Kauaʻi
The green one. Hanalei, Waimea Canyon, and the beaches the postcards keep using.
This week on Kauaʻi
Friday, October 16
- Kanikapila · 6:30 PM · The Shops at Kukuiula (Poipu): Kanikapila Fridays, Kauai Culinary Market · Poipu
- Hoʻomalu Ke Kai presents CHASING CORAL · 7 PM · Kaua‘i Community College - Performing Arts Center · Lihue
North Shore
Hanalei and Haʻena, where the road ends and the Napali cliffs start.
Haʻena State Park
Road's end on the North Shore, and the payoff is Keʻe Beach.
Kalalau Trail
Eleven miles of sea cliffs, the most famous footpath in Hawaiʻi.
Hanalei Bay
Two miles of sand in a half-moon of green mountains.
Limahuli Garden & Preserve
A garden built into a valley Hawaiians have farmed for centuries.
Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge
A 1913 lighthouse on a cliff full of seabirds.
Na ʻAina Kai Botanical Gardens
Bronze sculptures keep turning up between the plantings.
Tahiti Nui
The Hanalei bar that's been throwing the party since 1963.
Wishing Well Shave Ice
Shave ice out of an old bus, and the coffee's serious too.
Kilauea Bakery
Forty-year-old sourdough starters named Boris and Natasha.
Bar Acuda
The Hanalei dinner to book as far out as you can.
Anaina Hou Community Park
Mini golf, a giant playground, and live music in Kilauea.
Hanalei Taro & Juice Co
Taro smoothies from the family that grows the taro.
Hanalei Bread Co
Hanalei's morning line starts at the bread counter.
Waipa Farmers Market
Tuesday afternoons in Waipa, produce until dusk.
Kilauea Fish Market
Fresh fish plates from a Kilauea counter.
Island Soap & Candle Works
Kauaʻi-made soap and candles by the lighthouse road.
ʻAnini Beach Park
The North Shore's flattest water, courtesy of a very long reef.
Haʻena Beach Park
The county's last beach park before the road runs out.
Hanalei Valley Lookout
Taro fields stitched like a quilt below the highway.
ʻOkolehao Trail
The Hanalei view you earn on foot.
Ama
Hanalei's noodle house, Tuesday through Saturday.
East Side
Kapaʻa and Lihuʻe: the working coast, with the best food-truck lots on the island.
Wailua River State Park
A river valley of heiau, waterfalls, and slow boats.
Sleeping Giant (Nounou East Trail)
Climb the giant's chest for the East Side's best view.
Lydgate Beach Park
Rock-walled ocean pools made for actual swimming.
Kauai Museum
Royal artifacts and plantation stories on Rice Street.
Mark's Place
Chef-driven plate lunch in a Lihuʻe industrial park.
Duke's Kauai
Mai tais on Kalapaki Beach, hula pie for the table.
Wailua Shave Ice
Shave ice with the fruit actually in it.
Pono Market
The Kapaʻa poke case with a line out the door.
Koloa Rum Company
Single-batch rum made with Waiʻaleʻale rainwater.
Smith's Tropical Paradise
Four generations of one family running the Fern Grotto.
Kauai Backcountry Adventures
Float an 1870s plantation ditch straight through the mountain.
Jack Harter Helicopters
The original Kauaʻi helicopter tour, doors off if you dare.
Tip Top Cafe
A Lihue breakfast institution running since 1916.
Kountry Kitchen
Kapaʻa's plate-sized pancake house.
Hukilau Lanai
Wailua's dinner standby where the fish is local and the music is live.
The Musubi Truck
The Kapaʻa musubi truck that grew to three.
Kenji Burger
Japanese-style burgers on Kauaʻi grass-fed beef.
Kauai Juice Co
Cold-pressed everything, made in Kapaʻa.
Kapaia Stitchery
Kauaʻi's quilting mothership, trading fabric for over 50 years.
Vicky's Fabrics
Old Kapaʻa Town's fabric shop for quilters.
