Kauai

[yoladu 4094]

How much of a hassle is the Kalalau trail? Would love to do Hanakapiai Beach and back with the family.

I am seeing needs for a day pass/reservation, appears to be parking issues (not enough), expensive shuttle bus options? Looks like very early in the morning is really the only option.

any guidance/advice?

i may already be too late.. and well that is fine.. i will be in Hawaii 🙂

 

[wild_turkey 3182]

How much of a hassle is the Kalalau trail? Would love to do Hanakapiai Beach and back with the family.
I am seeing needs for a day pass/reservation, appears to be parking issues (not enough), expensive shuttle bus options? Looks like very early in the morning is really the only option.
any guidance/advice?
i may already be too late.. and well that is fine.. i will be in Hawaii 
 

Our plan is to do Kalalau trail to Hanakapiai Beach (about 2 miles) and then over to Hanakapiai Falls (about 2 more miles). We have a reservation for June 6 so I can give more info afterwards if that’s still relevant to you.

Reservations are done through gohaena.com. It says they open 30 days in advance and the parking spots sell out immediately so the shuttle is the more likely option for most people. Also, parking reservations are for a half day whereas shuttle reservations are from whatever your scheduled arrival shuttle time is (we got 9:30) until whenever you get ready to leave.

We were not prepared for the reservation system to be in such high demand so everything was completely sold out for the duration of our trip when we first checked (about 2 weeks ago). If this ends up being the case for you, don’t give up. I started checking multiple times daily and there were either cancellations or they opened new spots because I was eventually able to book a reservation for 4 people that was originally not available. I saw multiple other slots pop open during the course of my searching. Also, you can cancel a reservation for a full refund up to 3 days in advance, so even if you are unsure of your plans, I would start trying to book asap to have something as a placeholder.

Good luck.

[wild_turkey 3182]

We did the hike from Haena State Park to Hanakapiai Beach and then over to Hanakapiai Falls yesterday. This is basically the first 2 miles of the Kalalau Trail, which would continue on along the coast instead of going inland to the falls.

It’s 2 miles to the beach and then another 2 miles to the falls, so 8 miles round trip. We started at 10:00 and finished at 6:00, which included time spent at both the falls and the beach.

Sections of the trail are fairly steep and can be muddy depending on recent rainfall. You should have good footwear (hiking boots, Chacos, etc.). Don’t do it in tennis shoes or flip flops.

Take plenty of water and snacks. We also took 2 bottles of rosé and some beers because some of our people are like that. But it was great having a glass of rosé while looking at the falls.

Our experience was that most hikers try to start early but that also means the trail, waterfall, and beach were more crowded early. It thinned out in the afternoon. When we arrived at Hanakapiai Falls there were about 40 people there, but by the time we left there were only 6 people. When we arrived at the beach on the return segment, my wife and I had the entire beach to ourselves. So maybe a later start time is actually a good thing if you hike fast enough to catch the last shuttle back at 7:00 pm.

I would love to do the full Kalalau Trail hike but my crew isn’t up for it so maybe it gives me a bucket list future goal. Regardless, the hike we did was amazing and probably a top 5 hike for me.

[wild_turkey 3182]

One last post from me with a overview and some pics from our recent trip. It will be a little long but hopefully helpful to anyone new like I was.

Kauai has long been a bucket list destination for me because I’ve always wanted to see the Napali Coast in person. It’s just always been on the back burner until some friends asked us to go this year and we couldn’t turn it down.

I expected to like it, but I had tempered expectations due to not knowing a whole lot about Kauai, and it far surpassed those expectations. Undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. Lots of things to do for people who like activities on vacation.

Wife and I stayed the first 2 nights at the Grand Hyatt in the Poipu area. We both wish we had picked somewhere different for those nights. It’s a nice resort, but it’s massive and basically has a water park for a pool and caters heavily towards families with kids, which we were not. I think we booked it out of laziness in researching and it was only 2 nights. Oh well, no big deal because we got out and did fun stuff those days.

We then met up with our friends and spent the next 4 nights at a house in Princeville. Agree with many that the north side of the island is far more enjoyable. Better beaches, hikes, and a more relaxed vibe. Fewer crowds and didn’t have that overly generic resort feel.

We then went back to Poipu area to stay 3 more nights at Ko’a Kea Resort. This hotel was much more to our liking. Felt like more of a boutique hotel with a quiet relaxing pool, spa, good restaurant. Great for couples. Would for sure stay there again.

For activities, we did the following:

Hiked to Hanakapiai Beach and Falls (see post directly above for info) - highly recommended

Helicopter tour with Jack Harter - about 45 minutes, cost was $750 for the 2 of us.

