City Watch
Short-term rental rules in Princeville, HI
How Princeville regulates short-term rentals: the rules that apply, their sources, and pending changes.
Short-term rentals here operate under a registration or permit system with ongoing operating rules.
- TVRs permitted by right inside the Visitor Destination Area (Princeville is a designated VDA)
- No cap or frozen-inventory limit inside the VDA (those apply only outside VDAs)
- TVR registration and annual GET/TAT tax-certificate process applies
- County-wide VDA restrictive frame is context only, not the Princeville determinant
Based on: Kauaʻi County Code Ch. 8 Art. 17 §8-17.3 — Permitted Locations for Multi-Family Transient Vacation Rentals
Summary of the rule
Kauaʻi County Code Ch. 8, Art. 17, Sec. 8-17.3 — Permitted Locations for Multi-Family Transient Vacation Rentals: 'Subject to the limitations contained in Sec. 8-17.5, multi-family transient vacation rentals are allowed: (a) In hotels in Resort or Commercial Districts; and (b) In Resort Districts and Residential Districts within the visitor destination areas as more particularly designated on County of Kauaʻi Zoning Maps.' Princeville is one of the four designated Visitor Destination Areas (Poʻipū, Līhuʻe, Wailua-Kapaʻa, Princeville), so transient vacation rentals are a PERMITTED USE BY RIGHT within Princeville's qualifying Resort/Residential districts. Sec. 8-17.2 allows time share/time-share plans by right in the Resort RR-10/RR-20 and Multi-Family R-10/R-20 Districts when located within those same VDAs (Princeville named); Sec. 8-17.9 provides that a NEW single-family TVR 'established in Visitor Destination Areas subsequent to March 7, 2008 shall register with the Director of Finance prior to any such use' — i.e., new VDA TVRs are permitted subject only to registration, whereas none may be created outside a VDA. The Art. 17 general prohibition (Sec. 8-17.1), the pre-3/7/2008 freeze, and the Nonconforming Use Certificate regime (Sec. 8-17.10) apply ONLY to areas OUTSIDE a VDA. No cap, quota, or numeric limit on TVRs inside the VDA appears in Sec. 8-17.1, 8-17.2, 8-17.3, 8-17.4, or 8-17.5 — the only STR-specific obligation on a by-right VDA operator is TVR registration plus the annual State GET/TAT tax certificate.
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Last reviewed Sep 10, 2026 · Sources · Report an error
Pending legislation
Monitoring Princeville · system last checked Oct 25, 2026
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City Watch provides good-faith summaries of publicly available information as of the review date shown. Rules, enforcement, and permit availability can change, and summaries may contain errors or omissions. Ratings describe the general regulatory environment; they do not establish whether a particular property or stay is permitted. This is general information, not legal advice. Before buying, listing, or hosting, verify applicable requirements with the responsible authorities and review any HOA, condominium, deed, or lease restrictions.