My wife's #1 requirement when we vacation near an ocean is that she be able to see and hear it from the room at night. To that end, we always try to get the room/suite closest to the actual ocean, no matter how far it is to walk there. We have heard that the Kauai property is set back from the ocean a bit, but are the closest parts still within visual and audible range?
None of us are concerned about the beach being swimmable, as long as it is walkable barefoot (i.e. mostly sand vs coral/lava). We go for a suite so my teenage daughter can make her little home in the living area. I have heard that the Kauai suites are better than the Maui ones, and the bathrooms appear to be, but the pics posted in an earlier post showed rather spartan and sparse (read: cheap) furnishings in the living area - not what I would expect from a 4/5 star resort hotel. Looked more like an average Holiday Inn. Is my perception validated by those of you who have been there?
What do you mean "closest to the ocean" ? The entire property is set a ways back from a (usually) unswimable beach and it's about a 5 minute walk from the suites in the Poipu wing, e.g. closest to the club.
I was in 5016 a few weeks ago, and it was nice, but waste of space for me. Personally, if I was using points, I wouldn't pay a 50% premium for a suite here, unless you're bunking kids in the living spaces or something like that. I just don't spend that much time in the room here. Similarly, I wouldn't worry about things like premium internet. The regular service was fine for things like email and Skype. I suppose it might be useful if you're trying to stream HD videos, but why would you do that at this property ? Get out of the room and do something
The breakfast buffet at the Ilima Terrace is great, and we usually eat there once or twice per visit. Everyday is too much for us, and the club breakfast is more than fine.