Great secluded beach near Haena state park. The wet caves are amazing structures created by natureread more

Need a $5 ticket to get in to Ha'ena State Park. NO CELL SERVICE at location so get tickets…read morebeforehand.

As a long secluded shoreline on the north shore of Kauai, Anini Beach Park is accessible by car via…read morea paved and winding road from the Kuhio Hwy. Another beautiful, worth-visiting beach park on the north shore of Kauai. The central point is the park, that provides plenty of paved parking (parking is also available on the side of the road that hugs the coastline). This park has dedicated camping sites, and we saw many backpack tents set-up further in from the shoreline, usually underneath shade provided by the false kamani trees. The park contains a lot of green space and facilities. My wife and I ate our deli lunch at a nearby picnic table. Turtles often come on shore here, though there were none today (probably because we came in the afternoon). One thing we noticed were all the multi-million dollar homes right on the other side of Anini Road once you pass by Anini Beach Park traveling to the west (it's a dead end, so would need to circle back to get out). They are rentable via the typical companies, and would be great for beach loving families who want to spend some secluded time near the ocean. Also in the area are small pockets where one can park their car and go out into shoreline. From there, one can see and explore the large coral reef that rings this area.

Parking here is hit or miss. The beach is long, but narrow. So it could get crowded quickly. I…read moream not a fan of this beach because there are so many rocks/stones in the water. Unless you have water shoes, I would be super careful when getting in/out of the water here. These rocks are lava rocks and they will cut you open if you are not careful. Also, the waves can be choppy due to weather. One thing I do like is that it's also a park and there are a lot of trees at the beach if you want shade.

If I could only visit 1 spot during my time in Kauai, I would without any hesitation choose Waimea…read moreCanyon State Park. Affectionately nicknamed the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific", it is easy to see how this canyon gained its affectionate moniker. Stretching 14 miles long, 1 mile wide and more than 3,600 feet deep, the Waimea Canyon provides breathtaking panoramic views of crested buttes, rugged crags and deep valley gorges. Even at the first rest stop you come across, you are already high enough that the view would have made the trip worthwhile. There are 5 rest stops on your way up to the top, each offering restrooms, trash cans, and their own respective viewing points; each stunning in its own rights. You can choose to simply stop at each stop on your way up like we did, or drive all the way to the top and work your way back down. Keep in mind it takes almost an hour to drive up to the very top without stopping. And the fog starts rolling in later on in the day obscuring visibility into the canyon. So you'll want to make sure you start your day off early if you're opting for the later strategy. For us, we started on the bottom and worked our way back up. We never made it all the way to the top as the fog had already rolled in by the time we hit the higher levels which made viewing anything on those levels impossible. There is now some construction being done for safety improvements and roadwork patching. Much of which is past due and much needed. As we started to encounter quite a few gigantic potholes on the higher elevations that often required either maneuvering around into oncoming traffic or traversing very slowly over the shallower parts of the potholes. We were quite thankful we were in a SUV because we were fairly certain we would not have made it past some of the potholes if we were in a lower profile vehicle such as a sedan or convertible. While driving the canyon is free (outside of parking), you can also splurge and view the canyon unobstructed from an ariel vantage through either a chartered plane or helicopter ride.

Beautiful drive up, and fabulous views. If you opt to visit one of the paved viewpoints you have to…read morepay for/wait for a parking spot. However afterwards as we drove on we realized we could get the same and then better views just pulling off at one of the many stops along the road without paying and fighting the crowds at the main ones. It was nice to have the bathrooms available, although no soap? Booooo. Still, beautiful area to visit.

