Our Recent Trip to “The Garden Isle” – Kauai
Kauai “The Garden Isle” truly lived up to its name. It was the last of the Hawaiian Islands that we finally made our way to. The bad rep that Kauai “has nothing to do” was far from the truth. The relaxed atmosphere was the polar opposite of Oahu. With lush green mountains and absolutely crystal clear waters, it was the epitome of island life. We started our stay at Marriott’s Kauai Beach Club in Lihue which was about 10 minutes from the airport. Lihue turned out to be an excellent starting point with Costco, Walmart and Target all within 15 minutes the hotel. The city was also under 1 hour to the most northern point as well as Waimea Canyon which allows you to cover the entire island with simple day trips. The city is a good mix of suburban and island life. The Marriott sits right on Kalapaki Beach with the pool only separated by a small strip of grass and a walkway. The beach was incredibly calm but caution should be used when swimming out since the depth increases rapidly and the swells give quite a push. If you get lucky, like we did, you will even see a leatherback turtle rubbing against the rocks.
Places to see:
Lihue: There are plenty of shops and eateries in Lihue unlike some of the other towns in Kauai. Stocking up at Costco is a must as is Walmart but get ready to pay a pretty penny for your essentials. I highly recommend stocking up on some good bandaids at the start of any trip because the Kauai coral is brutal and you will get a could good gouges. Outside of Lihue you won’t have much of a chance to get goods from a retail store and will have to hit up the overpriced local markets. One nice little hidden gem is Uncle’s Shave Ice to cool down with an ice the size of your head.
Poipu: This is a very quaint town that is the ultimate beach life. Poipu beach is an absolutely fantastic place to hang out all day. The east side of the beach is very calm with clear waist high waters. Arrive in the morning for some of the best and easiest snorkeling you will find in Hawaii. A lifeguard is there to make sure you don’t swim out of the bay but there is so much to see within the boundaries. Stick around until late morning and you will likely see some turtles and seals pop up onto the beach to nap and relax. Here you can come within feet of these amazing creatures. Heading to the west side of the beach will give you some choppier and deeper waters with more excellent snorkeling but without any scary swells. Pro-tip: bring water shoes and a life vest. The shoes will be your biggest bang for your bucks since the coral is brutal on the feet. Can’t tell you how many people came out of the water with gashes on their feet. The life vest isn’t for deep or dangerous waters, but it helps to keep your knees from crashing into the coral.
The next must see is Shipwreck beach, but not for the beach but rather to hike the absolutely gorgeous Heritage trail. It is a hike for the young and the old since it is rather easy but gives you amazing views of the coastline from high above. If you have little ones running rambunctiously around you will want to keep a close eye on them. The hike is a few miles round trip and there is plenty of shade and places to just sit and relax. Head to the coastal trail for amazing views or stay more inland if you want o enjoy shade. As for the beach, you may want to avoid going into the water since the rocks are wicked and the waves were brutal. I didn’t see anyone dare venture out.
There are lots of places to eat including the village market. However, I recommend you take an extra 10 minutes to drive out to Kukuiula market to grab some local favorites and enjoy the shopping and eateries. Kuluiula local market has some authentic butter mochi and musubi to grab on the go.
Princeville: On the way north make sure to stop by the Kilauea Lighthouse. Entry into the park was free if your kids have a national park pass otherwise it is about $20 (don’t quote me on that). There are free binoculars to grab at the visitor center for some cool bird watching. Most people missed out on this since they never bothered going inside. The lighthouse is small and a great spot for a photo op.
Princeville itself is just a small city with some eateries and markets. Nothing too sexy about this town but it’s a good stop prior to heading to Hanalei Beach.
Hanalei Beach: OMG! This beach was so amazing and worth the 1 hour drive from Lihue! Crystal clear waters, calm surf, and amazing views of waterfalls and the mountains. You will definitely need to bring some umbrellas since there is no shade. The sand is super soft without any coral or rocks. Not much fish to be seen but a place to just float and swim. The beach is very long, not crowded and just a very peaceful place to unwind. Definitely a place to spend a few hours but if you are looking for something adventurous you will be disappointed but can live vicariously through the numerous helicopter rides passing by the waterfalls.
Waimea Canyon: The canyon is on the west side of the island but well worth the drive. The canyon is the Grand Canyon of Hawaii. Easily accessible by car and again free for national park holders. There are so many “vista” spots that are totally worth pulling over for. I found that many of these spots had better views than the actually trails. We only managed to hit the Canyon Lookout trail which was a walk even a baby could do. It offers spectacular views of the canyon with waterfalls out in the distance. The next spot was Canyon trail. This approximately 4 mile hike was of moderate difficulty and would be even worse if there was recent rain. There was lot of mud and the decent meant a pretty brutal accent back to the parking lot. The trail splits off and the shorter route heads to a look out point and shaves off about a mile from the hike. Overall a great hike but don’t expect to do more hikes after this unless you are built differently. Come with hiking shoes and not sneakers or you will be in for a mud filled slip and slide adventure. Lastly, pack some bug spray!!
Other things to do:
Kauai Plantation Railway: book the 40 minute train ride around the plantation for some nice history about the island. On the tour you get to feed and pet horses, wild pigs and a donkey. Book online and use promo code KCB to get 15% off (found it online but it worked for us).
Fern Grotto: take a nice pontoon boat up the river to the fern grotto where you will see…well the grotto. It is a very chill outing with little walking. You will spend about 20 minutes on the boat and 30 minutes on the ground. The mosquitoes here are vicious so spray every bit of exposed skin or they will find you. You can buy tickets online or at the ticket office. Lot of people seemed to stay for the Garden Luau after the tour. Nearby you can rent some kayaks and head up the river on your own but we ran out of time for this.
Wailua Falls: a quick drive from Fern Grotto will get you to this waterfall. You cannot hike down to the bed of the fall but can view it from the top. It’s a quick trip and worthwhile if you are looking to get close to a fall.
ATV, MountainTubing, Zipline: if you are interested make sure to book online and early. We unfortunately tried to get in the week of any everything was sold out. The Tubing was booked 1 month out. Each expedition is about $150 so get your pocketbooks ready.
