My 8 day Kauai Itinerary
- Daniella Nacad
- Jun 1, 2021
- 14 min read
Updated: May 30, 2022
This trip was taken in March 2021.
Hi there! If you’re thinking about going to Kauai HI, and have limited days to visit this itinerary is for you!
First, things you have to know! Kauai is only accessible via inter-island flights. I personally traveled with Hawaiian Airlines from Boston non-stop to Honolulu (Oahu, Hawaii) and then flew that same day to Lihu'e Airport in Kauai.
Second, at the time I am writing this post there are still Covid-19 restrictions in place. You need to create a Safe Travels profile and have a negative PCR test from a trusted Hawaii Partner 72 hr prior to your last flight heading to Hawaii, as well as fill a health questionnaire 24 hr prior to departure. You can find out more here: https://travel.hawaii.gov/#/. There is talk about a Vaccine Passport being implemented later this summer, so keep an eye out on Hawaiian news channels!
Third, and also related to travel: YOU NEED A CAR to travel comfortably and visit the majority of the places I will show you. The vehicle rental/taxi situation in Hawaii is currently very, very difficult. Many cars were sold due to the pandemic. Plan in advance. Know that you will spend a lot of money in transportation. Taxis are difficult to come by and expensive. I do have the contact of an amazing taxi who drove us around our one day without a rental! So reach out if you need to!
Day 1: Travel to Kauai
As mentioned above, we flew straight from Boston Logan International to Honolulu, Hawaii. The flight is 11 hr non-stop. We had a 3 hr layover in Oahu and then boarded Hawaiian Airlines to Lihu’e Airport in Kauai. Again, and this is related to Covid-19 restrictions: Make sure your selected airline does pre-travel screening! DO NOT wait until landing in Oahu to get cleared. The line was extremely long and I’m sure we would have missed our connecting flight if it weren’t for the fact that we had been pre-screened at Boston.
Now, day 1 was challenging when it came to transportation. We had no rental for Day 1 and Day 2. We thought it would be easy to get a cab at the airport and, oh boy were we wrong. There is only one main cab line that drives to the airport. There is a little phone you use to call them. They had a THREE HOUR wait time. We tried finding a last minute rental and nothing! And the Hotel has no shuttle service from the airport.
We ended up meeting two amazing guys from Utah, and they gave us a lift to our hotel (If by any chance they ever read this - thank you! Again!).
Where to stay?
We divided our trip in two: South & North adventures. Our itinerary begins in the south.
It is important to mention that the south of the island tends to be more sunny, whereas in the north you will definitely have more rain.
Stay at the Sheraton Villas Resort. We picked this hotel because they offered a studio option with a small kitchen. The hotel is lovely. Has all the amenities you might need and is also walking distance to the Poipu beach (and from what we could see, the hotel beach was the prettiest in the area)
We had dinner at the Lava Restaurant in the hotel and off to bed! It was a very long day.
End of Day 1!
Images: The Sheraton Hotel Resort and Villas at Poipu.
Tip of the day: Exit the hotel's main entrance to your right (to the west), and head over to the bay for a beautiful sunset.
Day 2: Full day of Scuba Diving
Remember that we didn't have a car? Yep, the terror continues.
We had a confirmed taxi picking us up at 5:40 AM for our scuba diving expedition.
Well, they stood us up. Thankfully, we met Ike (who was there to pick a couple that never showed up) and we were able to make it on time for our scuba diving trip with Bubbles Below Kauai (https://bubblesbelowkauai.com/).
There are MANY dive companies in the island. Whatever you decide will mainly be related to the type of dive you wish to do and their availability. This is definitely a day you could modify accordingly. Carlos and I are big into scuba diving, so we picked a full day trip. Our destination was the Forbidden Isle of Ni'ihua and Lehua so we could dive with the endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal.
-- Off note, we decided to book our scuba diving excursion as early as possible during our trip to account for weather cancellations and have more rescheduling options --
We were back at Port Allen around 5:30 PM, grabbed some late lunch at Port Allen Sunset Grill and Bar and then headed back to the hotel.
End of Day 2!
Day 3: Wailua Falls
Finally we have a car! It was 8 AM and we were already at AVIS picking up our jeep. I recommend that you go as early as possible to pick-up your vehicle. The line at the rental the afternoon we arrived was insanely long. Also, get a 4x4 if you can afford to / are able to find one. It will provide more leeway as to the places you can visit. Is it absolutely necessary though? No, it isn't. One other thing they will tell you is to never leave valuables visibly inside your car. I think we were a little paranoid about this, since even the rental companies will place stickers in the car mentioning it. We were able to not have any valuables inside the vehicle for the most part, and we really had no negative experiences.
