Kauai Hi

[fishnfool]

We're enjoying another wonderful vacation on Kauai. Great weather here this week and loving the beauty of the island!

 

[spncity]

My personal motto is - a day in Hawaii without snorkeling is a day wasted. Have fun!

 

[audreyh1]

My favorite HI island!!! Too long since we've been there. I hope you are visiting the north coast.

 

[Bamaman]

Kauai is just about the most beautiful place in the world. Second most beautiful (I've seen) is the Swiss and Austrian Alps.

 

[Dog]

We enjoyed a vacation to Kauai several years ago. Unfortunately it was extremely wet with so much rain they closed the hiking trails due to flooding.



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[BBQ-Nut]

My favorite HI island!!! Too long since we've been there. I hope you are visiting the north coast.

Same here - been there 3 times.

If you are into snorkeling, be sure to go to Tunnels Beach.

 

[ggbutcher]

Our favorite Hawaiian island, too...

 

[grasshopper]

The next time I go to the islands, it will be more time in Molokai, and less time everywhere else.

 

[Koolau]

I've been to Kauai only once though I live on Oahu. I loved the beauty of the island and got to see most of the "points of interest." I'm not sure I will ever return, even though it's a 40 minute flight away (and not ridiculously expensive.) FWIW, I've never been able to stay on another island for more than a week or so (includes Big Island and Maui as well as Kauai.) I'm just too "citified" I guess.

I love exploring and seeing natural beauty - but once I've seen it - I've seen it. It's my (humble) opinion that (other than some very specific scenic or historic places) Oahu has just about everything one could want in an island paradise. I never get tired of Oahu and now I have many friends there. I know lots of beaches and trails which are virtually deserted - just like on the other islands. Most of the allure of Kauai (lush tropical foliage, beautiful beaches, hiking trails, mountains, etc.) are available on Oahu (though they are not as concentrated on Oahu.) I can live a lifestyle very similar to my old lifestyle (lots of things to do, concerts, movies, McDonalds - well forget that - trails, beaches, shopping, good (well, better) prices on everything, etc. etc. etc.)

The big downside to Oahu is lots of people (which mostly manifests itself as rush hour traffic.) If you can get past that, Oahu is a place I can live without getting Island fever. If I still lived on the mainland, I might once again make one of the other islands a "vacation destination." But now that I'm on Oahu, I just don't feel much need to visit those Islands I've seen. I DO want to see Molokai before I croak, but probably only for 3 or 4 days.

Every few weeks, I find something "new" on Oahu that I've never seen or done, so I don't feel particularly deprived in the exploration department. I will occasionaly simply drive up a street I've never been on before. Typically, I will see something of interest (a new ocean-veiw perspective, a trail, an unusual house, even an uncharted man-made rock formation - possibly used for worship or sacrifice.) I don't treat every day on Oahu as "vacation" but it still sort of feels that way.

Naturally, this is one man's opinion and I hope everyone DOES come see ALL of our islands. We need the tourist revenue!! (And you WILL enjoy the beauty.) We'll treat you very well no matter what island experience strikes your fancy. Ya'll come! As always, YMMV.

 

[freebird5825]

I was lucky enough to do a tag-along trip with my late husband to Kauai many moons ago. He went to his conference and I hung out at the hotel. Then...I found a rental place for scooters. Bigger than a moped, smaller than a motorcycle.
The owner was very wary of renting to me, since he knew how the traffic could be, especially not kind to scooters. I assured him that I was fearless but careful, and had driven the LA freeways and roads close to and in NYC and Boston.
PLUS...I promised him I would always wear the helmet and proper shoes and clothing. He grinned and joked about who would be more dangerous...me or the local drivers.
I rented the scooter for 3 days. I waited until 10 AM each day and went all over the island. I made sure I was either well on my way back before rush hour, or just waited it out.
I went to the usual tourist traps, and saw so many wonders on both the smaller paved and unpaved roads. The rental guy marked my map for the off-the-beaten-track places to visit.

Nice fond memories of that adventure...

 

[fishnfool]

One thing we've never done here is rent a scooter, that sounds fun! I see mostly locals riding them around and it could be a bit dangerous but that goes for anywhere. We really love the coastal bike path here and there is about 8 miles of it done so far with another 8 miles to be done in the near future. Another thing we enjoy is kayaking up the Hanalei river then out into the bay to snorkel. We did that last week and had a blast. Might do SUP tomorrow before we fly home Monday.

Aloha

 

[Texas Proud]

Me and DW was on the island during our honeymoon.... went to all the touristy places also.... loved the canyon...

We still buy coffee from the farm there... she like this better than any other coffee..

But, I would be hard pressed to live there... not that big and after awhile you have seen everything.... I could stand a good three months a year there... but not all the time...

 

[Ready]

Naturally, this is one man's opinion and I hope everyone DOES come see ALL of our islands. We need the tourist revenue!! (And you WILL enjoy the beauty.) We'll treat you very well no matter what island experience strikes your fancy. Ya'll come! As always, YMMV.

Just curious, how long have you lived in Oahu, and where did you live before that?

 

[Koolau]

Just curious, how long have you lived in Oahu, and where did you live before that?

FWIW I've lived on Oahu for 8 years and I previously lived in the midwest. Hope that helps as YMMV.

 

[Ready]

FWIW I've lived on Oahu for 8 years and I previously lived in the midwest. Hope that helps as YMMV.

I'm glad to hear you are still enjoying it after eight years. I love Hawaii, but DH doesn't think he could live there full time. If it were up to me, I'd move there tomorrow.

