HELP! Na Pali by boat or rental car exploring

[mcelli]

Hi All,

 

I find myself with some difficult choices....I have little time in Kauai...trying to plan out Day One (Day 2 is already locked with a helo tour). My problem is that I was looking hard at a sunset cruise of Na Pali, but I also wanted to do an excursion, possible ATV tour, and/or rent a car to do some exploring. Dont think I can pull all of it off given the time. If you only had one day what would you make the priority? I like the idea of seeing things that can't be normally seen on public land (ATV tour)...I don't know how I could see these "special" kind of places in a rental car...can you reach waterfalls/swim holes, rain forests, or any number of the amazing things Im finding, by rental car....I cant seem to find any driving guides that say "turn down xyz road and go three miles and on the left is...." The Na PAli Sunset cruise also sounds incredible, but I'd have to leave for port Allen by no later than 1:45 or so, which of course limits my exploring time. It also limits my excursions since they would have to end around 12:00 (which the ATV tour does) then get back to the pier, then shuttle to rental agency. Alright, this is winding on...so, give me your thoughts! what would you do on Kauai if you only had a day...

 

Thanks!

 

mike - POA July 2nd

[Aloha_Jackie]

If you are at Port Allen - I would suggest Holo Holo tours - seriously one of the best tours for Kauai and the Na Pali coast - including the helicopter and small plane tours! They go to Lehua and Niihau - 17 miles off the coast of Kauais Na Pali coast, see sea caves and all kinds of sea life!

[Aloha_Jackie]

Their shop is in the Ele'ele shopping center near Port Allen

[mcelli]

Thanks Jackie,

 

Would you reccomend the Na PAli coast tour over land exploring?

[Aloha_Jackie]

we saw whales, several types of dolphins, and snorkeled with a rare monk seal and a shark...it was a great tour, beautiful scenery etc

 

Princeville is nice - go to Kee beach at the end - some nice snorkeling etc and a good trail at the end

 

How about Hanalei? Gorgeous

 

driving around you might see the Kilauea lighthouse, Kapaa area, Lihue shops and Nawiliwili harbor, Fern Grotto is good, near there

 

Lots to see and do

 

kauai adventures await at http://www.outfitterskauai.com/

 

we liked the Kayak trip and recommend them, near Poipu you will find their shop - so much fun - so little time....choose wisely grasshopper!:D

[Cavegirl]

I see some tours covering Fern Grotto, and it includes boat/raft ride up the river. How long does it take to drive (a rental car) from the Lihue airport to Fern Grotto? For the boat/rafts riding up the river, do you know how often do they run, how long is the ride, and what they charge?

 

Thanks a lot.

[spleen93]

My personal opinion - skip the Fern Grotto. Kauai's much too gorgeous and so many things to see that there are better ways to spend your time.

 

Spleen

[cruisingrightalong]

We rented a car...we flew over from Oahu....Hertz was right there. We got there before 8 a.m. and flew out about 8 p.m. so was at the airport by 6:30. We did everything....fern grotto is minutes from the airport. We did that first....then we went to the west to Waimea Canyon stopping at every overlook...one in particular looked over the Na Pali coast line....we saw every small town...did the Sprouting Horn....etc. and headed out to Princeville. Did it all! Worth the car rental.

Lou

[Aloha_Jackie]

I see some tours covering Fern Grotto, and it includes boat/raft ride up the river. How long does it take to drive (a rental car) from the Lihue airport to Fern Grotto? For the boat/rafts riding up the river, do you know how often do they run, how long is the ride, and what they charge?

 

Thanks a lot.

Of course there are tons of things to do, if you are interested in Fern Grotto, as I was for personal reasons, go here: http://www.smithskauai.com/cruise.html for more information

[Cavegirl]

Of course there are tons of things to do, if you are interested in Fern Grotto, as I was for personal reasons, go here: http://www.smithskauai.com/cruise.html for more information

 

Thanks. This is the info I was looking for.

 

Called them and found out the Smith's cruise runs every 1/2 hr starting at 9am, and each trip takes 1 hr 20 min. $20/person. They are 5.5 miles from the Lihue airport, 10-15 min. drive.

[Cavegirl]

When our NCL Wind gets to port (8am to 5pm), we plan to take a helicopter tour, then rent a van to drive to the Waimea Canyon. Looks like there’s not enough time to go back up north to Fern Grotto, so it’ll be driving in the southwest.

