one and half days KAUAI

ok i've done the search--its useless.

with a rental car i want to see waimea, poipu and go to the luau (drive there to save time returning to the ship,etc). going in december the north shore will probably be bery rainy--so its a maybe. How shall I schedule my time?

thanks

Almost exact same question I was going to post. Eagerly awaiting some expertise.

On the second day you can drive out to the North Shore, at least to the Hanalei lookout, about 1-1.5 hour drive from Nawiliwili. It's one of the most breath-taking views in Hawaii. If the one-lane bridge to Hanalei is open, you can drive down to the valley. Drive to the north side is beautiful, quite different from East and South side.

There are two northern beaches that are safe in winter - Anini for snorkeling(not much) and Kalihiwai for boogy boarding, both in Kilauea. Don't even think about swimming in anywhere else in the north, but I don't think you'll have time on the second day anyway. North side, to me, is the essence of Kauai. Do the drive if you possibly can.

Slightly OT, but how did you search? What did you search for exactly? I agree that the regular "plain" search is pretty much the pits because it searches far too broadly and all the way back in time. You need to use the advanced search for this forum only, be very specific in your search terms (such as "kauai north shore" or "kauai beach" or "waimea canyon" or "kauai X" where X equals a specific type of thing you are interested in doing/seeing), and only go back a few months to start. The question of "what should I do" is far too broad to answer, at least for me. There are so many choices and so many depend on your specific preferences and requirements. The bottom line is that we can only suggest or give our experiences. We cannot tell you how to schedule your day, partly because that's something only you can decide and partly because you'll need to be somewhat flexible (as you've already figured out, I think) as you won't know what the weather or seas will be like until you are actually there.

Yes, it can be rainy at any time of the year. It rains every day in Hawaii (just not usually all day and not usually all over the islands). We were on Kauai in December two times. First time, a big Kona storm had hit the days before, so we didn't have much water time. We snorkeled only a couple of days (south shore, of course, because it was winter), but had perfect weather at the canyon. Second time (last year), we had a bit of rain overnight and some showers in the afternoon, but took a fabulous drive up to Ke'e, walked along the beach, watched the huge waves, and had a delightful picnic. One February, it was clear and super warm both days we were there. You just never know. I guess what I'm saying is that it might be very rainy, but I wouldn't say that it probably will.

I understand how frustrating the plain search can be--It almost always resulted in "the white screen of doom" for me! That's why I switched to advanced search only and very specific searches.

beachchick

ok i've done the search--its useless.

with a rental car i want to see waimea, poipu and go to the luau (drive there to save time returning to the ship,etc). going in december the north shore will probably be bery rainy--so its a maybe. How shall I schedule my time?

thanks

I'm assuming you are cruising so you will have stops at other islands???? You could opt to do a luau in Maui instead. North shore in Kauai was pretty awesome and we stopped at waterfalls along the way that weren't far off the path. Lydgate beach park has lagoons for swimming that are enclosed with rock so if the shores are rough, you can still swim and snorkel in there. Lots of fun for me & DH. Water was shoulder deep and we could see the sandy bottom with lots of blue fish. Pretty cool. Wish I had snorkel gear with me would have been even better. But I could still see them from above. Then we drove as far north as you could go to Ke'e beach and you could see the start of the Napali coastline.

I'm not saying you shouldn't go the other direction cuz I haven't been there but letting you know that going north isn't such a bad idea either.

Here is a link that has info on it. I say go Northshore but many disagree. I don't think you can make a wrong choice.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=618601

Here is a link that has info on it. I say go Northshore but many disagree. I don't think you can make a wrong choice.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=618601

Now that's certainly a true statement. Either way will be good; either way will be interesting. You just can't miss on Kauai, IMO.

beachchick

IMHO the best way to see Kauai is to take a helicopter tour! The views are breathtaking!

i did the helicopter thing years ago. think I'll do waimea, poipu and the luau day one, maybe just a beach day 2.