Deja Vu Surf Hawaii
Kapaʻa's surf shop in a storefront over a century old.
Kauai Community Market
The island's big Saturday market on the college lawn.
Wailua Falls
The double waterfall from the Fantasy Island credits, zero hiking required.
ʻOpaekaʻa Falls
The easiest waterfall on Kauaʻi to see.
Kealia Beach Park
Where the east side goes to bodyboard.
Ke Ala Hele Makalae
Seven and a half miles of coastline you can ride before breakfast.
Kuilau Ridge Trail
Ferns and green ridgelines, fifteen minutes above Wailua.
Moalepe Trail
The quiet back way into the Makaleha country.
Kayak Wailua
Paddle the river, then swim under the waterfall.
Alakoko Fishpond Overlook
The fishpond the menehune built overnight, so the story goes.
Anahola Beach Park
A locals' bay under the King Kong profile of Kalalea.
Ha Coffee Bar
Lihue's community coffee bar on Rice Street.
South Shore
Poʻipu beaches and old Koloa town. The sunny side.
Poʻipu Beach Park
The South Shore's do-everything beach.
McBryde Garden
The world's largest collection of native Hawaiian plants.
Allerton Garden
Sculpted garden rooms in a valley by the sea.
The Beach House Restaurant
The dinner table with the South Shore's best sunset.
Puka Dog
A hot dog in a pierced sweet-bread bun, only here.
Brennecke's Beach Broiler
A cold drink with a straight view of Poʻipu Beach.
Little Fish Coffee
Acai bowls and strong coffee steps from Poʻipu.
Koloa Fish Market
Poke by the pound in old Koloa town.
Warehouse 3540
A warehouse of Kauaʻi makers with a coffee truck out front.
Eating House 1849
Roy Yamaguchi cooking plantation-era comfort above Poipu.
Porky's Kauai
Pork on pork in Old Koloa Town.
Sueoka Store & Snack Shop
Koloa's hundred-year grocery with a plate-lunch window.
Lappert's Hawaii
The Kauaʻi ice cream that went statewide.
The Right Slice
Pie for dinner and pie for the plane.
Kalaheo Cafe & Coffee Company
Kalaheo coffee house on the road to Waimea Canyon.
Kauai Kookie
The omiyage kookie, straight from the source.
Kauai Culinary Market
Poipu's Wednesday market with dinner attached.
Spouting Horn
Kauaʻi's blowhole, hissing on cue with every south swell.
Mahaʻulepu Heritage Trail
The south shore's last wild coastline starts at Shipwreck's.
West Side
Waimea Canyon, Kokeʻe trails, and Hanapepe's little main street.
Waimea Canyon State Park
A mile-wide red gorge they call the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.
Kokeʻe State Park
Kalalau Valley from four thousand feet up.
Polihale State Park
Miles of empty dune-backed beach at the literal end of the road.
Kokeʻe Natural History Museum
Trail advice from the people who know the mountain.
Salt Pond Beach Park
A natural rock ridge turns the ocean into a swimming pool.
Hanapepe Friday Art Night
One Friday street of galleries, music, and easels.
Talk Story Bookstore
The westernmost bookstore in the country, new address included.
JoJo's Shave Ice
Waimea's shave ice stop before or after the canyon.
Kauai Coffee Company
Walk the largest coffee farm in the country.
Holo Holo Charters
The catamaran that runs Napali and keeps going to Niʻihau.
Capt Andy's Sailing Adventures
Sailing Napali since 1983, sunset dinner included.
Banana Patch Studio
Hand-painted tiles and pottery from a Hanapepe studio.
Aloha Spice Company
Hanapepe's spice house for the home cook.
Kekaha Beach Park
Sunset over Niʻihau from a long stretch of west side sand.
Awaʻawapuhi Trail
Three miles downhill to the rim of the Napali.
Alakaʻi Swamp Trail
A plank trail across a bog in the sky.
Pihea Trail
Walk the rim of Kalalau Valley without the Kalalau Trail.
Kukui Trail
The trail that actually goes down into Waimea Canyon.