Trip to Kauai

If your wanting to go to Hawaii and its your first time to the islands 

and your not sure which one to go to. 

 I am telling you to go to Kauai!!

I have been to the Kauai, The Big Island and Oahu. We have a trip planned for Maui next year, but out of those 3, Kauai is my absolute favorite!!

Kauai is more authentic and laid back compared to the other 2 islands(in my opinion)

I felt like we had a lot more activities to do in Kauai and there are way more beaches to enjoy 

on Kauai than on The Big Island.  You literally have to hike into all the beaches on The Big Island 

and there are only like 4 of them that are not to rocky to swim at.

I made a list of things to do in Kauai for a few friends that I will put at the end of this.

That list though is not even close to all the amazing things you can do there.

WE are definitely going to go back many times to keep exploring this wonderful Island.

We would not have been able to experience this wonderful Island though if it were not for Michaels parents.  They surprised the whole family at Christmas with tickets to Hawaii. 

That was such an amazing gift and we now have amazing memories to look back on with the family.

Thank you Sherrie and Dave for this wonderful gift.

Liam also got to spend his 1st birthday in Hawaii.

So for his birthday we took him on a train ride around the plantation and then 

spent all day at the beach!

He was in heaven.  He played in that sand and water like it was no ones business.

Once we got home we did dinner and then cut a pineapple to look like a cake to sing happy birthday to him! Once everyone stared to sing happy birthday he burst into tears! He was not a fan of people singing loudly to him. We got it on video so look for that when going through all the pictures. 

We had such an amazing time the whole 13 days that we were there,

but if you asked what were our top 3 favorite things we would say...

#1. Hanalei Bay- Jumping off the pier while watching the sun go down was one of the prettiest and coolest things I have ever done. The bay there is so pretty and calm!

#2. Mountain tubing with Kauai adventures- This was so much fun and you learn a lot about the island from the tour guides, it is pricy but so worth it!

#3. Poi Pu Beach- perfect for kids, snorkeling, boogie boarding, and there is even some grass areas for a sand free picnic. There is also a cute shopping mall with restaurants a few miles down the road that you can head to if you need a break from the beach for a little.

Last thing...

One of my favorite things about the Island is the mass amount of wild chickens they have.

Make sure that you ask a local or tour guid why they have so many, kind of a funny story.

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I just realized the pictures did not load in order so sorry things might be in random spots.

The cutest and coolest LDS church!!

Poipu Beach, our favorite!

Awesome razor tour we went on.

Cant remember his name, but this guy was the best tour guid ever.

He kept us laughing the whole time.

He has amazing knowledge of the island as well.

Of course we only got one picture of this awesome view with my eyes closed.

Giant Bamboo

I was actually the first to hold this creepy looking lobster and then everyone else decided that if I could do that could too haha

The drive up to the tubing adventure in the mountains.

We didn't take a camera with us down it, so we just took one at the end of it!

You cant see it but behind us is the canal we floated in.

Lydgate State Park Beach

Train ride at Kauai Plantation for Liam's Birthday

Liam loved to feed the animals but would freak out every time they came close to his hand to take the food, his face was so funny every time. 

Poipu Beach after the train ride

Family pictures before heading to the Luau

Dinner at the Luau VIP style!

We were very worried Liam would not be happy to sit here the whole time,

but he sat there with me the whole time!

He loved the show and just watched contently! He was a little tired too, so I think he enjoyed just laying there.

This was an amazing Luau though.

The story they told was done very well!

Bananas and Chickens all day long.

We stopped for lunch in Waimea while exploring the south end of the Island.

These 3 photos were taken at Salt Pond Park. Cute beach, but man it was sooo hot here!

This is the beach that our house we are renting is on.  It was such a fun place to stay.

The town we stayed in was Anahola, which is close to Kapaa that had all the restaurants and shopping we would go to.

Pretty stop on our way up to Hanalei

Hanalei Bay, my favorite heaven!!

After checkin gout the bay we went a little further North and took at look at tunnels beach.

Then headed back to the pier for an amazing sunset experiance.

We jumped in to watch the last bit of sun disappear  

I think we definitely tired him out that day!

Last picture together in Kauai!

Made the perfect bed for him on the plane!!

