Island-Style

Hawaii’s bed & breakfast venues take guests off the beaten path…and into the charming heart of Aloha

Island visitors rarely fail to enjoy Hawaii’s grand and imposing beachfront resorts, but occasionally guests desire a more intimate personal experience of Hawai’i. Fortunately, it’s available – provided one knows where to look. Tucked away in small rural towns and on pastoral spreads, a handful of historic homes and secluded country estates provide boutique accommodations for those of discriminating tastes. Brimming with heritage and offering that distinctive sense of place, Hawaii’s bed-and-breakfast venues sparkle with personality, comfort, and the heart of Aloha. Hawaiian Style offers its favorites.

Maui: Built in 1924 for a Portuguese ranching family, and currently on the Hawai‘i State and National Historic Registers, two-winged Hale Ho‘okipa Inn Makawao emphasizes its Hawaiian cowboy ambiance of yesteryear with high ceilings, original wooden floors, a communal antique breakfast table and other antique furnishings, as well as eclectic collectibles found long ago on property. Lit by spacious bay windows, the soft-glowing Rose Room features an original claw-foot bathtub. The Kona Wing, caressed by Kula’s watery upcountry light and the murmur of a koi pond waterfall, has access to a rambling country kitchen that once fed 13 children. Your host, Cherie Attix, is highly knowledgeable about Maui’s precious environment, which comes in handy so close to Haleakalä National Park. www.maui-bed-and-breakfast.com

Balinese art infuses the furnishings, decor, and, yes, even the building materials of Zen-like Ho‘oilo House in the foothills of the West Maui Mountains, five minutes from bustling Lahaina. Imagine entering your room through a traditional Balinese door inlaid with mother-of-pearl. And yet, this two-winged, six-suite oasis, enhanced by shimmering ocean views, expresses the Hawaiian spirit throughout. Your hosts Amy and Dan donate a percentage of fees to the Pacific Whale Foundation each time the Koholä or Honu suites are booked, in honor of the gentle but endangered giants that belong to Maui. You might sleep in a Chinese Cchow” bed, opium bed, or wedding bed, but you’ll always have the tropical luxury of private outdoor showers set in black lava or ivory stone. And in the mornings? Dip in the calm pool before heading out. www.hooilohouse.com

Enter the 10-room, two-suite Lahaina Inn, and travel back to the early 1900s, when immigrant entrepreneurs sought their fortunes in oceanfront Lahaina and transformed this once quiet seat of royalty into a bustling trade center. Less than one block from the water, the two-story wooden Inn was originally built in 1938 to serve as a general merchandise store. Expect an immersion in old Lahaina and the romantic, hopeful dreams of its early pioneers—present in quilted bed covers, antique furnishings and lamps, and wooden rocking chairs on your lanai. Cups of old-fashioned hot chocolate, shared with fellow adventurers in the community living room, are sure to elicit Lahaina-good-luck tales. www.lahainainn.com

An inconspicuous garden gate in a quiet residential area opens to The Old Wailuku Inn at Ulupono, just 10 minutes from Wailuku downtown. Here, the smallest decorative details reflect the golden days of Hawai‘i in the 1920s, when vagabond poet Don Blanding swept his audience away with his Hawai‘i stories. The Inn’s 10 guest rooms—seven in the main house, three in a separate wing—each boast their own Hawaiian flower quilt and unique characteristics.One room boasts an antique five-panel Chinese jade and soapstone screen; while others offer a private lanai or an outdoor sitting area. Dreamy early-morning light sets the gorgeous ‘öhi‘a-wood floors in the Lokelani Room aglow; the Ilima Room features original arched windows and a whirlpool tub that opens to the room’s golden charm. Hosts Janice and Tom Fairbanks serve a scrumptious hot breakfast each morning with a hospitality that perfectly matches the gentle Hawaiian warmth of this two-story historic home. www.mauiinn.com/

