Kauai with Kids
Kauai is special. Once we discovered it, we kept coming back. My wife and I took a trip here when we were dating. We returned a couple years later and I proposed to her on Kauai, and then got married there the next year. We live in Seattle and everyone who travels from Seattle seems to go to Hawaii. A 6 hour flight makes it accessible and Hawaii sells itself after one visit. Many prefer the big island or Maui but for me it is not even close- the north side of Kauai is the most magical spot in the Hawaiian Islands.
This blog is about a trip we made a few years ago with our great friends and their kids so we had 4 pre teens in tow. Hawaii is perfect for vacations with kids. When our kids were little, we went to Hawaii for every vacation. Hike in incredible beauty. Sit on a beach. Chill out by a pool. Swim in the ocean. Everything is kid friendly.
How long to visit: Minimum a week for Hawaii given travel time.
How many Hawaiian Islands to visit on a trip: One. Every island has plenty to fill a week so don't waste time and money trying to hit multiple islands with the exception of flying through Honolulu. We have flown into Oahu, followed by jumping to another island due to flight availability. You can have a great weekend or week on Oahu, so this is reasonable.
Why Kauai: It has one road! It feels like you are in on a secret- no crowds.
The greenest spot in the world- yes, please.
Where to stay on Kauai: Our first visit to the island was to the south side: Poipu. The guidebooks will say to stay here if you want sunshine. I think it says lots of rain on the weather app before every visit, but it typically ends up being 20 minutes of rain at night (I guess we've had a few rainy days on Kauai) but not enough to dictate where to stay. Poipu will have some nice options and enough restaurants, plus easy access to Waimea Canyon, 'Hawaii's grand canyon.'
Kapa'a on the eastern coast is a good choice for more food and lodging options, and less expensive ones. It is a small town- all of Kauai has a small town feel.
I would strongly recommend the north end of Kauai. The dramatic coastline and laid back vibe in the Hanalei is where you want to be. We had two rental
apartments in Westin Princeville Villas. If I were traveling solo or as a couple, I would opt for the Princeville Hotel- now called Hotel 1 Hanalei Bay. We got married at this hotel so I'm biased. It is beautiful inside and out. The hotel's beach is perfect. Stay there if you can.
If you think it is your one and only Kauai visit, you may want to jump around: whale watching boat trip from Poipu, Waimea Canyon and Spouting Horn on the south side; couple of great hikes near Kapa'a etc., but we wanted to be lazy on this trip so it was very focused on the Princeville/ Hanalei area.
Day 1: Kalalau Trail. This trail is 11 miles from Ke'e Beach to Kalalau Beach. Most just take the first part of the trail to Hanakapi'ai Beach which is two pretty easy miles with awesome scenery. Hanakapi'ai is a fun beach (as is Ke'e) and we hung out there for a while. There are signs warning against swimming at this beach but even though we've done this trail 3 or 4 times, the water never looks that rough but I would not chance it. We have never done the full 22 mile round trip Kalalau trail which is very rugged and would require permits and camping. What I would absolutely recommend, if you are fit enough, is a hike to Hanakapi'ai falls.
The Hanakapi'ai falls is accessible by a second 2 mile trail from the beach of the same name where it branches off from the main trail. Stay to the right of the stream. It is a little bit more technical and would make the total hike 8 miles but the waterfall is incredible with a cold swim underneath that you won't forget.
Our little guys were game for the 4 mile version but we did not attempt the waterfall on this day. We headed back to the trailhead and took a dip in the water on Ke'e Beach and then headed back to the villa for chill time.
The next day we hung out at Hideaways Beach which is a typical Kauai beach- small and perfect. A place you should be sharing with hundreds of people instead of a handful. There are some tennis courts outside of Hotel 1 Hanalei Bay and you can access the beach via a 'trail' adjacent to the courts. The trail is a washed out path with a necessary rope to keep yourself from falling on your rear. It is a very short walk but not for folks with disabilities. This beach is great for snorkeling and has plenty of shade. After a few hours, we called it a day and headed back to the villas. We basically did one activity per day which keeps the young bosses from a mutiny. Kids like pool time so don't over schedule.