Alternatives to regular rentals: Truro, or renting a vehicle from a local (this is easier if you know anyone in Hawaii/Kauai, but many locals are renting their vehicles at the moment).
If you think a cab will be cheaper -because the rentals are indeed expensive- think twice.
Right now there are no Uber or Lyft available. And cabs will charge ~ $45-50 per trip. For instance, we paid $47 from the hotel to the airport, and $45 from the hotel to Port Allen (20 min away).
After we finally had our Jeep, we headed towards Wailua Falls. Now, there is an observation point on the top of the falls, with very limited parking. Again, the earlier you go (and this applies to the majority of places) the better your experience will be.
If you are not into muddy hikes, or hiking at all, this is where you stop. You'll snap a picture at the top and call it a day. On the other side, if you really want to experience the falls, you have to hike down. And when I say hike, I really mean "slide down the mountain grabbing onto muddy-sketchy-looking ropes placed who-knows how long ago". It was scary. It was fun. It was muddy. And the VIEW was absolutely worth it.
Explore the base of the fall. Hike behind it if you dare. Do take your bathing suit and have a dip in the water. I also recommend taking a good raincoat and towel. We stayed there for a couple of hours and had the falls to ourselves for the most part.
We left so we could buy some food for the rest of the trip. If you want to buy cheaper, the recommendation is Costco. But being only two of us, and for a short period of time, we felt it was not worth it. We headed to a Safeway and bought everything we needed there. Make sure you register your phone number with them (ask them to at check out, we found out because the cashier was kind enough to tell us) and we ended up saving $50+ because of that. Local things that I recommend that you try: Kauai Coffee (their Vanilla and Macadamia is great!), Koloa Coffee Rum (on the rocks) and Macadamia Chocolates (The Sheraton gifted us a box when we checked in with them! So good!)
The afternoon we spent on the Poipu Beach section of the Sheraton Hotel, and had dinner at restaurant called Keoki's Paradise (make sure to order the Hula Pie!) which is walking-distance from the Sheraton Hotel.
End of Day 3!
Image: Hula Pie from Keoki's Paradise and Koloa Coffee Rum on the rocks! / Hula Pie from Duke's
Day 4: Waimea Canyon and Polihale State Park
Another early wake-up cal! I don't know if it's the time change or just the excitement of being in Hawaii, but every day we were up by 5:30-6:30 AM (we were usually out by 8-9 PM and honestly, there is not much to do after that time either way).
Day 4 was all about hiking the Waimea Canyon. From the Poipu area it is roughly 1.5 hr (depending on which hike you wish to do). Take your time driving through it. The views are spectacular! I do recommend driving straight to the hike, and then afterwards stopping at the overlooks. One thing we noticed this entire trip is how limited parking spots are everywhere.
We had many hikes in mind, but after failing to secure a permit to hike the Kalalau Trail in the Na Pali Coast (If you are interested, this is the link you need to browse https://www.gohaena.com/ ; permits are available only one month in advance and very limited. This is a new change, and you need both an entrance permit to the Ha'ena State Park and a parking permit for all the hours you plan on being there) we ended up deciding on what is supposed to be the best alternative: The Awa'awapuhi Trail.
The Awa'awapuhi Tral is a 6.4 mile roundtrip hike with 2,000 ft elevation loss to the lookout (that means 2,000 ft steady elevation gain on your way back). The trail is fairly unremarkable except for the end. This means, hike it if you intend on making it ALL THE WAY until the end. If you don't, you will have wasted your time. Now, if you do decide to go all in... the reward at the end is absolutely worth it. There will be a fence at the end of the trail, go past it. If you are adventurous enough, walk all the way to the end of the ridge. Be careful, the soil is pretty loose.
Overall, it took us a little under 4 hr to complete the hike. We headed down all the way back to the entrance of Waimea canyon while stopping at some overlooks. One neat place to stop by that does not require any extra hiking is the Red Dirt Waterfall.
Some alternative hikes in Waimea Canyon that we had on our backup list were the Canyon Trail (this one has great views of the Waimea Canyon and leads to the top of the waterfall) and The Kalepa Ridge Trail (shorter, and allegedly offers even greater views of the Na Pali Coast). And, if you don't want to hike at all but still want to see the Kalalau Valley, head over to the Kalalau Lookout.