The Big Island: Nestled in forested gardens, the beautifully restored, turreted Shipman House dates back to 1899. Back then it served a savvy entrepreneur who rented horse carriages to visitors who were eager to see Kïlauea Volcano. In this five-bedroo m, two-story Victorian mansion, visitors can navigate the high carriage step to this day. Claim to fame? Hawai‘i’s beloved last monarch, Queen Lili‘uokalani, frequently lunched here with the Shipman family in the early 1900s—Willie Shipman being a well-known rancher. The Queen would play the 1912 Steinway concert grand piano, which remains in use. Jack London slept in this house with his wife Charmian for five weeks. Expect impeccability. Beyond the old Shipman library, a grand staircase leads past antiques and heirloom furnishings. Hawaiian quilts grace the beds, and the hand-rolled curved glass windows and copper gutters are originals. On the veranda, Willie’s great-granddaughter Barbara Ann and husband Gary Andersen provide lavish breakfasts with tropical garden fruits and family-recipe breads. www.hilo-hawaii.com

Volcano Village teems with cozy small B & Bs, some funky and some extravagant: Everyone loves Hale Ohia Cottages, once a sprawling summer estate for a sugar plantation manager. Quietly hiding amid fragrant sugi trees, azaleas, rhododendron shrubs, and a forest of giant tree ferns and pompom-blosso med native ‘öhi‘a trees, the earth-red, turreted main house surrounded by garden-style dwellings is minutes away from Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park. Artfully renovated, private Ihilani Cottage dates back to the 1920s; lit through antique windows and an antique skylight, warmed by a wood-burning fire, it is a place for lovers. Yet the sweetest bed may well be a 77-year old redwood water tank, named No. 44 for short, which host Michael Tuttle has recycled into a split-level romantic get-away with vintage lighting from the Royal Hawaiian Hotel and a see-through fireplace.www.haleohia.com

On the Kona side, on a 40-acre rolling green property surrounded by famed McCandless Ranch in Hönaunau, sheer luxury awaits at Horizon Guest House, a boutique resort that is custom-designed to create an oasis of peace and quiet. Host Clem Classen perfected every detail to make guests feel at home in their private-entry bedroom suites. Staggered to provide privacy, the four suites feature Persian rugs, hand-quilted bedspreads, and sunset terraces, but also French press coffee makers, and broadband wireless Internet access. Classen loves to cook a hearty mor ning meal, and is noted for his recipes, especially the homemade hot cereal that includes a dozen whole grains. While fine ocean snorkeling is a 10-minute drive away, the sparkling infinity edge swimming pool drops off into exquisite, unobstructed views of the coast 1,100 feet below. www.horizonguesthouse.com

About 1,200 feet above Kealakekua Bay, in the heart of the island’s famed Kona Coffee Belt, Ka‘awa Loa Plantation offers a retreat inspired by the past—yet fiercely proud of modern times. A startup coffee farm, this 5.6-acre estate filled with avocados, bananas, papayas, coconuts, mangoes, passion fruit and other tropicals came to partners Michael Martinage and Greg Nunn in the summer of 2006, after years of neglect. Now a thoughtful B & B, the two-story plantation-style guest house is encircled by a white-trimmed, sage-blue wrap-around lanai with comfy rocking chairs and a Hawaiian püne‘e, a daybed as soft as a love affair. You enter through a glass-paneled “shipwright door,” designed to look like the back of a clipper ship. Inside, a crisp olive-green and barley-yellow color palette comp lements plantation furnishings and personal treasures such as a rare Samoan kapa cloth. The natural environment remains present in the minimalist-design five units—three rooms, a suite, a cottage—all with hand-made bed throws. The outdoor showers in the lava rock garden are a must, and, yes, Kona coffee pours plentiful. www.kaawaloaplantation.com

Part of the artistic community of Hölualoa above historic Kailua-Kona—a sweet coffee plantation town packed with galleries—Holualoa Inn sits amid 30 acres of tropical coffee orchards and colorful gardens with trails, even a meditative labyrinth, meandering through. At sunset, pheasants may stop by, encouraged by the evening breeze. The Inn itself shows off original, gorgeous eucalyptus wood floors, offering two suites and four rooms, each with their own plantation decor. The Coffee Cherry Room opens to a private outdoor hot tub spa, while a delicate Japanese fan crowns the Ginger Room. Stay in the Gardenia Suite for stunning Kona coast ocean views from the sitting room. Your on-site chef prepares lavish breakfasts that include estate-grown coffee, and you may whip up your=2 0own meal in a bamboo kitchenette at night. www.holualoainn.com/rooms.htm

