the Swiss capitol and all the beauty around SWITCH ERR LAND.


Sterling from Tex ass.:hysterical:

Kauai Kid said:

I know a California valley girl who can't pronounce Kauai even after being there a week.

It always comes out COW' EYE

Another friend told us of her visit to the Swiss capitol and all the beauty around SWITCH ERR LAND.


Sterling from Tex ass.:hysterical:

Click to expand...

My grandfather has always pronounced Hawaii as Ha-y-yuh.

Speaking of where you're from, years ago when I was right out of college working retail, a sales rep from the Icee Company came into our store, and said she was from Dallas representing the "Assee Company".

scrapngen said:

Gotta agree with you, Michael, in this respect - the grill with the cockroach legs had me cracking up!

Click to expand...

Neato! Not only did they supply free use of the grill. They also supplied a little meat to go on it!

hotcoffee said:

Neato! Not only did they supply free use of the grill. They also supplied a little meat to go on it!

Click to expand...

I suppose an enterprising occupant could go collect those things and have themselves a nice bowl of Crispy Critters for breakfast in the morning.

MichaelColey said:

Great review because it had me rolling. About the cockroaches. Every sentence seemed to mention the cockroaches. Even the grill, with cockroach legs.

Click to expand...

It was amusing - I think the person may have had a sense of humor about the experience. I remember when we arrived in Kauai - exhausted from the time difference and lengthy flight - and my husband was zipping around the curves. I had the same fear about falling into the ocean! No run ins with cockroaches thankfully.

We loved Kauai and were dragging our feet getting on the plane to fly home. On the other hand, a woman behind me said "I can't wait to get off this island." I'll never forget it. Thank goodness there are so many places to explore!

Cockroaches forever

They are the Definite survivors. We got them in Morocco and had them ther e30 months in San Diego like climate, took them with us to Charleston then CA then Hawaii and back to CA. Found them inside the toaster and electric toothbrush. We finally after 7 years got rid of them by an extermainator but they showed up at our next door neighbors. They also were on our Navy ship andwe contolled the number but never got rid of them .Theeggs can be frozen and hatch when you take them out.

On Maui they call the big ones B-52's

I'll take a cockroach anytime to a Texas fire ant. How something so little can bite and sting so painfully is beyond me. Takes 2 weeks to heal from one single bite.


Sterling, 3 months and a week to go

I know LBR is a TUG favorite. I had the same opinion after my first two visits which were in Banyan. However, number three was Coral first floor. It was just as "Kristy" reported (small rooms, stuffy, humid, not particularly clean, no view, almost incessant noise from the garage). We won't go back to LBR just on the chance of getting Coral again. It was the worst timeshare experience we've had. Kauai is our favorite island and there are a fair number of consistent alternatives to LBR. I reiterate LBR w/o Coral is really nice, but I can certainly empathize with Kristy.

p.s. Her roaches may have come from my rental car. On my first arrival there, I opened the trunk and 50-60 roaches evacuated the car. But, what the heck, I'm a Floridian.

jbrunson said:

p.s. Her roaches may have come from my rental car. On my first arrival there, I opened the trunk and 50-60 roaches evacuated the car. But, what the heck, I'm a Floridian.

Click to expand...

Yikes!!

Ok, I've been to Hawaii several times with stays in Oahu (Waikiki), Maui (Wailea), Big Island (Kona & Volcano Village) with most of my stays in Oahu and so far I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen a roach in Hawaii (Thanks goodness never in my room or my rental car).

I normally rent from Hertz. Are there certain car companies to avoid in Hawaii?

If you, or the previous driver, eat and/or leave food in the car, it will attract cockroaches. I don't think it has anything to do with the rental agency.

We never eat in our own car or a rental car. I have never seen a roach in our rental cars, but I don't look for 'em.

I had questions in my mind after reading Kristy's trip report: 1) Did the rental car agency bring her a replacement car? 2) Does she enjoy cooking? 3) Was she alone on the trip? 4) Did she try to talk to the locals, or just rude to them?

"It was just as "Kristy" reported (small rooms, stuffy, humid, not particularly clean, no view, almost incessant noise from the garage). We won't go back to LBR just on the chance of getting Coral again."

Thank you, jbrunson, for your post. I thought there must be something wrong with me because I had the same experience in a 1st floor Coral unit last summer. We stayed 2 hours, just long enough to call and book at another time share, and happily gave up the week we had booked at LBR.

Has the Coral building improved, since they updated the resort? I know they updated it because someone here is on the board. I remember JLB referred to the Coral building as the DCB: Dreaded Coral Building.

Seems like they could put air conditioning in the bedrooms or something. At Bali Hai in Princeville, they put portable air conditioners in the units. You have likely seen them...they have the tube that vents to the outside. That would be a good solution for a stuffy, humid, hot unit.