The garden isle of Kauai

The beautiful garden isle of Kauai is in our opinion the best of all the islands in Hawaii for a family vacation getaway. Whoa, that is a pretty hefty statement to make! Read on and hopefully you will begin to understand why.

Many of the people we met on Kauai were vacationers who own a timeshare and come to Kauai because they think this island is the best island for whale watching, hiking/camping, and relaxing. It is true that during January up to April, the whales love to eat, play and rest off the shores of Kauai. We saw a whale pretty much every time we spent looking out to the ocean. You can catch a whale watching tour in a boat that has a glass bottom, but our recommendation is that you should just get a pair of good binoculars and go out to a high point and watch the whales from there. Not only will you save a lot of money, but you can dictate when you want to be done, especially if anyone in your family is disposed to sea-sickness. The average whale watching tour can run anywere from $70-300 a person and can take up to 6 hours. The advantage to the boat tour is the amazing shoreline views you will get, especially of the Na'Pali coastline.

If hiking and camping is your thing, then Kauai is probably one of the best hiking spots we have ever visited. We went with another couple and due to the nature of the hike to Kalalau Beach, we don't recommend taking children along, unless they are tried and true hikers.

If you want to experience Kauai for the relaxation, snorkeling, or other fun Kauai activities, then we recommend you stay in Kapaa. Situated on the "coconut coast" (east), Kapaa, offers the cheaper hotels, without the loss of service and amenities, and quick access to all the major areas of activities. If you want to pay a premium, then stay in Hanalei Bay. We stayed at both places and agreed that Kapaa offered all the same services for significantly less. We paid around $175 a night for 4 people in one room in Kapaa, and around $200 a night in Hanalei Bay. If you are looking for exotic beauty, however, Hanalei Bay is the place to stay. If you plan to camp while on Kauai, you will save a significant amount of money since permits only cost between $3-10 a person per night, with children under 18 free. The downside to camping in Kauai, is that usually you need to reserve your permit 6-12 months in advance. If you go in the winter months, then you can sometimes get a permit only a month in advance, but don't count on it! To contact them, you can go to their website here, or you can call them at 808-587-0300. They respond quickly to snail mail, but they are terrible at answering the phone (we must have tried 15 times and only got through once!)

As mentioned before, Kapaa is a good place to make your starting point. It is only a few miles north of the airport you will fly into, and it is centrally located as far as beach activities, water activities and hiking is concerned. The beaches are okay (if you want great beaches, you should go to Maui or Oahu). The attraction of Kauai to most people is the more laid back feeling you get around the locals and the greater sense of relaxation (except for any driving around 5 pm-more later). We felt a lot more relaxed on Kauai than we ever did on the Big Island or Oahu. The exotic beauty and lush vegetation certainly helps, too! The final recommendation for Kauai is that it is cheaper than the other islands. Not a lot cheaper, but noticeable enough for you to realize that you aren't breaking the bank. Housing and hotels are definately cheaper ($50-200 cheaper).

How to get there? All major flights will take you to Honolulu first, then you will catch one of the island hopping planes over to Kauai. If you have a lot of time and money isn't a big problem, then you could take boat cruise over to the island. We saw the cruise ships go by several times, while stay on Kauai, and thought this would be fun as well, however, they don't really cater to families as much as they cater to adults. We flew into Honolulu and then took Aloha Airlines to fly into Lihue, Kauai. The couple we traveled with, got their tickets on Expedia and paid about $800 roundtrip from Oakland, CA to Lihue, Kauai-a darn good price we thought. We rented an SUV from Thrifty that we reserved through Priceline.com and paid about $280 for 9 days. An SUV is strongly recommended if you want to go to any of the interesting hiking places, which are inaccessible without 4 X 4, and you will be greatful for the extra luggage space. If you have 1-3 kids, rent an SUV. It is cheaper than a van and has more luggage space than a car.