My family recently returned from my (Keri’s) absolute favorite destination: Kauai, Hawaii! My husband and I took this trip a couple of years ago for our anniversary. We fell in love with the island, and knew we had to go back with our daughter. My mom was even able to join us this time as well!
Flights: We flew Southwest with our companion pass and points. Since it was summer, a more PEAK time, we paid under 100K points round trip for my daughter and I, (since my husband’s ticket was free). We flew through Las Vegas both times, and on the way back we had an additional stop in Honolulu.
Stay: Not only is Kauai my favorite destination, it is also the location of my favorite resort, Grand Hyatt Kauai. I remember loving it so much last time, but once we arrived, it all came back. It just has such a luxurious and tropical vibe, yet also laid back. The beautiful landscape, beach views, ocean sounds, never ending pools, and little touches throughout the resort make this one top notch! When we booked the resort, I believe it was a Hyatt category 7 and we paid 35K a night. It has now gone up to a category 8, so a typical night is 40K points at the time this post is being written, but I don’t blame Hyatt. It is a top tier hotel on the most gorgeous island. Would I use my points here again, ABSOLUTELY!
Transportation: We used a local company, Pineapple Express, for our car rental. You definitely want to rent a car to get around the island and see the sights. We had rented through a larger corporate company last time and didn’t have the best experience (car trouble, a long wait to get the car, etc), so we opted for Pineapple Express due to the great reviews. And, we really did have a good experience! They offer beach chairs, a cooler, and beach towels for you too. Getting the car is quick and efficient and they were just so easy work with!
Activities: The resort has so much to offer, but you can’t go to Kauai without checking out additional activities and adventures. Some of the places/activities we checked out were:
- Princeville- This is an area on the northern part of the island with amazing views and great beaches. One highlight of the trip for my daughter was being able to snorkel and having a sea turtle swim past her. It just may have been her favorite part of the trip!
- Poipu Beach- This beach is less than 5 minutes from the resort. It is a great place for sunset beach views and watching turtles come up on to the beach to rest at dusk. It really is something you can’t miss if you are planning to visit Kauai! If you are lucky, you might even run across an endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal resting on the beach. Across the street from the beach is the infamous Puka Dogs. These are unique Hawaiian style hotdogs you just have to check out! We also ate at Brennecke’s Beach Broiler one evening, which is a great casual restaurant with views of the beach.
- Kauai Backcountry Adventure– This place has a “one of a kind” mountain tubing adventure! They also offer ziplining. But, the mountain tubing adventure is just such a unique experience! The adventure begins with a narrated ride up to the starting point. There are amazing scenic views to take in on the ride up. Then, everyone gets in their tubes and the adventure begins! The tubing takes place through an old sugar plantation irrigations system hand-dug around 1870! Riders tube through open canals and tunnels with a head lamp! When the adventure is complete, riders are taken to some picnic tables and provide with a picnic lunch. There is also a water hole for anyone that would like to take a dip in fresh water. Along the way back to the check-in building, you can take in more scenic views and can often see some wild pigs and chickens.
- Luau- We attended the Grand Hyatt luau this time around. We really enjoyed the luau at Kalamaku last time, and we have heard great things about Smith’s luau. Unfortunately, these didn’t work into our schedule for the nights we were in Kauai, so we opted for the one at the resort. While, the Grand Hyatt Luau wasn’t quite up to par with the others, it was very entertaining for my 10 year old, and we still had lots of fun and good food!
- Shave Ice (not shaved, just shave)- There are several places to grab this treat, but one that is a little more well-known is Wailua Shave Ice. Try the Lava Flow!
- Hiking- We only did a short hike this time- we climbed the rock at Shipwreck Beach right by the resort one morning which has a great overlook of the ocean.
- Waimea Canyon- We didn’t drive the entire way to all of the final lookouts, but we did venture up quite aways to check out the views.
Other things to do that we didn’t have time for or were not really things that worked for us:
- Take a helicopter ride or catamaran ride to see more unique views of the island and ocean wildlife.
- Hike the various trails to see waterfalls.
- Zipline at one of the many lush forests of Kauai
As I said at the beginning of the post, Kauai really is my favorite destination. And, it’s really one of the most straight-forward and doable trips using points and miles! Be sure to reach out and we can help you get there!