 

 

We’ll need to return the van back to Lihue airport by 4pm, then get shuttle back to pier before 4:30pm. How long does it take to drive (from Lihue airport) to Waimea Canyon?

[Aloha_Jackie]

Smiths also has a tropical botanical garden. We go back every visit. It is a very large garden, comolete with peacocks and several other birds, running around loose! They have other animals too. Their garden is really nicely maintained and good specimens available for viewing. They have picnic tables and you can take a lunch and eat it along the way. They sell bird seed feed at the entrance. Buy as much as you can afford. The birds come running when they see you. White peacocks and regular colorful ones, so many different types of ducks and birds, which I love to feed, tons of fun. If you have the time, it isnt very expensive to get in, I take a big ziplock bag of food for these guys, you can buy it at a drug store or grocery. Kauai is loaded with chickens - everywhere - to feed. Kilauea lighthouse is a good place to visit too.....not expensive to get in and they have the wild boobys etc....another story for another day..."Watch out for the Booby, sir"! I think I told that story elsewhere...:D

[Cavegirl]

When our NCL Wind ship gets to port (8am to 5pm), we plan to take a helicopter tour, then rent a van to drive to the Waimea Canyon. Looks like there’s not enough time to go back up north to Fern Grotto, so it’ll be driving in the southwest.

 

 

We’ll need to return the van back to Lihue airport by 4pm, then get shuttle back to pier before 4:30pm.

How long does it take to drive (from Lihue airport) to Waimea Canyon?

Thanks.

[Aloha_Jackie]

When our NCL Wind gets to port (8am to 5pm), we plan to take a helicopter tour, then rent a van to drive to the Waimea Canyon. Looks like there’s not enough time to go back up north to Fern Grotto, so it’ll be driving in the southwest.

 

 

We’ll need to return the van back to Lihue airport by 4pm, then get shuttle back to pier before 4:30pm. How long does it take to drive (from Lihue airport) to Waimea Canyon?

I think if I had to guess...maybe 1.5 hours??? one way

 

you need to get a map and a better estimate. There is a Kokee park up there and two little roads - both about the same distance, to get up there. We went up one and down the other. The views are gorgeous. See Hanapepe Swinging Bridge along the way. Salt Pond beach park is nice along there too. Kekaha and some other neat little towns along the way. Its the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, but I think I would rather spend the day on the water, snorkeling or the kayak thing where you go up via kayak, hike, then do the rope swing over the water and fall in, then picnic and then back. Kipu Falls Safari - kauai outfitters runs that tour - our of Poipu

[KauaiKris]

Hi All,

 

I find myself with some difficult choices....I have little time in Kauai...trying to plan out Day One (Day 2 is already locked with a helo tour). My problem is that I was looking hard at a sunset cruise of Na Pali, but I also wanted to do an excursion, possible ATV tour, and/or rent a car to do some exploring. Dont think I can pull all of it off given the time. If you only had one day what would you make the priority? I like the idea of seeing things that can't be normally seen on public land (ATV tour)...I don't know how I could see these "special" kind of places in a rental car...can you reach waterfalls/swim holes, rain forests, or any number of the amazing things Im finding, by rental car....I cant seem to find any driving guides that say "turn down xyz road and go three miles and on the left is...." Alright, this is winding on...so, give me your thoughts! what would you do on Kauai if you only had a day...

 

Thanks!

 

mike - POA July 2nd

 

The NaPali Coast is stunning. It really is beautiful, and some people feel it is the highlight of their trip. However, if you are short on time and want to see the beauty of the island, try getting a tour that departs from Hanalei. The reason for this is that Hanalei is much, much closer to the cliffs you are wanting to see. If you leave from Port Allen, over half your trip is spent GETTING THERE, and the first 30 -40 minutes is along rather dull (comparatively) coast line. Leave from Hanalei and you're there in minutes.

 

All that being said, however, if you have a helicopter tour booked on Kauai, you're going to be seeing the NaPali coast in that. It will be a much quicker look, and not a sunset sail, but you will see them.

 

If it were me, would rent a car and head north. I'd stop at Wailua Falls after leaving the pier, I'd then continue north and see Opeka'a Falls in Waipaouli. I'd then continue on up and see the Kilauea Lighthouse, then go on to Hanalei. Stroll around Hanalei... From there I would take a boat tour of NaPali, or if not going on a tour, continue on toward the end of the road, and look down on Lumahai Beach (the Nurses Beach from South Pacific), stop at Tunnels Beach, and then end up at the of the road at Ke'e. It is all beautiful. Sunset should be lovely from Ke'e in July. You can also see a lovely sunset from Princeville/Hanalei in July.

