I was born and raised on Oahu, so my perspective may differ from a visitor coming from, say, the Midwest. With that said...
Location:
WorldMark Kona is located off the main strip of Kailua-Kona. This is not a waterfront property and it didn't really matter at all for me (see note above). The ocean is across the street and through some property, but I never actually tried going to the beach. WorldMark is slightly too far away to walk to all the shops and restaurants on the Alii strip since there's no real sidewalk that goes down there. And the traffic and dimly lit street makes it rather dangerous to walk especially at night. However, it's just a minute drive there, and we didn't have too much trouble finding parking. Lots of shops and restaurants. Even a beach volleyball court.
Rooms:
The rooms were clean, very comfortable, relaxing, spacious and well-lit. We've stayed in a 1-bedroom and a 2-bedroom. After staying in a 1-bedroom suite, it's very hard to go back to a 350 sq. ft. hotel room. The biggest difference from staying at a traditional hotel is that I actually feel at home. Having a kitchen and a living room makes it easy to relax after a long day out in the sun.
Bottomline:
From my experience, WorldMark has been very consistant in the quality and service at their timeshare resorts. (I've been to Kihei, Kona, and Las Vegas). I even plan on visiting two more of their properties this year. Whenever on the Big Island, I don't bother looking at staying anywhere else.
