I took my mom to Hawaii's Kona Village resort for $1,765 a night — our stay was almost perfect

We landed in Kona around 7:30 a.m. after taking a red-eye from the West Coast. After grabbing breakfast, we took our rental car to the property, which is about 20 minutes north of the airport.

Hotel staff called me the day before to inquire about our estimated arrival time and to see if we needed assistance making restaurant or spa reservations.

Even though the hotel knew we were arriving early, I was still pleasantly surprised our room was ready at 9 a.m. The resort's managing and room directors, along with the front-desk team, were all on hand to greet us.

Kona Village features about 150 rooms and suites, each designed as self-contained bungalows. I loved the privacy this provided.

I'm glad we upgraded to an ocean-view room, as I loved being able to read outside on our balcony while overlooking the water.

The property also offers suites with ocean views, but we didn't need the extra space.

The rooms felt a bit rustic and were very spacious at 600 square feet. Plus, the beds were supremely comfortable.

Our queen-sized room didn't feature an outdoor shower like ones with king beds do, but our bathroom was still beautiful and spacious with great shower pressure and a large bathtub.

Staying at Kona Village felt like what I imagined Hawaii to feel like decades ago before technology was everywhere.

The atmosphere was relaxed and free of distractions, with in-room TVs only available on request. I especially loved taking in the calming, scenic view from our balcony.

The spa was situated adjacent to our room and looked gorgeous.

We toured the facilities, and the walk from its reception building to the treatment rooms across a lava field felt otherworldly.

I love visiting spas while on vacation, but for the first time in as long as I can remember, I ended up not booking an appointment. A 90-minute deep-tissue massage would have cost me nearly $500 with gratuity, which seemed a bit steep.

The nearby black-sand beach was filled with interesting trees and natural features.

I also loved that the hotel's beach area was dotted with cushioned lounge chairs and palapas, spaced far enough apart from each other to offer some privacy.

The marine life seemed to appreciate the atmosphere on the beach as well, as we often saw Hawaiian monk seals and green sea turtles.

We also got to go in the water. Staff was readily available to take us sailing on the resort's catamarans, show us great snorkeling spots, and help set up paddleboards and other water equipment.

If we got tired of the beach, we'd head over to one of the two pools, which were accompanied by inviting hot tubs.

Whether we set up camp on the beach or in one of the complimentary poolside cabanas, the staff made sure we were well-hydrated. They were also readily available if we wanted to order anything from the bar or kitchen.

We loved the poolside Hawaiian shaved ice and fresh coconuts topped with rum, which were free and served by the resort's management team.

The breakfast service was overall pretty well executed, and I appreciated the breadth of local dishes featured.

The chicken katsu, pancakes, and griddled foods were great, but I wasn't a fan of the ulu fried cake, which is essentially a fibrous bread fruit topped with a fatty piece of Kalua pork.

Because we booked with a Rosewood elite agent, we received credits to use toward our breakfast each day.

Although this mostly covered our morning eats for two, we paid more some days due to the pricing structure, which featured upcharges for modifications and some steep non-alcoholic beverage costs.

I really wanted to love Moana, the resort's flagship restaurant. However, our one — and only — dinner here was not great.

At Moana, we started with the $32 grilled octopus, and I felt it was overcooked and tough.

For my entrée, I opted for the $55 shellfish ramen. Although the protein was cooked well, the noodles clumped together and I found the broth to be quite salty.

My mom's $55 grilled Hawaiian snapper was also disappointing. The fish was placed face-down in mushroom dashi, which she thought was too salty and had a somewhat bitter flavor.

It's possible the restaurant just had an off service, but we decided to venture out of the resort for dinner the next few nights.

We enjoyed chef Tyler Florence's fairly new Miller & Lux restaurant next door at the Four Seasons. The steak house was great in terms of concept, service, and food.

I especially liked the crispy lobster Louie, which had an entire Kona crustacean served alongside hearts of palm.

We also checked out CanoeHouse at Mauna Lani, home to some of the island's best sunsets. The restaurant has a great pan-Asian menu.

On our last evening, we dined on the beach at Kona Village's more casual eatery, Kahuwai Cookhouse — and wish we had come earlier.

My huli-huli chicken was great, and my mom also liked her kalbi-glazed short rib. The simple preparations and delicious seasoning made every dish quite enjoyable.

I had pretty high expectations for Rosewood's first Hawaiian property, and for the most part, Kona Village hit all the marks. The resort's location and services may be the best I've experienced in Hawaii.

The only real downsides I found were the food at Moana, the breakfast upcharges, and the high prices at the spa.

Other than that, our stay was perfect, and I'd love to return for a long weekend soon.