Things to do in Kauai

Free things to do in Kauai

• * Poipu Beach is a must.  You can snorkel on the small reef that is there, you would have to have your own gear though.  The beach is amazing there is you want to swim and not worry about waves also. Here is the address you type in to find it. Poipu Beach Park, Koloa, HI
• ** Hanalei Bay Pier is a must to go to.  WE highly suggest going to the pier at sunset and jumping off into the water as the sun is going down it really is a cool experience.  It was actually one of our favorite things we did the whole trip.
• *Queens Bath and Tunnels beach are beautiful sights to see when you are up in Hanalei. Google those places to see pictures of what they are.
• Waimea Canyon.  We did not get to do this one because Liam needed a nap, but Michaels parents said it was an amazing view! It is the Grand Canyons of Hawaii. here is a link to see some pictures of it http://www.aloha-hawaii.com/kauai/waimea-canyon/
• Spouting Horn Park.  It is really close to Poipu Beach so I would do this the same day you go there.  Not much to see here but the spout was really cool to see.  Its a nice 10-15min stop. You have to walk through this small flea market to get to the spout which was kinda funny.

Not free things to do in Kauai

• * Tubing(You guys will have so much fun on this trip! Try to ask the tour guide as many questions as you can about Kauai, they know everything about the island and a lot of it is very cool.  Especially ask about the chickens and why there are so many)
• Zip-lining is always fun.  We did the course from the same people who do the tubing http://kauaibackcountry.com/zipline/
• Snorkeling off the Na Pali Coast. Katie and Lindsey did this, I am to afraid to go in the ocean so I opted out of this one.  It is kind of spendy also, but the girls said it was so amazing and a lot of the locals say you have to see the Na Pali coast when you go to Kauai.  The only way to get to it though is by boat or a really really long hike. Here is a link so you can see what I am talking about http://www.napali.com/tours/ca-sail/na-pali-snorkel-adventure/ 
• * Razor tour.  We did the Waterfalls tour with Kipu Ranch.  That was a lot of fun and if you wanted you can swim at the last waterfall you go to.  Just a warning the waterfalls are not big and jaw dropping.  they are pretty small but very beautiful.  This Ranch also does zip-lining. Here is the link to their website https://kiputours.com/ 
• Kauai Plantation Railway. We did the train and the Lu’au they have there and that was pretty amazing. http://www.kilohanakauai.com/wp/

Places to eat in Kauai

• ** Pono Market is a must!! it is where all the locals go to get the best food.  We got the Kalua Pork, mac salad, and sushi.  It was all so amazing.  We discovered the place on our last few days.  We wish we would have known about it earlier though because it was a lot cheaper than any restaurant and the food was 10x better!! https://www.yelp.com/biz/pono-market-kapaa
• Shrimp Station.  They have one in Kapaa as well as a few other towns in Kauai. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g60616-d2530837-Reviews-The_Shrimp_Station-Kapaa_Kauai_Hawaii.html
• Food Trucks in Kapaa
• Bubba Burgers.  This was an awesome place if you are wanting burgers.  We went to this place twice for lunch.  They have one in Kappa as well as by Poipu Beach in a town called Koloa.  Which the shopping center it is in is a really fun one to look around in.  There is also another shopping center on the other side of the road that you would pass to get to Bubba’s that is a great shopping place and they have good restaurant selection. Link to see both Bubba locations
• Okay don't laugh, but you must stop at McDonalds to try their Haupia Pie. It is definitely worth the $1 haha.
• If you can find any of it you also HAVE to try a white sugar loaf pineapple!! We found one at a flea market that goes on at the community college in Lihue.  They are only open on certain days and if you go you have to get there right when they open because the people who own the sugar loaf plantation set up a staton there and make this pineapple slush stuff.  they just put the pineapple through something and it comes out like ice cream it really is amazing, they don't add anything to it it is just the pineapple.  And then you need to buy a pineapple because it really is the best thing ever!! you have to get there early because they run out with in the hour.
• ** UNCLES!! You have to go to uncles for shaved ice and try their snow! it is so yummy!! The locals will even tell you to go there.  Best shaved ice place I have ever been to.  We got a punch card for the place because we went back like every day and we were in Kauai for 2 weeks sooo I am pretty positive I gained like 100 lbs. that trip!!

• We highly recommend
• * You have to go!

Ps if it is rainy/cloudy near Kapaa or anywhere further North you should go South to the Poipu area and do what you have planned down that way.  The South side never has bad weather, so if the next day looks good up North then you don’t have to worry about missing out on the South side stuff.