 

[Koolau]

I'm glad to hear you are still enjoying it after eight years. I love Hawaii, but DH doesn't think he could live there full time. If it were up to me, I'd move there tomorrow.

Our realtor who sold us our first place in HI gave us some good advise. She had lived on Oahu for all her life. As luck would have it, she met a Detroit boy (middle aged man, actually - second marriages for both). He moved to HI and started going nuts (we call it rock fever or island fever.) She told him to book an open ended flight back to Detroit for as long as he wanted - by himself. If the time came he wanted to come back, great! Any time he would want to leave in the future, great! If not, she would move there. I forget the time period, but he DID return and never left again. KNOWING that you can leave anytime you want is virtually as good as leaving - once you have experienced it. We've found plenty of (minor) negative things about living in the Islands, but rock fever is not one of them as we travel to the mainland typically once a year. It just never occurs to us to get claustrophobic. YMMV

 

[RockyMtn]

Hit the Napili Coast. Hike the trail. Go inland and see some of the waterfalls. Amazing!

 

[Koolau]

Hit the Napili Coast. Hike the trail. Go inland and see some of the waterfalls. Amazing!

AND strongly consider a helicopter flight through the canyon. Actually, you might consider flying in a fixed wing aircraft (IIRC significantly cheaper than helicopter, though perhaps a bit less exciting.)

Not a recommendation as I have not used these vendors, but some examples:

AdventureInHawaii.com | Kauai Helicopter Tours - AdventureInHawaii.com

The Big Kahuna Kauai 1-Hour Airplane Tour (Airplane) from All Kauai Tours

 

[fishnfool]

We did a helicopter tour years ago and it was awesome. I'll go again sometime but the DW says once was enough for her. Flying into the Waimea canyon aka Grand Canyon of the Pacific was incredible. The Napili cliffs, water falls and Mt. Waialeale spectacular! I highly recommend it to anyone coming here.

Aloha

 

[gerntz]

Given we loved Kauai & didn't hit Maui, I take it there's no need to ever see Maui.

 

[NW-Bound]

We have been to all the big islands, some more than once, but not Molokai or Lanai. Maybe Molokai next.

I've been to Kauai only once though I live on Oahu. I loved the beauty of the island and got to see most of the "points of interest." I'm not sure I will ever return, even though it's a 40 minute flight away (and not ridiculously expensive.) FWIW, I've never been able to stay on another island for more than a week or so (includes Big Island and Maui as well as Kauai.) I'm just too "citified" I guess...

In a way I can understand that. There are similarities between islands, and you do not feel you need to see it again. And when you travel, you want to see something really different from home.

Living in Arizona for 40 years, I have been to the Grand Canyon only twice, and the two times are 35 years apart. And I just revisited Sedona last year, after a 30-year lapse.

So, if you have lived in Oahu for just 8 years, what's the rush to revisit other islands?

 

[audreyh1]

Given we loved Kauai & didn't hit Maui, I take it there's no need to ever see Maui.

Maui Haleakala is not to be missed! Each island is unique.

 

[ggbutcher]

Given we loved Kauai & didn't hit Maui, I take it there's no need to ever see Maui.

Ah, different island, different geography. Maui's dual mountains (Mauna Kahalawai and Haleakala) and the connecting valley are something to see. The road to Hana is a bit like Hanalei, but more rural. IMHO, worth visiting at least once.

 

[SDHiker]

We stayed in Kauai for a little over a week 6 years ago. I loved it. The humidity got to my husband after a few days. We stayed in a vacation rental in Princeville and hit all the major sites. Highlights were doors-off helicopter tour, snorkeling the south coast at Lawai beach, eating at Hukilau Lanai (twice) and Duane's Ono Char Burger, hanging out at Anini Beach, Slack-key guitar concerts at Hanalei Bay. Have a great time.

 

[Koolau]

Given we loved Kauai & didn't hit Maui, I take it there's no need to ever see Maui.

As others have mentioned, Maui does have very specific features and attractions you will not see on other islands. It is worth one trip there in my opinion. It's not as lush as Kauai for the most part, but has truly stunning mountains. There are remnants of dormant volcanoes (last active around 1790 IIRC). At one time (and possibly currently) Maui was the most visited island - even more so than Oahu. We once flew in on vacation in a 747 and it landed first at Maui to disgorge about 85% of the passengers. Then the big bird took the rest of us to Oahu. Very strange, we thought.

If you do go to Maui, get the CDs which guide you in your car to various points of interest. They are quite useful in helping you take in everything as you travel around the island.

Something a bit subtle about the islands is the apparent time period you will find when you arrive. Each island has the feel of a different decade of time. If as most retires you have bit of age on you, you will appreciate this subtlety. As you would guess, Oahu feels very modern (no more than 10 years behind, say, LA). Maui (at least last time I was there) was reminiscent of the 1980's. Before Hurricane Iniki, I would have said Kauai might have represented the 1970's. Since being rebuilt, I'm guessing it is more modern. The Big Island struck me as life in the 1950's - especially in the town of Hilo. I would guess that Molokai would be the 1940's feel (though I have been neither to the island nor to the decade.)

I venture to say that you would be unlikely to make a mistake in visiting ANY of the Hawaiian islands. They all allow you to escape either the bone-numbing cold of mainland winters or the oppressive heat and humidity of summer across much of the mainland. All Island people center their lives around the ocean. For (formerly) land-locked folks like me, simply being on a tropical island lowers the blood pressure and frees the soul. You can get that feeling in the Caribbean, but I enjoy the interaction with the wider range of folks within the Hawaiian culture. Personal choice, of course, so YMMV.