Outrigger Waipouli Beach Resort
Background--- This was our second stay at this property with our previous stay being 3 years ago. For this stay, we had my wife, 7 year old son, 2 year old daughter, and my mother and father in-law.
Room--- We stayed in the 2 bedroom, 3 bath, ground floor unit facing the pool. This was very convenient for going to and from the pool and BBQ area. There is also a large kitchen for preparing meals ( I have more on this in conclusions). The kitchen has an electric induction range, large dishwasher, and a sub zero refrigerator/freezer. With 6 of us we ate most of our meals on the lanai and were perfectly comfortable.
Pool--- The pool has got to be one of the best pools on the Island. The only better pool could be at the Grand Hyatt. The Outrigger Pool has grassy sunning area, pool chairs, two water slides, kid’s sandy bottom lagoon (sand is more like gravel), river like pool extension, waterfalls and a cave behind one of the waterfalls. The pool area also has three hot tubs- One for families and two for adults. We stayed during spring break and there were tons of children of all ages. My kids had a grand time making new friends and never wanted to get out of the pool.
Beach--- There is not a “swimmable” beach at this property. However, there is a good beach for walks and beachcombing. The resort is also a great pace to watch the sunrise, or so I am told. “I just missed it the one day I tried”. Also, there is a natural, very shallow (ankle deep) lagoon, nearby that is fun for kids when the water is calm. This is a great beach to walk and collect coral and other neat rocks/shells.
Oasis Restaurant--- I like this place. It has wonderful views of the ocean, one of the best Mai Tai recipes on the island and is on property. We did not have dinner, but happy hour instead. Good happy hour, but it stinks the Mai Tai is not included on the Happy Hour menu and is still the full $12. Have the Pineapple martini.
We had lunch at the pool twice and the kids had the hot dogs and quesadillas and seemed to like it. we had the fish tacos and had to send them back. I asked for the Ahi to be cooked med and it came back seared and raw on the inside. I asked for them to be cooked through and when they came back it was excellent.
Service was sporadic. One day there was pool service, and next, poof!, it was gone. And I found out kind of harshly. The second day I ordered, I told the young lady (who took my order, and took my credit card slip) as I was leaving we were sitting by the kids pools. She looked at me and said “Oh, I don’t bring it to you. You have to come back in 10 minutes.” Lesson learned, tip extra for poolside service when you actually get poolside service. Not really the staff’s fault, just seems like inconsistent management. Accually kind of saved me some bucks. When the server came around I was more inclined to order from the bar. When I had to get up, I just went back to the room for more beer.
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly--- First and foremost let me say that we love staying here , but it was not as good as last time.
“The Good” news is the front desk staff is very friendly and very helpful. Could always answer questions and help you during your stay. The same can be said for the activities desk. And for that matter the maintenance team. Always with a smile and willing to talk about local activities and local eats.
“The Bad” for us is that we booked through Outrigger directly. This was bad for a few reasons. The first and foremost we overpaid. After to talking to multiple families, it became clear we could have had significant savings through VRBO.
Another reason, is our unit came sparsely stocked. The two stove top pans provided were very small and inadequate and the cooking utensils did not match the cookware. (Metal spatulas should not work on nonstick cookware. . . but that is what we had.) And ice was problem. The icemaker dripped so it would freeze half the ice in the bin solid. I bought a huge bag of ice at Costco for three bucks and never got through it all.
A huge difference (also in “The Bad” category) from our last stay was there was no maid service for sheets or towels. The nightly rate+resort fee+cleaning fee, does not include fresh bath towels or sheets. But the washer and dryer does come in handy.
“The Ugly”- At multiple points during our stay there was conflict at the pool with the “pool staff”. I use quotes because I am not sure who works for who. First, I over heard the staff member handing out towels scolding some children and then making reference to how many of the condos are owned by older people and they do not like misbehaving children around. Kind of surprising since it is such a child friendly pool. I also heard this staff member yelling across the pool “I know you read that sign! If you do it again you will be kicked out!”
Second, there was a contracted, uniformed, security guard (with his company’s patches on his shoulders) working at the pool in the evenings. I heard multiple complaints about this man and how rude he was to guests. I was able to get this experience first hand one night. My son and I were playing catch with a mini football on the large lawn in the pool area. This guard came over and started yelling “You can’t do that here!” “You already broke the window” “If you want to play go to the beach!”. The guard was referring a window on the gym nearby. I could not believe that he accused us of breaking the window. We had just got there and had not thrown the ball near the window. I asked who he was referring to telling him we did not break a window, he backed down but continued to be rude about playing ball. I told him he should be asking nicer and not demanding right away, perhaps, “Sir, this window was broken today by someone playing ball. Could you do me a favor and not play here. Maybe the beach will work. Thanks, I really appreciate it.”
That may be asking too much. Having personally worked beside this very security company on the mainland, I was not surprised he had no customer service training. As he left I found out from one of the other dads standing nearby at the BBQ that the exact same thing happened to him a little earlier.
Overall--- I would stay here again for the pool. However, I would use VRBO. Many of the families we talked to who used VRBO told us their rooms came fully stocked with a full week’s supply of coffee, salt and pepper and other staples and even had a full closet of beach toys, boogie boards and snorkel equipment.
It is a shame that this property seems to becoming less family friendly.
Island Tips: If you don’t mind used items, head to the Salvation Army Thrift store, Kauai Humane Society Thrift store, or the Thrift store in Kappa’a. You can find all kinds stuff. Island shirts, beach toys, beach chairs, snorkel equipment, and we even got a used cooler great for taking drinks to the beach!