Kaui, Hawaii

I mentioned we love Hawaii already. But what I haven’t mentioned is that Kaui is our favorite. It’s amazing.

Hawaii is all about honor and respecting the land and mother nature and I just think that’s beautiful. If you plan on traveling to Hawaii, make sure to do the Pono Pledge before you go.

We traveled to Kaui in 2021 while Covid was still a pandemic. In order to get into Hawaii, there were a lot of steps in order to be approved to enter the state. Kauai was worth it.

We traveled to Kauai for our anniversary in October. The weather was great. We first stayed on the East side of Kauai. This is a very budget friendly area for Kauai and a great location. Lava lava Beach club is a fun restaurant with yummy drinks and food right on the beach. There are two locations in Hawaii, one being The Big Island and the other being on Kauai. Kauai Shores, the first hotel we stayed, also happens to be where Lava Lava Beach Club is. So once we landed we went straight there for a little live music and the sound of the ocean.

We booked a helicopter tour of the island. The reason to book it early in your trip is in the case the tour needs to be rescheduled due to weather. Weather on the island doesn’t usually last long due to what they call microclimates, but it can cause your helicopter to be delayed. Which I’m all about safety first, so this just means to be flexible!

After staying on the East side, we then moved over to the south side of the island. The south side is considered the sunniest side of Kauai. We stayed at Koa Kea Restort, and oh my gosh. Lovely. We did yoga on the lawn at sunrise, ate some amazing food at their restaurant, Red Salt, and overall just had a wonderful experience at this resort. It’s a luxury boutique feel, which I like.

It’s recommended to rent a car on any island in Hawaii. What I’ve learned is that jeeps are ideal for The Big Island, convertibles are good for Kauai, and Oahu you can get away with any car really. The reason is, is that there are some areas on The Big Island you may need the jeep for more rough roads. The road in Kauai is paved and very slow, even if you drive to the canyon. Speaking of the canyon, I’d highly recommend a convertible with the top down. So many other visitors saw us and commented how they were jelly. You get the best views this way!

Kauai has so many wonderful beaches, but you really need to be well informed of ocean and safety in Hawaii. Do not go into any waters without knowing if it’s safe or not. It could be decieving and look nice and calm but have a huge rip current and suck you out. Hawaii is beautiful, but it’s a force of nature too and not to be messed with.

Poipu Beach on the south side was my favorite beach. Great for swimming and at night time sea turtles come up to rest there! Do not touch them! In fact, you need to stay back 50ft.

I could go on and on about Kauai. It’s the most amazing place on earth in my opinion. But I do still have a lot of traveling to do! I’ll try to come back to this post and add more. But for now, you get the idea!

Our Itinerary

Wednesday

Travel day. Flight @ 11:40am; land @ 7:30pm

Check into Kauai Shores Hotel (East Shore)

Eat at lava lava beach club, relax and listen to live music

Thursday,

East shore day

Eat Healthy Kauai or Java Kai

Helicopter check-in @9:45am. Flight @10am

Downtown Kaapa town explore shops and The Kauai store.

Lunch – Sams ocean view* or Jimmy Grill

Opaeka‘a Falls Lookout* – east shore

Wailua Falls* – east shore

Lydgate Beach Park – East (very safe but JELLYFISH)

Dinner – Oasis on the beach at 5:30pm

Friday

This day was our anniversary, so I made it a bit special with checking into a nicer hotel for the rest of our stay and treated ourselves to a spa, with a massage by the ocean.

Breakfast ideas: Java Kai, Lava lava beach club

Lunch ideas: Puka dogs

Switch rental car @1pm

Spa at 2:20pm

Poipu beach

Check into new hotel Koa Kea 4pm

Dinner at The Beach House @ 7:15pm

Saturday

South side day

Early morning yoga on the beach

Breakfast at Red Salt

Maha’ulepu Heritage Trail (no swim)- South

Glass Beach

Spouting Horn Beach Park – South

Lunch/dinner: Keoki’s Paradise @ 5pm

Swim at poipu beach

Sunday

North shore day

Breakfast at salt then 2hrs to drive to Ke’e Beach* hike kalalau trail.

Lunch North shore (see saved google map): Kalypso Island Bar & Grill or Tahiti Nui

Hanalei Bay*

Back to Koa kea

Extra ideas (if above doesn’t work or we have extra time)

Might be dangerous….

Hike (short and sweet) starts at kahili beach Pools of mokolea hike (1 mile total)

Tunnels Beach – north shore

Anini Beach

Hideaway Beach

Queens bath

Monday

West shore day

Breakfast at Red Salt

Waimea Canyon

Pihea Trail hike (2 Miles Round Trip)

Lunch at Kokee Lodge

Dinner in Wamiea area if really hungry (or something along the way)

Tuesday

South day/Extra

Whatever is left we feel we HAVE to do!

Yoga on the beach

Poipu beach, swim/snorkel

Red Salt Dinner at 5:30pm

Wednesday

Flight to Oakland @7:15am

Land in Oakland @3:30pm

Stay the night here.

Chezpanissa restaurant – time?

Thursday

Fly the rest of the way home, leaving from Oakland.