After finishing with our tour of the Waimea Canyon, we decided to head west to the Polihale State Park. Now, this is definitely an area where you will need a Jeep / 4x4 vehicle. The road to the Barking Sands Beach in Polihale State Park is a very unkept, pothole-filled dirt road. The rental car company will definitely advice you to stay away from the area. I would advice you not to go if it has been raining, but if the days have been sunny the road should be good enough for you to be able to make it to the end. The road is roughly ~7 miles. There will be a small uphill entrance to your left (in between the vegetation - make sure not to miss it) and again, very limited parking on top.
This was really one of my favorite beaches in Kauai because of how isolated it is. The view is stunning, since you will be able to see the beginning of the Na Pali Coastto your right. Now, this is not a beach you go to swim. The water is very rough and unless you are interested in surfing, your time will be better spent on shore. Other things to keep in mind: there is virtually no natural shade (so bring some sort of shelter!) and nowhere to buy food or water. There is a very small restroom with changing rooms and a shower though! Which to me, was a plus.
On our way back we stopped at the town of Hanapepe for some fish tacos at Paco's Tacos.
End of Day 4!
Day 5: The Na Pali Coast
This is the day that we had been planning since the beginning. Basically, the image of the cathedrals of the Na Pali Coast sealed the deal for us when browsing destination ideas for our upcoming trip. This is also probably the tour you have to book the most in advanced.
There are two ways to tour the Na Pali Coast: by boat and by helicopter.
We decided to tour it by boat because it felt like a more complete experience. When looking where to book, the one place that kept popping up was Captain Andy's, and honestly they live up to the expectations.
They really make your time worthwhile. The views are stunning. There are so many caves, beaches and waterfalls to see! We picked the classic snorkeling tour, and they allow for ~1 hr of activity by the coast. The only one thing we were underwhelmed by was the snorkeling in Kauai. We did see a couple of turtles, but don't go thinking you'll see millions of colorful fish. I am not sure if the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico have spoiled us, but the variety was minimal.
There are many different types of tours you can book based on the activity: Snorkeling, BBQ, Sunset dinner, or adventure. You can learn more about Captain Andy's here: https://www.napali.com/ . Their service is great! Everyone is so friendly and helpful. Food is included and so is the snorkeling gear if you need it. Food is really good (the macadamia cookies are amazing, I'm still craving them!) and they also serve complimentary alcoholic beverages after snorkeling.
The trip lasts ~ 5 hr, so we were ready by lunchtime. There is a small shopping center on the road back called The Shops at Kukui'ula, where we stopped for some shave ice at Uncle's. We then had some lunch at the hotel and decided to enjoy the Sheraton pool, snorkeled a bit more in Poipu, and finished the day with yet another Hula Pie at Keoki's Paradise.
End of Day 5!
Day 6: Princeville and the North of the island
We are leaving Poipu, and heading to the north of the island today. Specifically, we were headed to Princeville. We packed up and had one last coffee at the Sheraton's Link Cafe (incredibly good!) and ventured out to the National Tropical Botanical Garden for the ALOHA Farmer's Market. We found out about this event by mere coincidence, and this is where I got my beautiful handmade Haku Lei Po'o by Elvrine Chow from Heavenly Hakus. If you have the opportunity, go to one of these markets and buy from local vendors! They had everything from sweets, homegrown fruits and vegetables, bamboo pieces for home decor, and flowers!
Afterwards, we started heading north (not too difficult considering there in only a single main highway HI-50) and stopped for lunch at Duke's. I think we got lucky and found a table real quick, because this place is packed! This place is located right next to the Marriott's Kauai at the Kalapaki Beach. We ended up here because it is the only other restaurant in the island that serves Hula Pie (of course...). The food and environment are both great. Definitely a place worth eating at.
Back on the road and finally made it all the way to Princeville, where we rented an AirBnb at "The Cliffs". The place is beautiful. Nice pool. Amazing views for the sunset. And really comfortable. Only downside is that there is no A/C but they do offer very potent floor fans.
After settling in, we attempted to get to Hideaways beach (which proved to be impossible) and ended up detouring to Queen's Bath.
Queen's Bath is considered a "hike". It's a short muddy trail of ~0.8 miles that descends through lush and very dense vegetation and leads to a volcanic shoreline. Don't stop at the first waterfall and tide pool you see! That is not Queen's bath. Keep going all the way to the end of the shoreline. Take your bathing suit (this is probably a good advice for the majority of the places you'll visit in Kauai) and jump into the tide pool! If you go late in the day, make sure to stay for a front row seat to one of Kauai's best spots for sunsets. Also, there are a lot of green sea turtles (honu) in this area so keep an eye out for them!
