10 fun things to do in Kauai
In no particular order, I give you some fun ideas to do on the island of Kauai! These are things I did on my trip to the island in March 2022. If you know of more fun things to do, besides the ones I listed, please reach out to me. I’d love to know for future trips!
(ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY ME UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE)
Explore Beaches!
Duh! You’re at one of the most beautiful places for beaches. Here is a list of the ones we went to:
Poipu Beach
Very popular! We saw some animals on this beach. We saw a sea lion the first day we went there. It was basking in the sun, taking a nap. On another day we came back to this beach to watch the sunset. To our surprise there was many turtles coming onto the sand to sleep for the night. So so cute would definitely recommend going at sunset.
*3 google images below
Hanalei Bay
Is a big, long beach with stunning views and a cool big dock going out in the ocean. This beach was one of my favorites, definitely another popular one on the north shore. I loved this beach for photos, I mean just look at that background!
* 2 google images below
Kauapea Beach (secret beach)
This beach is very secluded and private. You need a four wheel drive car to get there because the dirt road to it, is not smooth. It is a pretty big beach and very pretty with some big waves.
*2 google images below
Tunnels Beach
This was THE best place for snorkeling. We did not have to swim out very far to see big corals with tons of fish! Kid-friendly for sure! We saw tons of kids there with their little snorkel gear. Stunning beach and probably my favorite!
*2 google images below
2. Hiking
Kauai has beautiful mountains which means beautiful hikes as well. Some of the hikes I’ve listed are kid friendly while others are harder and you need a permit or need some sort of gps map. We used the app “AllTrails” which helped navigate us on the trails.
Sleeping Giant
Approx 3.5 miles out-and-back in Kapa’a
Easy hike with a little bit of climb but the view is sooo worth it! The view is so stunning and we caught it right at sunset, which was even better. However, be careful doing that because you will be hiking back in the dark. Just be prepared. At night all the frogs came out! Like tons of them. My sister caught one and they were so cute. She let it go obviously but I was shook she was brave enough to pick it up haha.
Hoopii Falls
2.5 mile out-and-back near Kapa’a
Pretty easy hike to these falls, that honestly looked like you could cliff jump in. We didn’t try it but we have heard of others doing it. Just be safe!
Makaleha Trail
Warning you can get VERY lost on this trail. The trail is not very clear and you NEED some form of maps like the AllTrails app. The beginning of the hike has some bamboo forests that are super cool. The rest of the way you are following beside the river to find the waterfall. The hike is fairly short but because you are walking up rivers and going through an obstacle coarse of fallen trees it does take a long time. Would not recommend taking kids.
*google image
Hanakapiai Falls
You do need a permit to do this hike and it is a longer one at 8 miles out-and-back. It is quite stunning and worth the long hike. Get there early like we did and you’ll have the whole place to yourself! At the bottom of the hike is the popular Ke’e beach which we didn’t stay at but it was pretty.
3. Farmers Markets
Farmers Market in Princeville
We loved going to the farmers market to see all the fresh fruit and pretty jewerly. We got coconuts, shown in the photo to the left. I did not like the taste but those that like coconuts obviously loved it. Don’t even get me started on the other fruit though. We got pineapples, papayas, and mangos! OMG soooo good, nothing like what you can get in Utah haha. You definitely need to get some fruit and try fruit you haven’t tried before!
4. Waimea Canyon
*google image
Waimea Canyon
I wish we would’ve spent more time here but some complicated circumstance came up and we did not explore very much. However, definitely look up the hikes, drive and overlooks for here because it is stunning.
5. Bike Ride
Bike ride down the coast
We rented bikes at “Hele on Kauai Bike Rentals” but there are a few shops in Kapa’a that have bike rentals. And they are located right on a paved trail that goes around the coast. This was honestly my favorite thing we did! It was sooo fun and pretty!
6. Other attractions
Spouting Horn
A lava tube area has water that releases huge spouts of water which is way cool to see as the waves roll in! We went here at sunset and it was breath taking!
*bottom right photo from google
Makauwahi Cave / Turtle Santurary
It is just a short walk to this amazing cave and turtle sanctuary! The turtles would just walk right by you. No we did not touch any of them or bother them. Very fun and kid-friendly.
7. Eat at new places
The food is soo good! Here are some places we went to: Coconuts, Savage Shrimp, Jojos Shaved Ice, Tropical Dream Ice Cream, Chicken in a Barrel, Sushi Bushido
My favorite places were Savage Shrimp and Coconuts!
Kauai Juice Co
To all my juice moms out there, this is the place to go to! It was so so good, they have 3 locations on the island. They were on the more expensive side but so worth it.
8. Lighthouses
Kilauea Lighthouse
This lighthouse was so cute with great views. You do need to reserve an hour online to go but it is super easy and worth it.
9. Sunset/Sunrise
Sunsets
I would highly encourage watching the sunrises and sunset while on Kauai. Because Kauai rains a lot there seems to always be clouds in the sky which makes for a pretty sunset.
10. Take photos!!
The jaw-dropping scenery is absolutely perfect for that model shoot you want to do. Bust out whatever camera you got because this is the place for photos.
Overall, we loved our trip to Hawaii. It was my sister, mom and mom’s girlfriend that went and it was the perfect place for a girls trip. However, I do want to go back with Troy :) I hope that you get some tips from this post and it encourages you to go!
Best wishes,
Lexi
