Things to Do in Kauai: Tours, Tickets & Boat Trips

Ranked by traveller reviews: 1) a Na Pali Coast and Waimea Canyon sightseeing flight, 2) a Na Pali catamaran cruise from Port Allen, 3) the Luau Kalamaku at Kilohana Plantation, 4) a doors-off helicopter tour with the waterfalls of Mount Waialeale, 5) the Na Pali raft and snorkel adventure with sea caves, 6) the Wailua River kayak and hike to Secret Falls, 7) a guided shore snorkel with turtles at Poipu, 8) Waimea Canyon and the Kalalau Lookout, 9) a surf lesson at Poipu and 10) the Kalalau Trail to Hanakapi‘ai Beach on the North Shore.

Plan five to seven days and stay on two sides of the island if you can. South and west: Poipu’s beaches and snorkelling, Spouting Horn, Waimea Canyon and Koke‘e, and the Na Pali boats from Port Allen. East: the Wailua River kayak, Wailua and Opaekaa Falls, Kapa‘a’s coastal path and a luau. North: Kilauea Lighthouse, Hanalei Bay, Tunnels Beach and the Kalalau Trail (reserve Ha‘ena parking weeks ahead). Save the helicopter for the clearest morning of your trip.

Poipu Beach’s turtles and monk seals, Hanalei Bay and its pier at sunset, Anini’s calm reef, Lydgate Park’s protected lagoon, the roadside viewpoints of Wailua Falls and Opaekaa Falls, Spouting Horn, the Sleeping Giant (Nounou) hike, the Maha‘ulepu Heritage Trail along Poipu’s cliffs, the Kapa‘a coastal bike path, the free tastings at Kauai Coffee, Hanapepe’s Friday art night and the Kilauea Point overlook outside the refuge gate. Waimea Canyon’s lookouts cost non-residents $5 per person plus $10 parking.

On an island this size the ‘day trips’ are its regions: the Na Pali Coast by boat from Port Allen (four to five hours) or by air from Lihue (one hour); Waimea Canyon and Koke‘e State Park with the Kalalau Lookout (a full day from Poipu, tours from about $279 with the Fern Grotto); the North Shore’s Hanalei, Ha‘ena and the Kalalau Trail; and the Wailua River by kayak or the Fern Grotto boat. Ni‘ihau snorkel trips run from Port Allen in summer.

Book a luau — Luau Kalamaku at Kilohana with its theatre show, Smith’s Family Garden Luau on the Wailua River or the Grand Hyatt’s Havaiki Nui — then sunset at Poipu, Hanalei Bay or Polihale, stargazing anywhere away from the resorts, live music at Tahiti Nui in Hanalei and Duke’s in Lihue, the Kauai Beer Company in Lihue, Hanapepe’s Friday-night art walk and a torch-lit dinner at Keoki’s Paradise in Poipu. Kauai is early to bed: most places close by 10pm.

Humpback whales arrive from December to April and can be seen from the Na Pali boats, the Kilauea Point overlook and the Poipu cliffs. The North Shore’s surf turns huge — spectacular to watch at Hanalei and Tunnels, unsafe to swim — so beach days move south to Poipu, and Na Pali boats often run only the calmer south-west coast. Waimea Canyon, the Wailua River, luaus and helicopter flights run all winter; expect more rain in the north and peak prices at Christmas.

Poipu Beach’s sheltered keiki pool and resident turtles, Lydgate Park’s rock-walled lagoon, the Smith’s Fern Grotto riverboat, a Wailua River kayak (age five and up), the Kauai Plantation Railway at Kilohana, Kilauea Point’s seabirds and whales, Anini Beach, a family luau, the Kapa‘a bike path, the Kauai Mini Golf gardens and, for older children, the Na Pali raft trip, ziplining and a surf lesson at Poipu.

April to June and September to November — dry, calm seas for Na Pali boats and North Shore swimming, and lower prices than the peaks. Summer is warm and busy but has the flattest ocean. December to March is wetter in the north, with whales, big surf and Christmas prices; the south stays sunny.

Yes — 80 percent of Kauai is unreachable by road, and only from the air do you see the whole Na Pali Coast, the waterfalls of Mount Waialeale’s crater and Waimea Canyon in one hour. It is the most-reviewed experience on the island. Fly early in the morning for the calmest, clearest conditions; a fixed-wing flight ($159) is the budget option, doors-off helicopters ($425) the best for photography.