 

If you need more information on where everything is, and how you might get there, visit the little website I created simply because I love Kauai:

http://kauaikris.com There are some maps, information on beaches, some directions to waterfalls, etc.

 

Waimea Canyon is also interesting, but as it take a long time to get there, if I was short on time, I'd skip it in leiu of a trip north. The Kalalau lookout at the top of the mountain above Waimea is magnificent. Po'ipu/Koloa/Spouting Horn is also nice. Where to go depends on whether one is looking for a hot, sunny area (Po'ipu), or lush, green mountains (North Shore).

 

Hope this helps.

[debtman7]

The napali coast sunset cruise is one of the best things to do, I would not recommend missing it. It is much more impressive seen from a boat out on the water than from a helicopter hovering overhead. Honestly, I would skip the helicopter and just do the napali cruise if you are on limited time.

 

If you could only do two things, I'd suggest the cruise and a day trip to the north shore. If you like hiking, the first 2 miles of the Kalalau trail are spectacular (but slippery). You can get some sandwiches at the hanalei gourmet to take on the hike and eat them at the beach at the end of the trail (watch out for ferile cats and hungry hippies!). Hanalei is really nice to walk around, just beautiful. Zelo's beach house is a great place to grab a beer and people watch.

 

There are some pics of all this in my photo gallery, the first few pages are helicopter tour, the north shore/kalalau trail pictures start on page 3 and the dinner cruise pics start on page 5:

 

http://*****.com/9j9ob

 

Oh, forgot to mention on the comments on driving, Kauai pretty much has one road. There are a few bypasses, and some small roads that go off into towns or residential areas, but essentially there is just one road around the perimeter of the island (excluding napali coast). This makes directions rather meaningless for the most part :) It also means that it can take forever to get around, for example from the north shore to port allen/waimea canyon can take 3+ hours to drive during certain times of the day.

 

The interior of the island is privately owned (by some rather big name celebrities), but you can get to see some things without booking a tour. For waterfalls, this site has a good map with descriptions:

 

http://www.hawaiiweb.com/kauai/sites_to_see/waterfalls.htm

 

The links on this page also have good info on other sites and areas to visit.

[mcelli]

Thanks for all the replies! KauaiKris your website is fantastic. It will be utilized. BTW I came across this little tidbit in my neverending research regarding the bacteria leptospirosis, how much do I need to worry about this little bug. Obviously, I have no plans of drinking any of the water, but do I have to worry about topical contact? Let me know your thoughts.

 

thanks

 

mike

[beachchick]

mcelli: Actually, leptospirosis is found in fresh water sources everywhere. It's more likely to be in surface water sources in warm climates with lots of water or moist conditions (mud, swamp, etc.), but any lake, river, stream, etc. can have it. I know it's a zoonotic disease (transmitted from animals into the water or to humans), but don't know much more than that. I do know that dogs can get it and transmit it to humans. I don't believe that topical contact is a problem unless you have large open cuts or abrasions (and that may be up for debate; I just don't know enough specifics there) or if you swallow a fair amount.

 

Just treat the fresh water in Hawaii the same way you would anywhere else.

 

beachchick

[spleen93]

Cuts are a problem for leptospirosis. And obviously swallowing the water. But intact skin shouldn't be a problem. :)

 

Spleen

[KauaiKris]

Thanks for all the replies! KauaiKris your website is fantastic. It will be utilized. BTW I came across this little tidbit in my neverending research regarding the bacteria leptospirosis, how much do I need to worry about this little bug. Obviously, I have no plans of drinking any of the water, but do I have to worry about topical contact? Let me know your thoughts.

 

Thanks, Mike, I'm glad you find it helpful.

 

As the others have said, Leptospirosis can be found in any freshwater. The place I would be most careful would be hiking. Make sure you take your own water. The hike along the NaPali Coast is wonderful, but long and hot, and it can get tempting to drink out of the pretty little streams that fall along your path. But don't. The waste from the goats that live up on the top of the mountain washes down with some of the streams. We noticed that a few of them smelled very fresh, while others had a distinct urine type odor. Just take bottled water along with you and you should be fine.