The beautiful island of Kauai

Charleswood

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/04/2023 (938 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

My husband and I had plans to visit Kauai on our wedding anniversary back in 2021 but, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, we delayed our trip to this past January.

While we had both been to Hawaii before and were even married there, this is a place you never get tired of seeing. Kauai, known as the “Garden Island” is famous for its lushness and absolute beauty. Once you get over the long flights and finally arrive there, it is truly heaven on earth.

I have always been fascinated with Hawaii – partly because of being an Elvis Presley fan and seeing Blue Hawaii and his Aloha concert special. I also remember that my favourite grade school teacher visited the islands when I was growing up, which was rare in those days. I remember she brought me back a beautiful shell necklace that I have to this day. I even did a social studies project in Grade 4 or 5, so visiting as an adult was a priority for me.

We had a gorgeous condo rental in Kapa’a which overlooked the ocean and had breathtaking views and an awesome, large heated pool that I made plenty use of. The condo was only a stone’s throw from the historic Coco Palms Resort, where Blue Hawaii was filmed along the scenic Wailua River. A tour will even take you up the river to the Fern Grotto where Elvis sang the song Blue Hawaii.

We had a great New Year’s Eve dinner at the Beach House Restaurant in Poipu, which was a bit of drive from where we were staying, but when it’s nice outside and you’re along the ocean, its tolerable. We drove up to Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge, where we saw nene birds (ancestors of the Canada goose) and the famous lighthouse overlook to Princeville and Hanlei with its gorgeous mountain and ocean views.

We spent another going to Waimea Canyon, which is known as the Grand Canyon of Hawaii, and has been used in many movie shoots, including Jurassic Park. We visited a beautiful outdoor mall called The Shops of Kukui’ula, where we could not resist checking out the Tommy Bahama store.

Since most of the traditional agriculture of Hawaii is no more, we made sure to check out the Kauai coffee plantation in Kalaheo. One of my favorite jaunts was visiting the historic town of Koloa, with its cute little shops, restaurants and laid-back feel.

We also spent a day in Honolulu, touring sites we saw years ago, such as Pearl Harbor, Waikiki Beach and the International Market Place but we were both anxious to get back to the quietness of Kauai. Although we explored almost the entire island, our favourite days were spent just relaxing around the condo taking in the natural splendour of the place. Kauai is much less hectic than Oahu or even Maui. On that note, you also don’t have as many restaurants, bars or shops to choose from but for who do visit, there is plenty to see, do, enjoy in a calm and relaxing manner. Aloha!