Perched above the verdant Hämäkua Coast in Ähualoa, Waianuhea might seem rural and remote, but make no mistake. Hugging a peaceful lily pond, this gleaming two-story inn has firmly espoused contemporary luxury trends—solar-generated electricity and satellites for IT connectivity. Decor is modern, fun, whimsical with Tiffany stained-glass chandeliers in the dining room, blue leather chairs, and, all together, over 50 harmonizing colors of paint. The five guest rooms are plush but each different: a guest might sleep in a hand-painted, wrought-iron bed or a four poster cherry king bed, relax amid rich Oriental rugs, or enjoy a wood-burning stove. The Malamalama Suite sports startling shades of greens and blues, plus a large soaking tub with landscape views. Make sure to savor chef Christine Ching’s artful hot breakfasts packed with fresh, local, organic produce and Hawaiian flair. Classy touch? An evening wine hour with often-changing wines. www.waianuhea.com/

Kaua‘i: Hidden amid vacation rentals, which seem to dominate the Garden Isle, the luxurious Palmwood Inn can easily go undetected. This small B & B—a Japanese-style, two-story structure infused with meditative Asian elements—sits on four secluded acres on a plateau overlooking Kaua‘i’s chiseled jungle mountains, close to Moloa‘a Bay. You’ll find just two suites, East and West. Each has custom-designed palmwood and leather furnishings, a private entry, and royal French doors that open to a private hot-tub deck. The West suite boasts its own outdoor lava rock waterfall shower with a flowing pond, the East suite a Japanese shower enhanced by exotic woods. Either way, you’ll love the peaceful sound of trickling water, the symbolic beauty of lotus flowers and bamboo. The upstairs of the Inn includes a kitchen and dining area, where host Eddi whips up a daily changing breakfast—banana bread, blushing mangos, basil-fragrant eggs. (808-631-9006; web.mac.com/eddihenry/iWeb/ThePalmwoodsite/About%20Us.html)

O‘ahu: Within minutes of Waikïkï and downtown Honolulu, the Manoa Valley Inn shows its origins dating back to 1912 unabashedly. The Inn, once a country home, is officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and each of the eight rooms has a different Victorian-style decor. You may have to share a bathroom—remember, a family lived here before—but two private cottages are available as well. A breakfast of tropical fruits, breads, and cereals is served on the spacious wicker-chair veranda reminiscent of the Hawai‘i of yesteryear. www.manoavalleyinn.com

Hawaii’s Hidden Hideaway in Kailua, minutes walking from famed Lanikai Beach, offers the luxury of private suite and studio entrances in a stately mansion. With a private outdoor hot tub, a garden atmosphere, and a romantic canopy bed, the Peacock Suite remains a honeymoon favorite, but the two studios with their flexible configuration of beds include a tropical outdoor shower area and outdoor decks. Your little kitchenette is stocked with delicious first-day breakfast supplies, including yogurts, pastries, and fresh fruit. Dinner? Kailua has some of the island’s best restaurants in t he area. www.ahawaiibnb.com

Läna‘i: Any selective round-up of bed & breakfasts must include historic Hotel Läna‘i, built in 1923 by James Dole as lodging for Dole pineapple plantation executives, and imbued with vintage Hawaiian atmosphere. On a knoll overlooking sleepy Läna‘i City, in the cool shade of Norfolk Pines, the Inn shelters 10 plantation-style rooms and a cottage, each with its own character enhanced by Hawaiian quilts and local art. Breakfast at the inn is a simple continental affair, but dinner, under the guidance of award-winning chef Bev Gannon, combines vibrant flavors and colors in a menu inspired by the islands’ abundance of local, fresh, and often organic ingredients. Don’t expect the pampering you might get at Läna‘i’s only two, nearby resorts, but rather an experience of old Hawai‘i, perpetuated today in the Aloha of the people and the land. Which is, really, what all B & Bs are all about. www.hotellanai.com