Rented a private boat for a full day from Napali Experience. We had a boat captain who took us all up and down the west side of the island. They normally only do half day tours so we booked both the morning and afternoon slots and our captain was pretty excited to have the time to just chill. Spent time swimming, snorkeling, eating lunch right off the Napali Coast.

Queens Bath - cool spot, water was fine for cliff jumping and swimming. Snorkeled with a bunch of sea turtles. Unfortunately my GoPro didn’t have its memory card!

Hiked to Hoopii Falls - nice easy hike, took about 2 hours

Hiked Maha’ulepu trail on the south side and went to the beach there

Went to Wailua Falls (commonly known as Fantasy Island falls) and hiked down - this is officially forbidden but there were 50-100 people doing it so I don’t think anyone actually cares. I recommend going down because you can swim there and you can walk behind the falls. Wear good shoes.

Went to Haena Beach, Papa’a Beach, Aliomanu Beach, and Poipu Beach.

Ate meals up north at Hideaway Pizza, Kalypso, Postcards Cafe, Hanalei Bread Company, and Jimmy’s Grill.

Ate meals down south at Red Salt, Tidepools, La Spezzia, The Tasting Room, and Kenji Burger.

I would like to go back at some point, mainly because I now have an even stronger desire to do the full Kalalau Trail hike and stay on the beach. I would also like to visit Polehale Beach and try a couple of different hikes on the southwest side.

Here are some of my favorite pics:

[DalTxHornFan 3117]

Kauai is as close to heaven as I'll ever get in this lifetime.  Great pics!

[hornian 5223]

Time to fire this thread back up. 
 

I’m going the first week of March for my 40th birthday, for my first time (not just to Kauai, but to Hawaii period). 
 

It’s going to be the wife and me with our 3 kids (7, 4, and 1) so hiking and helicopters are probably not in the cards. We will have a rental car so for sure want to see the canyon and make some day trips focused on views/beaches.
 

We are staying at the Koloa Landing Resort at Poipu, which supposedly was voted to have the best poop in America, but don’t want to spend our whole trip there. 
 

I’ve made notes from many of the posts here on things to do/places to eat, but if anyone has been with young kids and has some advice for that aspect as well it would be much appreciated. 

[Native Horn 3515]

7 hours ago, hornian said:

but if anyone has been with young kids and has some advice for that aspect as well it would be much appreciated. 

Not sure if your family has done any travel across time zones, but be ready for the kiddos to pass out about 5pm.  Plan on early dinners.  But don't worry, the roosters will wake everyone up nice and early!

Nonetheless, y'all will have an awesome time.

[hornian 5223]

10 hours ago, hornian said:

 

We are staying at the Koloa Landing Resort at Poipu, which supposedly was voted to have the best poop in America, but don’t want to spend our whole trip there. 
 

. 

Well that was quite the autocorrect. Supposed to say pool. Not sure about the poop rankings. 

2 hours ago, Native Horn said:

Not sure if your family has done any travel across time zones, but be ready for the kiddos to pass out about 5pm.  Plan on early dinners.  But don't worry, the roosters will wake everyone up nice and early!

Nonetheless, y'all will have an awesome time.

Furthest we’ve gone is the west coast a few times, and hitting dinner at 4:00 pm with them was actually ok since we missed the normal crowd and didn’t car as much if they were loud or messy. 
 

As long as my wife doesn’t also pass out at 5:00 and we can have some adult time after the kids fall asleep (they have their own bedroom in the suite we booked) up he happy. 

[Sundodger 66]

On 5/6/2020 at 5:00 PM, AustinMT said:

I will repeat what I always say — North Shore.  If you stay south you’ll be happy. Once you drive to the North Shore you will wish you had stayed there

Not this week….  South Shore is kicking the shit out of North Shore.  In the north are flash flood warnings and a closed Hanalei Bridge.  

[GenXer 2996]

Don’t sleep on Waimea Canyon. You access the drive from the south side of the island using Waimea Canyon Drive. There’s several spots to pull over and take in the views.  

 

The road eventually turns into Kokee State Park Rd and ends at Pu’u o Kila lookout. The lookout gives a view of the north side’s napali coast.

The only hiking necessary to see these sites depends on the parking situation at the end of Kokee State Park Rd. I’ve been there twice. One time, parking was very easy and it was a short walk to the overlook. The second time, the parking lot was full, and we had to walk about a mile on the road to the overlook.

 

 

[Chicken fried bacon 46]

Got in July 2025 with the wife and high school age kids.  Staying at the Hyatt on points.   Anyone done the hike at Shipwreck beach in Poipu?

