Must do on Kauai?

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Forgive me if I am repeating what has been asked answered here, but I need a slight twist since we will be travelling with another couple and no kids, and will want as many 'grownup fun' things to do as possible.

Looks like we'll be staying in Kapa'a to take advantage of the midway location b/t Poipu and Princeville. Hiking/extreme driving are no problem. We will be there for one week in summer, on the heels of a week on BI.

I have the Kauai Revealed guide.

Would appreciate your 'don't miss' suggestions, as well as tips for fun things to do/places to go/restaurants/bars at night.

Thanks

[Jimbo Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Jimbo]

Helicopter ride

From the sky you can see the enormity of the wayama canyon and the cliffs. Someone can correct my misspelling and fill in the blanks. We took this tour over 8 years ago and still remember it like it was yesterday. A ride of a lifetime!

[iceeu2 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close iceeu2]

Wonderful Kauai

The first time we went to Kauai, we made sure to do

Helicopter Tour with Interisland no doors
Napali Coast Boat Cruise with Hilo Hilo Charters
ATV Ride with one of the atv companies

Also, be sure to do the drive to Waimea Canyon
Have Friday night seafood buffet at Princeville Hotel
Eat saimen at Hamarua's Saimen in Lihue

[jimbosee Member Find all posts View Profile Close jimbosee]

Kauai!!!

Hello Avery,
Have a Bubber Burger,best hamburger's in the world,and you being young and active would enjoy the kayak--hike--lunch--hike--kyak,to the waterfall.Pat and I did it in 1999,and we were not fit,and I agree,the helicopter ride was great.Enjoy.Oh thanks for the offer of a possible week in NYC.Regards Jim Seedsman.

jimbosee.

[jlr10 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close jlr10]

All of the above and visit the Hindu Monestary, recommended on TUG. I went last week and could not believe the beauty of the grounds. The monk advised the Hawaiian name for the location translated to "Where heaven touches earth." I think it was correctly named.

The monastary is open to the public, but also provides guided tours to the temple being built.

[Faust Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Faust]

All the above plus Kauai Coffee plantation
http://www.hawaiiweb.com/kauai/html/...e_company.html

Here is a site that might help
http://www.alternative-hawaii.com/calendar.htm

[Fisch Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Fisch]

Cocktails at Stevensons Library at the Grand Hyatt in Poipu.

After driving Waimea Canyon, hit the Waimea Brewing Company for some beers. Food is only so so, but the beers are good.

Duke's Canoe Club for sunset cocktails and pupus.

Al

[chellej Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close chellej]

Just went in Sept for my dd 18th birthday & had a very active week - all great tours:

Safari Helicopter
Kayaking at hanalei bay
Ziplining/waterfall - Princeville Ranch
Horseback riding - Silver falls ranch
Holo holo Napali snorkel.

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

These all sound great! Any more evening ideas? Also, can we rent kayaks and do Hanalei Bay on our own, or do we need to go with a guide?

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

The Captain Zodiac raft ride to the other side of the Island was great.

Look at my Journals for more info. http://www.igougo.com/travelcontent/...ournalID=19420 If you can not view them search for member name big_frank

[Luanne Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Luanne]

These all sound great! Any more evening ideas? Also, can we rent kayaks and do Hanalei Bay on our own, or do we need to go with a guide?

Hanelei Bay, as I recall, is pretty calm (meaning if you just want to take kayaks out I would think you could do it on your own). Do you mean the Napali coast?

[chellej Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close chellej]

We went with a guide. First up the river which was very calm. Hanalei bay was also very calm - they took us east around to a small beach for snorkeling & lunch. You can hike down to the beach from a path past shearwater but don't know the name. Snorkeling there was great. Caugh a few waves in the Kayak which thrilled my DD.

THey also give surf lessons there at Hanalei bay too.

While we were waiting for our tour, Peirce Bronson walked across the parking lot & over to a little coffee shop accross the street. Our guide said he has a house near Princeville & will often grow a beard so he is not so "recognizable"

[I-DE-HO Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close I-DE-HO]

Avery,
If you do a Pahio t/s presentation you can get a heavily discounted helicopter tour out of the Princeville airport. We did that last year and it was fun. But after reading about helicopter crashes on Kauai, and elsewhere, I'm not sure I'd do it again. It was a lot of fun though.

Phil

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Helicopters are the one thing I don't think I'm up for... I did the PowerHanggliding/Ultralight out of Hana, but I think helicopters are inherently more dangerous...

[garyd210 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close garyd210]

canal tubing so-so

Earlier this month, 4 of us did the canal tubing out of Lihue with Outfitters. Not very impressed as it was pricey at $109 each and they say 70 percent of the canal tour is in dark, if not pitch black tunnels. Scenery was minimal and did have a average pita pocket buffet sandwich, chips and hawaiian sodas at the end. You spin around a lot as you bounce off the sides of the canal. We had much more fun on the Kauai ATV trip. If you're ok with getting dirty and it it's been raining(pray for rain), the two seater Mud Buggy was really fun, atleast for the driver(me) going through the mud puddles. Beautiful scenery where Jurassic park was filmed. Clothing is included. They sell bandanas for $2 if the weather is drier. It's a 12 mile trip with lunch and a fun swim spot to clean off before more mud. They're out of Kapaa, near Poipu. Buy a snorkel mask and tube as there are a variety of places to pull over and snorkle ie Hanalei Bay, Ke'e Beach at the end of the road. While north, check out the queens bath in Princeville(directions in Kauai Revealed). Princeville Hotel is a pretty place to eat outside on a nice evening to watch the sunset, but you'll probably need reservations. The friday seafood buffet(no lobster) is around $65/each, so for 4 of us with a total of 3 umbrella drinks the tab was just over $300. The Bali Hai Restaurant in Princeville is another beautiful place for a wonderful sunset dinner. It's a bit pricey, but there is the lounge(Happy Talk Lounge?) just a few feet away with much more reasonable, yet not as fancy meals, but you don't feel like you need to be dressed up. They have entertainment most evenings at the lounge(we enjoyed the jazz night). Kauai, you need to know is not the party island, but has it's nice spots. We flew 2 years ago with HeliUSA out of Princeville and did the 1 hour tour. If it looks like rain, try for another day. The main mountain peak is almost always shrouded in clouds, but was clear for a couple of hours on our trip. Hanalei Bay has Zelo's, which is a pretty nice restaurant on the main drag. For lunch, the Tropical Taco is also on the one main street. CJ's is pricey, but has a very reasonable $10 salad bar with nice fresh taro rolls(yum) located in a Princeville shopping center where there's a grocery store, just past the Princeville fountains as you enter the area. Have a wonderful trip. garyd210