The next day our adventure was stand up paddle boarding in Hanalei Bay. If you are staying on the north side of Kauai, you will end up in sleepy Hanalei at some point. There are some fun, casual restaurants in town and a grocery store. Everything is chill, as expected. After breakfast (try Hanalei Bread Company) we rented the gear and headed out onto the Hanalei River. You can either go for the waves on a SUP on the bay or the more relaxed waters of the Hanalei River which is lined by lush jungle scenery.
It was fun and relaxing. the river actually got too shallow at one point and we dragged the boards on land and went for a quick hike. It worked out to be a great day trip. We had lunch in town and checked out a couple of surf shops and art galleries.
The next day we hit another favorite: Queen's Bath, which is also in the small Princeville neighborhood. There is a lot to love staying in Princeville. Queen's Bath is a tide pool carved into the lava shelf shoreline.
We have been there three times with very different views, depending on the surf. This trip was in April and we have visited this spot in both summer and winter as well. In the winter, the surf on all of these northern Kauai beaches is so much bigger. You do not want to try surfing for the first time or it may be your last time.
You can swim inside the bath and I've done it in the summer. Be very careful as this spot is actually one of the most deadly for tourists in Hawaii due to how violent the water gets inside the bath if the tide becomes stronger.
On this day, I placed a bag with our snorkel stuff on some rocks well out of the way of the coastline/surf so I would not have to drag it along for the whole walk. After checking out the show at the Queen's bath for a while, we headed back
towards our car.
Like a lot of Hawaiian adventures, you park in some neighborhood and there is a trail head or a beach hiding around the corner. Unfortunately, that unpredictable Queen's Bath surf grabbed my bag (where I brilliantly stashed my rental car keys) and took it out to sea. That cost me a few bucks, so we had to walk back, and have a few cocktails to make it all better.
A local scuba company was giving lessons in the resort pool so the kids messed around for a while in the pool.
The beach below 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay, Pu'u Poa is not just for hotel guests, although it feels that way as there are not too many people you will have to share this beautiful spot with. There is a path for non hotel guests but not much parking. The beach is protected by a reef that keeps the water calm and you can just soak up the view of Bali Hai.
Bali Hai is Mount Makana which dominates the view from Pu'u Poa Beach. It was called Bali Hai in the famous movie, South Pacific. The beach will have a few people in the portion close to the hotel but it is a beautiful walk down the beach, climbing around palm trees and rocks and you can get to another portion of this beach with nobody around.
We hung out at the beach for hours. It was a truly lazy vacation with so many great spots within 10 minutes of our place. Princeville has a lot of options for accommodations but it might be even more fun to stay further along the coast towards Ha'ena. My sister stayed in a cottage on Tunnels Beach during our wedding trip and it was an incredible spot. Tunnels Beach is very cool- backdrop is the usual Kauai scene of green cliffs.
I can remember snorkeling on Tunnels with a bunch of turtles. If you come to Kauai you will see why so many movies are shot here- Indiana Jones and the dinosaurs all know Kauai is the spot.
The next day we went for another hike: Okolehao Trail. Once again, we weren't trying to use our rental car too much so we went for a hike in Hanalei. This trail was a little longer than Kalalau (5 miles vs. 4 roundtrip) but was not as popular with the kids. It is uphill so you get a rewarding view but you have to work a little for it.
The first part is steep with some of that red Hawaiian soil that will make you throw away white t shirts and sneakers if/when you take a spill. Before too long you are getting views of Hanalei that make it all worth while.
On our last night in town, we headed out to Hanalei for some local music (and dancing if you're with Juan). If you've watched George Clooney's great role in The Descendants you've seen a lot of this part of Kauai. A tiki bar called Tahiti Nui is featured in the film. This joint has been around since 1963 and definitely has the local charm that will suck you in and keep you coming back to Kauai's north shore.
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