Kamala Harris was seen jetting back to reality on Monday following her six-day post-election retreat in Hawaii with husband Doug Emhoff.
The failed presidential candidate took nearly a week off to lick her electoral wounds at a luxury rental home in the true-blue island state, watching sunsets that turn the ocean the color of a strawberry milkshake.
The couple laid low at a $1,300-a-night vacation property, rarely venturing out even with their Secret Service detail there to protect her.
Harris was scheduled to return on Monday to Washington, D.C., where she still has work to do as the President of the Senate which is expected to spend much of the rest of its time in Democrat hands by confirming federal judges.
The vacation property was booked out through Wednesday, according to its website.
Exclusive DailyMail.com footage shows the VP’s convoy to the airport on Monday morning was at least 22 cars long, with Secret Service black Chevrolet Suburbans, unmarked muscle cars, a SWAT truck, fire truck, and helicopter escort.
The pair boarded Air Force Two at Kona International at around 9:45am, taking off shortly after 10am.
Harris, 60, wore a white jacket and black pants, with her hair in a bun. The VP smiled and waved to her staff as she walked aboard. Doug followed with a black polo shirt and khaki pants.
Kamala Harris was seen leaving Hawaii with husband Doug Emhoff on Monday after her six-day post-election loss getaway
The Vice President boarded Air Force Two at Kona International Airport. She wore a white jacket and black pants, with her hair in a bun. The VP smiled and waved to her staff as she walked aboard
Kamala Harris dealt with the pain of her crushing election loss with a six-day getaway at a 5,200 sq. ft, five-bedroom elite Hawaiian vacation home owned by a scion of the Mondavi wine family, DailyMail.com has learned
She chose the Big Island for a six-day post-election R&R retreat after her crushing November 5 defeat.
Residents spotted Air Force Two landing at Kona Airport on the big island of Hawaii last Tuesday evening and ‘a thirty-car police motorcade and helicopters’ escorting her to the Mauna Kea resort on the northwest coast.
Harris and Emhoff – who is also 60 and exactly one week older than her – chose a 5,200 sq. ft, five-bedroom elite home owned by a scion of the Mondavi wine family.
According to an online rental listing, the holiday home ‘includes three complimentary bottles of Mondavi family wine with every reservation’ so the second couple can drown their sorrows from her disaster at the polls.
The couple likely discussed her political future after she leaves her post on January 20.
But with Republicans in charge of the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, and with little chance that Democrats will pick her for a second presidential nomination, that future is looking bleak.
The VP, however, is reportedly still keeping her political options open. She hasn’t ruled out another presidential run in 2028 and she may consider a potential run for California governor in 2026, according to Politico.
Kamala remained inside the ritzy compound for almost her entire stay, with the house surrounded by at least ten secret service and police vehicles.
Emhoff was seen boarding alongside his wife with a black polo shirt and khaki pants. The plane took off shortly after 10am
Security was tight on the tarmac, with snipers seen standing by as the VP and Second Gentleman boarded the plane
The property, located on the Big Island of Hawaii, was bought for $5million in 2006, and is now estimated to be worth $7.4million, according to real estate listings
Though Hawaii is a blue state, the VP may not have received the warmest welcome from all the resort guests had she ventured out to its private beach – as at least two were sporting red MAGA hats.
But Harris – a noted chef – was likely well-satisfied just enjoying the amenities in the house, located on the northwest corner of the Big Island.
The home boasts a ‘gourmet chef’s kitchen’ along with a pool and hot tub.
It was bought for $5million in 2006, and is now estimated to be worth $7.4million, according to Zillow.
It is owned by a trust for R. Michael Mondavi, son of Robert Mondavi, one of the key figures behind Napa’s rise to fame as a wine region. Federal Election Commission records show Mondavi, 81, has donated thousands of dollars to both Republican and Democratic candidates, but did not give to the Harris campaign.
He and his wife Isabel, 78, did not respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.
Their vacation home sits on a hill overlooking the resort’s golf course, leading down to a private beach in front of the five-star Mauna Kea Beach Hotel.
Residents told DailyMail.com highlights of the location include the burnished gold and deep pink sunsets as well as romantic strolls along the private beach to a viewing spot where manta rays congregate in the shallows at dusk.
