On this installment of Travel Tuesdays, we leave Northern California and head over to beautiful Hawaii. Ilyssa and I spent our honeymoon in Hawaii and had an absolutely amazing time. I really prefered Kauai over Maui. It is a much more relaxed, less touristy island than Maui. I tend to avoid travel books, because they are often out of date, and you can usually find better places to go by talking to friends and searching local blogs..hint, hint. I do, however, recommend Kauai Revealed – The Ultimate Guidebook. This is a fantastic travel book, not like any other travel book I have ever read. The recommendations were spot on, and it came heavily recommended by many of our friends. We stayed at the St. Regis Princeville (hooray points!) and I highly recommend it as it is tucked away in a secluded part of the North Shore and has incredible views. I have also heard great things about the Grand Hyatt on the south shore of the island.
Eat & Drink:
North Shore:
Java Kai 5-5183C Kuhio HWY, Hanalei, HI 96714
- We ate breakfast here most days, as it was much cheaper than the hotel’s breakfast
- Fantastic waffles, great Kona Coffee, delicious local fruit
Blue Dolphin – 5-5016 Kuhio Hwy, Hanalei, HI 96714
- Great burgers and fish sandwiches – perfect after a long day of hiking or laying in the sun
- Outdoor seating; easily accessible if you are kayaking along the canal
- Absolutely luxurious resort
- If you don’t stay here, definitely make sure you grab breakfast here. The food is fabulous and you won’t have a better view at breakfast ever again.
South Shore
Puka Dog – 2650 Kiahuna Plantation Dr. KOLOA /HAWAII 96756
- Fantastic hot dogs, great sauces, don’t miss it. Tucked away inside an outdoor shopping mall but don’t let the location fool you – it is delicious!
Beach House – 5022 Lawai Rd Koloa, HI 96756
- Great food, an amazing sunset view.
- Make reservations in advance as it fills up quickly.
Do:
Plenty of beautiful beaches around Kauai, we stayed at the Princeville Resort, and the beach was so perfect, we didn’t really venture out to all of the different beaches. If you have comfortable chairs, drink service, and the beach all to yourself, why would you leave? Hiking along the 12 mile Na Pali coast trail is very popular. We only hiked the first two miles (and we were in post wedding shape mind you), and it was very difficult. It can be very muddy and slippery, but I’m glad we did it as the views were incredible. I recommend getting water shoes, tabis, or Vibram Five finger shoes if you are going to hike in Hawaii – they are great for the rocky beaches as well.
I highly recommend doing a catamaran tour of the Na Pali Coast. We used Holo Holo Charters and had a great time. We did not factor in that we were staying on the North Shore and the charter left from the other side of the island, so we had to get up at 4:30 AM to make the tour. If you are staying on the North Shore and you don’t want to wake up that early, they offer sunset cruises as well. You can skip driving up the Waimea Canyon. Long windy road up a mountain, not worth the aggravation of driving up the long winding roads.
The spa at the Grand Hyatt is a fabulous choice, we had an 8 hour layover in Kauai on our way home and decided to rent a car and spend the day at the spa. Best massage of my life.
Hawaii is not cheap, I recommend stopping by the Wal-Mart by the airport after you land to pick up the essentials for your trip.
