Where to Stay in Kauai, Hawaii

December 10, 2015

When I went to Kauai at the beginning of the month, I was lucky enough to stay in three different places during our eight night Hawaii vacation. All three were very different. Since neither one of us had ever been to Kauai, we wanted to be sure to experience as much of the island as we could, so staying in just one part didn’t make sense. We also wanted to spend some of our time being beach bums and relaxing, and other times being adventurous and exploring. Here’s what I thought about each place we stayed:

For family time: The Cliffs at Princeville
This is the first place we stayed. The property is located on the cliffs in Princeville, providing stunning views of the ocean, waves crashing at the foot of the cliffs. When we first walked in our room, I was very impressed by how huge the place was. There was a big living room, a full kitchen, a secluded bedroom and a spacious loft with two full beds in it. We spent our mornings on the back balcony and our mornings on the front balcony (yes, there were two balconies!). Since we had a full kitchen, we went grocery shopping with the 10% off coupon we were given upon checkin. It was so nice to cook together in the bright kitchen, drink wine on the balcony and just laze around. During the day, we took walks on the property and the surrounding neighborhood. Not too far away is the most stunning golf course I’ve ever seen. I don’t play golf, but this course really made me want to! I think The Cliffs at Princeville would be perfect for families. There is so much space, that everyone has their own area without driving each other crazy. The full kitchen is so great for cooking family dinners, not to mention the money you save from grocery shopping instead of going out to eat!

For romance: Koa Kea Resort
Koa Kea was definitely the nicest place we stayed and probably the nicest place I’ve ever stayed. It was a full on resort, complete with incredible service, tasty drink options at the pool and a high end restaurant, Red Salt, right in the lobby. The rooms are great and the bathrooms are even better, boasting enormous showers with cararra marble walls – I’m totally a sucker for cararra marble. During our stay here, we spent our mornings on the property’s beach, watching the sunrise and our days soaking up the sun by the pool. One morning we had breakfast in bed as we read up on stocks; I think it was the most perfect morning I’ve ever experienced. We had a few different meals at Red Salt and I can report that the food was delicious. I’m so glad we stayed there for a couple nights. The time we spent there was full of love and romance, and I truly loved every moment of it. Love you, Johnny! 🙂

For adventure: Kapuna Hale (via airbnb) *Get a $25 travel credit when you sign up here.
Johnny and I knew we wanted to spend at least part of our trip in an Airbnb home for a truly authentic Kauai experience. We chose Kapuna Hale and could not have chosen a better place. During our stay, our host’s Eugene and his son Eli’s doors were always open to us, both literally and figuratively. We immediately felt at home when we got there and that feeling never left. Both Eugene and Eli made some great recommendations as far as beaches, restaurants and other Kauai attractions, though some days we didn’t even want to leave thanks to the incredible views, fresh garden grown fruits and veggies and new friends. During our stay, a few other Kauai locals and visitors were in and out of the property, which we loved. We connected with each and everyone of them and on our last night shared a very special family style dinner with them all. We can’t wait to go back to Kauai and we will most certainly stay with Eugene and Eli again!

I really loved all the places we stayed and if someone forced me to pick a favorite, I’m not sure that I even could. They were all so different, and all so special in their own ways. Thank you to all the hosts and staff that had us while in Kauai. You made our trip one we will never forget!

Where do you prefer to sleep when you travel?

Photos by Johnny Cheng.