Initially coming here to kill a little time before a reserved tour, my wife and I really admired…read morethe planning and execution of the building/landscaping of this family park. Named after a pillar in the community who came to Kauai in the late 19th century, Lydgate Beach Park is 62 acres, with the Lydgate Park pathway encompassing 2.5 miles, a small part of the much larger Ke Ala Hele Makālae costal trail. There is plenty of parking, with both dedicated surface lots and street parking on the paved road. We immediately noticed surfers on electric surfboards out pretty far, even on this windy day. At the northern part of the park is where most people gather, close to modern facilities and a manned lifeguard station and a large covered event area with plenty of parking. Closer to the shore, we saw a seal just lying on the land, bathing in the sun, completely ignoring the people milling by. The very large safe man-made swimming/tide pools are great for the kekei and others, with constant refreshing of sea water over the lava rocks. There are picnic tables nearby as well with a lot of green space. My favorite feature are the man-made protected swimming pools, What I loved about it was how spread out everything was, with so many amenities. It just never felt crowded, even if a lot more people came. As we were leaving, my wife mentioned that Lydgate Beach is one of those rare parks where an ocean-loving family would intentionally live close by, just to be near this park.

Two parks on one place! What a dream!…read more There was a wooden park that was large, had many different places to explore and separated by age interests. There were a lot of swings which my kids love and slides. Although one of the slides we found does a downward dip at the end that isn't very good for getting kids to come out of the slide. There is also an accessible park right next to it for kids that may need special equipment to play. But my kids enjoyed that play area just as much. The park is located next to the beach with lots of parking. There is also public restrooms which I don't use. I also saw many picnic benches around that would be great for a picnic or birthday party.

This was an easy drive straight to the end of Maalo Road, and it's free!!…read moreIf you plan on doing any driving on Kauai I highly recommend buying the Shaka App. Four self guided driving tours with colorful narration and cultural storytelling.

Located at the end of Maalo Road, this beautiful double waterfall cannot be safely or legally…read moreaccessed due to the notoriously steep, muddy, and very slick unmaintained trail down. But you can however view it safely from the designated roadside lookout. The parking lot here, although free, is very small and often filled to the brim with cars. The lot itself is also in desperate need of maintenance as it is filled with potholes, so getting in and out may be tricky. There are also vendors who fill up the front part of this lot, which further add to the chaos. Located in a sacred royal valley once known as the capital of Kauai, ancient Hawaiian chieftains and warriors use to test their bravery by leaping from the top of this nearly 200ft tall waterfall. There's not a lot to do once you get up to the top of the lookout except to snap a few photos. So it is debatable if it is worth the drive all the way out to here and dealing with the whole parking lot situation.

Visited this beach back in May 2024…read more Loved this beach. When we arrived there was no body on the beach. We loved how calm the waters were for our young children, great for a snorkeling by the barrier. If you walk west, there's a natural rock ledge creating a perfect toddler pool for littles. We even saw a seal swim up to close to people later in the afternoon,

Not the best beach on the island. Facilities were less clean than other beaches. The drive in is…read moresketch. Seems like more of the local crowd/homeless crowd visits this area. Wouldn't recommend

Breath Deep! Relax...you've entered a special place…read more At the top of Kauai in the wettest place on earth. It doesn't get any better than this.

Would absolutely LOVE to camp here... Unfortunately arrived…read moreafter the museum and restaurant closed (-after 4). But this looks like a great place to camp. Did go into the lodge for a bit ( where the restaurant is), saw some beautiful trees and flowers. Did not explore the nature trail this time.... Drive a bit more to the Kalalau Lookout where one can see the Napali coastline and Ni'ihau in the distance. And did I mention chickens? A must see!!!

Great value, great 9 hole course: two par 3's, two par 5's, five par 4's. Cash only, walk up and…read moreplay (they don't book tee times). The course is at an elevation of 950 feet. Greens fast, in great shape. Great views.

What a great park for rest, relaxation and golf in Lawai but close to Koloa too. The McBryde estate…read moreincludes a golf course, Japanese garden, acres of park, a Mexican restaurant (Paco's Tacos) and disc golf as well. A respite from the outside world, come here to relax, enjoy Mexican food, play golf or just go for a walk!