Recapping our trip to Kauai, Hawaii! Sharing my favorite spots to eat & things to do!

Where to Stay

Where we stayed: staying at a friend’s place so I can’t really recommend it but it was on the South side of the island which we found typically had better weather. We loved One Hotel when we went for drinks one night and would definitely stay there if we came back! That was on the north side of the island. Either way, I think you’ll end up doing a lot of driving. We explored the whole island on our trip so regardless of where we stayed, we would have wanted to get out and see it all!

Things To Do

Boat Day

Na Pali experience- private boat with Chellen as our driver, he was awesome! Snorkled, went into caves, and rode up the na pali coastline, saw tons of dolphins and turtles. Well worth it to do the private tour. With wind it can be very choppy so I don’t recommend if you get sea sick easily - thankfully none of us do so it was fine.. but it could have been bad if we did!

Beaches

We went to quite a few beaches while we were there- Shipwreck and Hanalei Bay to name a couple! We also enjoyed hiking around Shipwreck beach and Hanalei Bay. There are so many great hikes, walking paths, and beaches to check out. There are also tons of other excursions but a few that we had planned to cancelled due to flooding- but we still stayed plenty busy!

Restaurants

Breakfast / Brunch / Lunch

Java Kai

Kauai juice co

Taco Libre

Ali’i coffee

Koloa Fish Market

Holey Grail Donuts

‘Anakē’s Juice Bar

Wishing well coffee

Nourish

Hanalei Bread Company

Warehouse 3540

Kilauea Bakery & Pizzeria

Sushi Girl

Jammin Banana (coffee)

Trilogy (coffee)

Dinner

Hualanis

Naisla Kitchen

Beach House

Ama

Merrimans

Eating House 1849

Welina Terrace (drinks)

Coffee & Sweets

Uncles shaved ice

Lapperts

Waikomo shave ice

Things to know:

You will probably get rained on sporadically so definitely pack a jacket!

We went in April and the mornings and nights were chilly- I wish that I had packed a few cardigans.

The island is super laid back and casual so most people don’t dress up. Some people were a little more dressed up at some of our nicer dinners or at the 1 hotel, but for the most part it was pretty casual.

Your shoes will get muddy while hiking because it rains a lot! I wore my Hokas and washed them in the washing machine at the end of our trip!

Don’t judge a restaurant by it’s cover ;) There are tons of delicious food trucks and hole in the wall spots!

You will definitely want a rental car and you will do lots of driving if you want to explore. Plan to drive at least an hour everyday (depending on where you stay).

Comparing Kauai and Maui:

I got a lot of requests for me to compare Kauai vs Maui. The biggest difference in my opinion is that Maui is more developed, more commercial, and more touristy and Kauai, while still tourist friendly, has a more laid-back, quiet, less commercial vibe… feels more local. Although I’m describing Maui as more touristy and developed, I don’t think it’s anywhere near Oahu… but just when you compare it to Kauai.

Maui has a ton of great luxury resort options while Kauai has a couple but leans more towards boutique hotels or Airbnbs. Both have endless activities, hikes, adventures, and scenic views. I think Maui is more known for its pristine beaches while Kauai is more know for its lush, mountainous coastline - less beaches. But still very scenic!

Overall, they’re both amazing but have completely different vibes depending on what type of trip you like. If you want to stay somewhere nice and enjoy beautiful beaches and a nice pool while still having the options to get out and explore, I’d say go to Maui. Maui has more amenities, shopping, more beach options, but still a ton of outdoor activities. If you want a trip where you feel like a local, you’re constantly out exploring, eating at hole in the wall (but incredible) restaurants, you don’t mind driving all around the island, packing up the beach stuff for the day, hiking, probably getting rained on but you’re fine to go with the flow, then Kauai is more your vibe!

I also want to be clear that both places have both options - Kauai does have some more developed parts and a few nice resorts and Maui does have more local feeling, less touristy areas as well.. it just depends what you want more of. As to which one I prefer.. it’s such a tough choice because they’re so different! If I had to choose, I’d say that we would probably go back to Maui sooner because to us, it’s the best of both worlds! You have tons of nice resort options with lots of amenities but also the ability to go out and explore off property. We’ve been to Maui twice and never had rain but Kauai was much more rainy. Maui was also warmer than Kauai and had more beach option which we value!

Lastly, I should note that I haven’t been to Maui since the wildfires that took place so I can’t speak to Maui’s current state.

Kauai Guide