Unfortunately, with COVID strongly discouraging any trips this summer and being extremely busy at work, we have not taken any trips this year. So until our next trip, I will review one of our favorite places! In 2019 we made our second trip to Kauai.
On all of our previous trips to Hawaii, we have always gone during the summer. Since Julie is a teacher, that is the best time for us to take our vacations. For our trip in 2019, we really wanted to make it during the whale season, so we decided to go during spring break. It was definitely a great decision.
Our Stay
We stayed at the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa. As soon as we arrived, they had leis waiting for us at the front desk. The staff truly was amazing, and the hotel was in a perfect location. The hotel had some amazing pools, great food, and many other incredible things. However, the best part was being able to see the whales each day from the shore. We would hike down the shoreline, and we were able to see them. (Just being at the hotel put the whale watching tour to shame.) https://www.hyatt.com/en-US/hotel/hawaii/grand-hyatt-kauai-resort-and-spa/kauai?src=corp_lclb_gmb_seo_nam_kauai
The Hyatt is very close to Poipu. There were restaurants and shopping areas nearby. However, Poipu has the most amazing beach for snorkeling. Julie and I have snorkeled in Key West and Maui. Both times we have paid to go out on a boat away from the shore. In Poipu, all you need to do is walk out in the water five feet and put your head under the water, and you see the most amazing fish. It is definitely the most fun we have had snorkeling. I would recommend renting equipment from a local snorkel shop. You will want to go more than once; we bought the masks for our second trip. Or buy one of these from Amazon; it was worth the investment. (Referral Link)
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How We Got There
We were able to stay at this amazing hotel, thanks to Hyatt’s relationship with Chase. When you sign up for the Hyatt credit card, you will receive enough points for 2 nights. If you have a premium chase card, you can transfer Chase points to your Hyatt program for the additional points needed for your stay. (Sapphire cards)
We were also able to get to Hawaii using the United credit card sign-up bonus. As well as transferring chase points over to United’s program. The signup bonus can get you 2 one way tickets to Hawaii.
Top 15 things about Kauai ranked by Landon & Julie:
#15 The Chickens
I still remember laughing as the chicken ran across the road as we drove to our hotel from the airport. They definitely added to the experience.
#14 Food
We have three places that we loved. Two were in Poipu, Bubba’s Burgers, and Lapperts. After spending the day at the beach or out doing an amazing adventure. We found both of these near our hotel, and we enjoyed getting a quick burger and Ice cream. https://www.bubbaburger.com/ https://www.lappertshawaii.com/. We also enjoyed Kalaheo Steak & Ribs in Kalaheo. The food was amazing! http://kalaheosteakandribs.com/
#13 Kilauea Light House
This is a beautiful area, and it is always fun to see a lighthouse. If you are on a budget or a time crunch, there are many other things that I would recommend before this, but we enjoyed about an hour and a half there.
#12 Rainbows
We have seen some amazing rainbows in Hawaii. We saw this double one on our ride back to the hotel after eating at Kalaheo Steak & Ribs. The picture really doesn’t do it justice.
#11 Sunsets
Every night we would go for a walk or a drive and find a nice spot for the incredible sunsets. We would often stop at Lappert’s for a milkshake beforehand.
#10 Kayaking the Wailua River
We always enjoy kayaking or canoeing when we get a chance. This was a fun day trip. We kayaked the river and then hiked to a waterfall.
#9 Hiking the coast
We enjoyed our evening walks at the hotel, but hiking the Napali Coast trail’s beginning was incredible. This was an afternoon activity for us. If we had more time, we would have loved to go further. It could easily be a whole day, and some avid hikers make it more than one day of hiking.
#8 Whale Watching
We decided to go on a cruise on our first day on Kauai, we had fun, and we did see several whales. However, we could also see them from the beach at our hotel. We had a blast hiking along the coast and looking out for the whales.
#7 Cruise Around the Island
Spend the extra money for a convertible or Jeep when you rent a car. It is definitely worth it. Driving along the ocean or seeing Waimea Canyon’s amazing views with the top down is what vacation is all about. We enjoyed just driving up random roads and finding waterfalls, flooded roads, and all sorts of fun things. Gas isn’t cheap on the island, but overall it is an inexpensive activity.
#6 Allerton Gardens
I am not sure how this did not make it higher than 6 after looking at all the amazing pictures. We got to see where the intro was taped for Gilligan’s Island, as well as where they found the dinosaur eggs in Jurassic Park. The man-made water features were amazing, and the scenery was breathtaking. It was definitely worth the time and money to see it. https://ntbg.org/gardens/allerton/
#5 Kipu Ranch
We had a blast at Kipu Ranch. We were able to see where they filmed several movies. Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones were both filmed there. For several hours we drove around in an ATV. How can you go wrong with high speeds, sun, oceanview, mountains, rivers, and a great guide to show you around the ranch and telling you about the area. https://kiputours.com/
#4 Waimea Canyon
This is a great day trip. We left the hotel at about 8 am and picked up a picnic lunch. One of the great things about all of the islands is that we found small deli shops that provided picnic lunches. There were no food options in Waimea Canyon and very few in town. We pulled off along the road thru the park often; there were lots of hiking trails. The colors were amazing, all the different blues and greens from the ocean and plants and the red dirt and black rocks. The colors and views are a great reason to rent a convertible. We got back to Poipu at about 5 pm.
#3 Mountain Tubing
This is the only activity that we paid to do on both of our trips to Kauai. We had a blast tubing down old irrigation canals that once were used for sugar cane fields. Our tour guides were great and gave us interesting facts about Hawaii on our way to and from the locations.
https://kauaibackcountry.com/tubing/
#2 Dinner Cruise on the Napali Coast
We really enjoyed being on the boat, taking in the beauty of the Napali Coast. The great thing about the dinner cruise is you get to enjoy the coastline as well as the sunset. The food was ok; to be honest, we weren’t on the dinner cruise for the food.
#1 Poipu Beach
The snorkeling was amazing, normally you go out on a boat, and you feel rushed. You have a set amount of time to get your money’s worth, so you don’t have time to relax. At Poipu, we were able to wade into the water five feet and see the same fish that we would on a snorkeling cruise. It was our choice we could be in the water for 15 minutes or 2 hours. When we wanted a break, we relaxed on the beach. We got to see several large sea turtles relaxing on the beach as well.
If you get a chance to book a trip to any of the Hawaii Islands, I would recommend it. We have one left to visit the Big Island. Kauai is definitely our favorite of the three that we have visited.