[yoladu 4094]

21 hours ago, Chicken fried bacon said:

Got in July 2025 with the wife and high school age kids.  Staying at the Hyatt on points.   Anyone done the hike at Shipwreck beach in Poipu?

have walked out to the bluff there. But didn't jump.

it not much of a hike, mostly a jaunt (unless i am missing more)

[sidis 9832]

taking the kiddos finally this year over the break next week.

first time back since my wife and i went in 2006 when we were dating. we had the most incredible week there previously. hoping the 12 and 10 year old can keep up with the hikes.

we are airbnb'ing so we will get grocery food for a good amount but also want to hit some restaurants. when we went in 2006, dining certainly wasn't a point of emphasis (nor should it be) but just wondering if anything has changed over the last 20 years and whether any of you recent visitors have had any good experiences you'd recommend. staying in princeville but the whole island is on the table obviously.

[alphahydro 334]

my personal opinion - i wouldn't go looking for good dining experiences in kauai. 

haven't been there in a few years, but feel like i tried all the high rated places and none of it was memorable, most of it a let down.  most memorable food experience is grabbing groceries at living foods in poipu.  stuff like a box of cereal was comically expensive.   i def think of kauai as a pizza/shave ice/acai bowl destination with 10/12 year olds.   ymmv

speaking of kids keeping up with the hikes, took my kids here when they were about 12/13 and it's chill at first but gets super dicey.  we turned back after a bit.  they were fine to keep going, but i didn't trust them to not slip.  views are insane tho.  

my kids at ~11/12 really liked sleeping giant, Kuilau Ridge, teh botanical gardens/chocolate tasting tour, and kipu ranch adventures.  jack harter heli tour was a bit much for my 11 yo, fine for my 12 yo.  just fyi. 

 

Edited November 19 by alphahydro
add video

[alphahydro 334]

almost forgot.  my kids really liked the ziplining at that age, and me and my 12 yo daughter went into the hindu monastery and it was really awesome. 

[LebongJames 1813]

We did Beach House and Lava Lava when we were last. Also ate at Dukes twice. 
 

Beach House was expensive but you can’t beat the views. We enjoyed Dukes and Lava Lava for what they were. We also ate at Hanalei Poke multiple times after hiking and really enjoyed it.

[DalTxHornFan 3117]

31 minutes ago, LebongJames said:

We did Beach House and Lava Lava when we were last. Also ate at Dukes twice. 
 

Beach House was expensive but you can’t beat the views. We enjoyed Dukes and Lava Lava for what they were. We also ate at Hanalei Poke multiple times after hiking and really enjoyed it.

Hamura Saiman is a must.  Duke's calamari must have crack in it.  So great!

[wild_turkey 3182]

In the Hanalei area:

Hanalei Bread Company is great for breakfast. Ate there every morning.

Postcards was pretty good for a semi-upscale dinner in a fairly casual environment.

Kalypso Island was just okay.


In the south:

La Spezia (Koloa) had great Italian food.

The Tasting Room (Koloa) was a really nice tapas and wine bar type place.

Tadpoles (Hyatt) was surprisingly good for being in a mega resort.

Red Salt (Koa Kea hotel) was decent but forgettable.


We also hired a private chef to cook at our house one night in Princeville. Food was good, cocktails were subpar, and we provided our own wine. Service was slow and I think he needed a sous chef because he was overwhelmed serving 4 people.

Had a reservation at Beach House our last night which I was excited about, but then had to leave a day early for a funeral.

[sidis 9832]

thanks guys, booked beach club and dukes for the day we are down south.

also, while i generally rely on @pops for advising me on all hawaiian golf outings, went ahead and booked a round at princeville makai on thanksgiving morning. it's right next door to our condo so seemed like a no-brainer.

[pops 7006]

7 hours ago, sidis said:

thanks guys, booked beach club and dukes for the day we are down south.

also, while i generally rely on @pops for advising me on all hawaiian golf outings, went ahead and booked a round at princeville makai on thanksgiving morning. it's right next door to our condo so seemed like a no-brainer.

I don't know what I said about princeville.... But enjoy!  It's absolutely gorgeous. Greens just weren't that great when I played there 🤷‍♂️

[Fred Garvin 22]

SIAP but re: food, it has been about 5 years since we were there, but we loved the poke from Foodland. Just take it back to house/condo/beach and enjoy poke dinner watching the sunset.

[sidis 9832]

8 hours ago, pops said:

I don't know what I said about princeville.... But enjoy!  It's absolutely gorgeous. Greens just weren't that great when I played there 🤷‍♂️

You didn’t. You recommended manele to me a few years back and I’ll never forget that day as it was the best golf experience I have ever had.  I have not played makai before but it gets a good bit of love. Hopefully the greens are in better shape next week. 

[4th&Five 41589]

If you’re starving when you land like we were Kauai Beer Co. is 5 minutes from the airport. I know you’re not into beer but the food was really good. We went back before our flight home. 
La Spezia was our favorite place south. Good Italian and a decent enough wine selection. 
Sandwich Isle in Princeville was our lunch spot. The gas station pizza in that main shopping center was good too.