I did this little hike in my bathing suit and a pair of Teva's, plus a raincoat on our way up since it started raining during the sunset.
Went home for some dinner and called it a day!
End of Day 6!
Day 7: The Beaches up North
There are WAY too many beaches to choose from up north in the Princeville / Hanalei area.
With only one (currently closed) resort, the area tends to be much less crowded than the south, which means the beaches are usually quieter.
At the time of this post, there is a landslide between the Princeville and Hanalei areas. There are certain hours where you can cross the damaged section of the road, so make sure to plan accordingly.
We decided to try crossing as early as possible (5:30-7:45 AM is the first time slot) and succeeded. The drive through Hanalei is incredibly vivid! Being so close to the mountains, the Hanalei/Princeville area is the "wet" region of Kauai and receives ~ 15 days of rain per month. There are many beaches you can stop on your way, but following some very local suggestions we headed over to the mile marker 8 "Tunnels Beach". Make sure you look for that mile marker, since the entrance and parking to the beach is not well marked. The residents of the area will make it very clear which street is private and has no beach access.
We were the first to arrive and found parking in a very small street that leads directly to the beach. There is probably room for ~8 cars in total. I'm sure there is more parking further ahead, but that means a lot more walking to the beach, so my recommendation is: get there early!
Another famous beach in the area is Hanalei Bay, which is also very pretty and has a much easier access. It is a great back up plan or even a good place to hand out later in the day.
We snorkeled in Tunnels since its a very recommended place to do so (there is a lot of coral, so be careful) and headed back to Princeville around noon.
On our way back, we stopped at Ching Young Village in Hanalei and had some Chicken in a Barrel BBQ for lunch. We crossed over to Princeville and attempted going to Hideaways once more -unsuccessfully so- which meant plan B: Anini Beach in Kalihiwai. This beach was desolated. Literally us, a father and his son, and loads of chicken. This beach was only a few minutes away from our AirBnb and is also good for snorkeling, paddle-boarding and swimming since the water is very calm.
We finished the day watching the sunset from the condo cliff, relaxing in the hot tub and packing.
End of Day 7!
Day 8: Heading back home
Early wake up call!
Dropped our rental off, and flew to Oahu (~20 min flight). We had a 5 hr layover, and did consider leaving the airport to explore Waikiki. The cabs are ~ $60 each way, and we probably would have adventured out if we had a longer layover and the cab/Uber/Lyft situation had not been so terrible! Hopefully, things will slowly get better when it comes to car rentals in Hawaii!
Alternative Activities and what we would change!
This itinerary has a lot of room for changes based on what you like to do!
You can absolutely swap out a full-day of scuba diving and go hiking, shopping, town hopping or just relax by the beach!
Some other activities we had on the back of our mind were canyoneering in one of the waterfalls, kayaking by the Na Pali Coast or taking a tour to kayak to the bottom of a waterfall, zip-lining (I was not too excited about this, but it is definitely an activity you can add to your itinerary) or even mountain float tubing.
There are many other more "conventional" tours like the chocolate and rum factories (tasting rooms) and the botanical gardens. Hanapepe tends to have an art walk that due to Covid-19 was not happening, same with the Luaus which were mostly closed during our visit.
One thing we really wanted to do was hike the Kalalau Trail, as we mentioned above. This is probably the one main thing we would return for! When we go back for a second time (hopefully sooner rather than later) we would definitely book this trail in advanced.
Also, now that we have done a regular sailing day through the Na Pali Coast, I would probably pick the adventure tour next (there is an option to actually hike to one of the waterfalls from the beach that looks so much fun!) and maybe a helicopter tour overlooking the Waimea Canyon!
The one thing that we thought we should have thought of better was staying in Princeville the last night, since the airport is ~50 min away and we had an 8 AM flight. That meant a very early wake up call for an already long day back. Probably, adding an extra day to the itinerary (I mean, we could have stayed 3 weeks and not done everything we wanted to do) so we could have stayed in the Lihue area closer to the airport (the Wailua River kayak experience is actually in this area - if you don't want to hike it down you can always kayak to the base)
Hopefully you'll be able to head to Kauai soon! and if you do and are planning on a "shorter" trip I hope this itinerary helps you plan and narrow things down!
Cheers! And keep on vacationing!
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