A six-night stay at the vacation rental is likely to have set back Harris at least $13,500, according to estimates on its website, which lists a nightly rate of $1,268 before taxes and fees
The home boasts a ‘gourmet chef’s kitchen’ that opens up to a spacious eating area with floor-to-ceiling glass doors that offer a direct view of the ocean
The vacation home sits on a hill overlooking the resort’s golf course, leading down to a private beach in front of the five-star Mauna Kea Beach Hotel
A six-night stay at the vacation rental is likely to have set back Harris at least $13,500, according to estimates on its website, which lists a nightly rate of $1,268 before taxes and fees.
However, the booking is relatively cheap compared to the nearby hotel which charges upwards of $900 per night for a standard room.
A source close to the VP’s protection team said agents have been on high alert.
The FAA has imposed temporary flight restrictions on the area around Mauna Kea.
Security is tight. On Saturday law enforcement were spotted on the hill above the Mondavi property, running anti-drone technology from an unmarked SUV decked out with radars and computer screens, powered by a generator.
At night police launched an approximately 6ft quadcopter drone from a turnout on the highway opposite the vacation home, monitoring the golf course and surrounding area for threats.
Unmarked police trucks circuited the resort’s golf course and a Secret Service officer in a bulletproof vest sat sentry in a red muscle car opposite the Mauna Kea’s gated entrance.
At least six SUVs and a white van with a satellite dish were stationed in the driveway and outside the Mondavi vacation home during the week.
Residents spotted Air Force Two landing at Kona Airport on the big island of Hawaii on Tuesday evening
Unmarked police trucks circuited the resort’s golf course and a Secret Service officer in a bulletproof vest was seen patrolling opposite the Mauna Kea’s gated entrance
The home is owned by a trust for R. Michael Mondavi, son of Robert Mondavi, (right) one of the key figures behind Napa’s rise to fame as a wine region. Kamala was pictured enjoying a bottle of Mondavi wine while cooking a Thanksgiving meal in 2018
Harris’s protection team set up a white tent as a security checkpoint on the private road to her holiday getaway, with a sniffer dog and officers who inspected resident’s vehicles entering and exiting the cul-de-sac.
‘They search your vehicle as you come in and out of the street. They pop your hood. It’s what you’d expect,’ said Patrick Jenkins, who owns a home on the street and whose house guest encountered the VP’s Secret Service detail on Friday.
‘It’s a very quiet subdivision, 30 homes. We’re not used to this kind of thing. It’s the first time we’ve had Secret Service on our street!’
Jenkins, 48, and his wife Kandi, 51, said the homes were ‘nice, but not extremely high-end’.
‘She’s staying in a comfortable home, but I wouldn’t call it a mansion or anything,’ he said. ‘The homes were built in the 80s.’
‘It’s nice but it’s not the Four Seasons,’ Kandi added. ‘We’re just regular people who have a vacation house there.
‘We’re very proud of her and we hope she enjoys the Mauna Kea. We hope she’s getting rest and relaxation with her friends and family.’
Patrick said the resort had the best beach on the island, with calm ocean water ‘great for boating’, and was near to sightseeing attractions such as the mountain observatory and Mauna Kea volcano.
Residents told DailyMail.com highlights of the location include the burnished gold and deep pink sunsets that turn the ocean the color of strawberry milkshake as well as romantic strolls along the private beach to a viewing spot where manta rays congregate in the shallows at dusk
The luxury rental would’ve set the couple back around $1300 a night
Despite her crushing defeat earlier this month, Harris is still keeping her political options open, according to reports
‘My hunch is she’s just resting, she’s not going to hike a volcano,’ said Kandi. ‘Hopefully she’s sipping a Mai Tai.’
Colorado-based David Appel, 64, who owns the home next door, said he was unaware of Harris’s visit.
In an interview with DailyMail.com Appel described the resort as ‘peaceful, very family-oriented, and beautiful but understated.’
He gave rave reviews of ‘the magic of Hawaii’ on offer at the resort, including ‘the beaches, clear blue waters, the wildlife, the hiking, the golf, surfing and tennis’ – Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff’s favorite sport.
‘But really, it’s a place to appreciate the natural beauty of the Big Island,’ he added.
‘Where else can you see beautiful fields of black lava right next to crystal blue waters and palm trees waving in the wind?’
