not to throw you a total curve, but the reason the Hawaiians and missionaries used koa, mango, and other exotic woods is because they stand up to the humidity (I'm on Oahu). You see a lot of teak around the island - also used on boats as it does not swell - but its color is lighter - and often more Scandinavian in design. Rattan used a lot and I love the look, but impossible in my mind to keep really clean looking over time as dust and crumbs fall in. Pacific Craftworks on Oahu sells custom cabinets made from mostly darker colored woods in Viet Nam - another tropical place - that should hold up to Hawaii weather (no affiliation) - some looks like mahogany but different wood. We used them in our master bath and the prices weren't bad. The dark woods are traditional but too much can make the room feel heavy. Hawaiian homes were influenced by missionaries from New England, cowboys, Balinese, Chinese, Japanese, Filipinos, Europeans, and plantation owners. So we don't have a purely beach feel - the white rattan look is more East Coast. Tropical is the darker, wider strip, rattan. Here it is all about moss rock, exotic woods, flowers, surfboards, waves, turtles, pineapple, dark sea blues and green foliage mixed with white, cream, and woven mats. If you stick to the white (which will look clean, fresh, and airy) make sure they are quality boxes to hold up to the humidity. For the Hawaii vibe decorate with a few koa or monkeypod (less expensive) chairs, coffee table, or a bowl on your counter, bring in the light and the air and avoid kitsch. Your koa fan will tie into those accents. The one you have chosen is very modern looking and I understand that fewer blades (3 to 4) move more air than 5. Traditionally locals used lots of fans to move the trade winds and homes were designed to pull in the trades. Don't fall for a kitschy fan if it doesn't function well. Suggest any fabrics have local tropical flowers (ginger, heliconia) in large, lush prints. Your inspiration Kauai cottage has beautiful accent pillows that illustrate this - the upholstery is beige but the pillows have heliconia and tropical leaves to bring in color.

whatever has been said..your landlord sounds like a real nice guy..:) unless of course you have agreement that your improvements hugely lower your rent? what I'd do though..if I was as handy and as eager as you.. -the mosaic in the kitchen where the backsplash is-hard to see whether a real backsplash or wallpaper? if wallpaper-get rid of it and repaint. if real mosaics-just repaint. ETA-ok reread your post..real mosaics. I love peel and stick options that do exist, but I'm not sure I'd go for them here..it's not so much mosaic as its placement..countertop backsplash plus mosaics plus wrap around..too much. And it won't be easy to find something that will work. But. Check your options. Etsy has pages upon pages of tile decals, for example. https://www.etsy.com/search?q=tile%20decals&ref=auto1&as_prefix=tile%20decals -you seem to have no space next to the stove..I know IKEA carries these narrow tables you know? or something of the kind..that you can put in between the stove and the fridge, have some landing surface, spot to place a pot you know -is the floor in the kitchen real tile or linoleum/vinyl? you can try and cover it with something if it irritates you of course(to me it's actually the worst offender. along with the blinds that I'd take out and put on curtains. but you're going to do that anyway). it can be tile decals, it can be floor cloth, it can be big inexpensive rug.. the rest of the kitchen, just deep clean and let be. new paint will make a huge difference -your door is fine..hard to see the living to make helpful furniture placement suggestion, but generally I find that sofa plus two chairs is the most versatile in most cases -the bathroom is cute and blue in cabinets picks up the flooring. Wallpaper is best to go though since it clashes with flooring. Clean the grout..and ask your landlord to change faucets etc if they're problematic. If they're not but you hate them-well maybe you can split the price. New paint, shower curtain that you love-and you're good. What's your style preference? I'm crazy about shower curtains so can look them up and suggest for you, and would be my pleasure:) you do need some "landing strip" as they call it..and I can't see whether youn can fit small dining table in the corner of the kitchen? .. if you want more suggestions about colors, furnishings, furniture layout and such, I recommend cross posting in Home Decorating forum. They(ok, us. lol) will ask you a bit more about dimensions, layout, preferences in style, budget, needs, etc. Congratulations on your first renting place, it's exciting..and good luck!

Thanks all for your input!! We are definitely going to replace the curtains - I am thinking something a bit sheer to make sure we get lots of natural light. We are also going to talk to the LL about the bars on the window. It's a very safe neighbourhood, but the LL installed the bars about 20 years ago when they lived in the unit, before the building had a fence around it. Now there is a fence so people cannot so easily enter our deck and back door area. We are also definitely interested in covering up the existing tiles that have the flowers on them, but leaving the rest of the white ones as they are. I am thinking we could do one single row across the entire backsplash of some sort of peel and stick tile with a funky design - something that is perhaps blue/grey-ish to match the counter top? I love the look of the Spanish style tiles, but I've never done this type of decorating before so I'd love some feedback on what sort of tiles you all think would work! I've been looking on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/ca/market/peel_and_stick_tile We have a microwave and toaster that are stainless steel which will be out on the countertop and I think will help! I'd also like to get some sort of runner-type rug for the kitchen to add some colour. We are based in Canada so unfortunately we don't have Target here, but IKEA seemed to have some reasonably priced ones. New door knobs/pulls were mentioned as well. I did some googling but couldn't quite figure out which were being referred to, or further, which would look good/fit with where the current knobs are installed. I'm also thinking maybe put some sort of plants/decor on top of the top cupboards to add some personality there. Any thoughts? I should mention our budget isn't very large unfortunately as we are a young couple just starting out! We've been sourcing a lot of our furniture off Kijiji/Facebook Marketplace which has been great though, and I am super open (although inexperienced) to DIY :) Thanks again everyone!

@Sar heated floors/ minimalism are common enough in many European Airbnbs. Just take a look at the many many many apartments listed. Beds are also something that you can spend a lot on and still have guests complain because they prefer a different type, In the US spring mattresses are the norm but we spent loads on memory foam, top of the line in one place, and rather middling memory foam hybrids in another, We have had more compliments on the less expensive beds. Mattresses are very personal and you will go mad trying to please everyone. I hate shower only bathrooms but understand that one must make do while traveling. If I was paying top end pricing, I would expect a soaking tub no matter what continent I was on. See? That is how guests are. Very individual. Very personal. Don't get so caught up in thinking "there is NO WAY someone could possibly complain about my space as it is the ultimate! All details thought of and provided." Because they will complain. Its simply human nature. Your ultimate is not ultimate for everyone. So as someone who has done this successfully in a variety of different spaces over the years I offer you this-- make this space a bit more unique and interesting. I understand minimalism. Its not my taste but nonetheless, I get it. There is no "hook" that makes me want to stay in this space. It looks sterile. There is nothing that makes me remember it. It looks like you have a beautiful garden. Why not bring some of that color indoors? Or concentrate on your indoor/outdoor lifestyle. Stop fussing over the perfect backsplash ( you will never encounter a guest who reviews the quality of your backsplash or cares what you spent per square metre) and concentrate on what makes your space appealing. Right now it looks to me like the glass wall and garden would be much "sexier" to guests than anything I can see inside. And frankly, if I am on vacation I am in no way in need of a huge fridge. A wine fridge would be more useful frankly. Cooking is NEVER on my list of things I want to do when exploring a new place. But guess what? We have had so many guests who have cooked and baked in our vacation spaces-- large meals. But its never a good idea to invest in high end kitchenware in these spaces. They tend to disappear,