Are you dreaming of seeing Kauai or planning a trip soon? You are in for such an amazing time, as the Garden Island has so much to offer! This 3 days in Kauai itinerary will bring you to beautiful beaches, waterfalls, stunning landscapes, and more!
Out of the two islands we visited during our honeymoon (Maui and Kauai), I would say Kauai has a more laid-back, authentic local island feel, which I really loved.
It is very popular to island-hop when visiting Hawaii’s islands! Oahu and the Big Island are next on our list!
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Getting to and Around the Island
The only two ways you will be arriving in Kauai are by cruise or by plane. If it’s by cruise, you may also want to check out my one-day Kauai guide. Otherwise, you will fly into the Lihue Airport.
From there, the best way to explore this island is by renting a car. It would be almost impossible to see the island without a car unless you did everything through a tour.
Rental cars go quickly in Hawaii, so make sure to get one ASAP. You can find rental cars at the Lihue airport here.
When exploring this island, I would recommend cutting the island in half. Why? Because there are no roads that fully go around the island, it’s best to just split that baby in half.
Day 1: Waimea Canyon, Kalalau Lookout, Salt Pond Park, and Spouting Horn
For day 1, let’s head to the west side of the Island, which includes beach time, beautiful lookout points, and Hawaii’s own Grand Canyon.
Waimea Canyon
Driving up to Waimea Canyon provides beautiful views of the valleys. You will see plenty of spots to pull over, get a quick picture, and admire the scenery. Waimea Canyon is actually considered the “Grand Canyon” of Hawaii! Please note there is an admission and parking fee now.
Kalalau Lookout
Kalalau Lookout is known to have incredible views of the Napali Coast; however, it’s not guaranteed. This area is known to have clouds and fog, so the best time to see the coast is around 8-9:30 AM.
I’d recommend driving up here first and then making your way back down to the canyon. Even without being able to look down on the coast, it was still a pretty cool place to visit. Kalalau Lookout is at an elevation of 5,148 ft., and it’s known to be one of the wettest spots on earth… who knew?!
Salt Pond Park
After seeing some viewpoints, cool down at Salt Pond Park. It’s a lovely beach with a lifeguard on duty. You will see most hotels urge you to swim where there are lifeguards due to their high currents and surf breaks.
This beach had bathrooms, picnic areas, and lots of chickens that you will see all over the island. If I were to do it over again, I would have also considered Poipu Beach since they are known to have a lot of sea turtles!
Kauai Spouting Horn
Spouting Horn is an easy place to just drive up and admire. We even saw a turtle swimming along the coast. When larger waves hit the rocks, water will spout out from the rocks. The water can spray up to 50 feet in the air!
You will also find some vendors in the area selling goods. Therefore, it’s a good place to get souvenirs.
Day 2: Napali Coast, Lydgate Beach, and Waterfalls
Today, we are heading to the Northeast side to view the Napali Coast, head to the beach, and see waterfalls.
Napali Coast
In my humble opinion, the Napali Coast is a must on any itinerary! There are 3 ways to explore the Napali Coast. The first is by taking a helicopter tour. A helicopter ride is also one of the most expensive ways to see the coast, but the birdseye view makes it very worth the money!
The next best way to see most of the coast is by boat. Boat tours usually include seeing other wildlife, such as turtles and dolphins, so this can be another really unique way to explore the Napali Coast. However, if you get motion sick easily, you may want to opt out of this one.
Last is seeing the coast by hiking the Kalalau Trail. While still beautiful, you won’t get the full effect of its beauty. Now, if you are afraid of helicopters (me) and don’t like boats (husband), then the coast is a great choice!
Napali Coast Hike
The most popular hike for the Napali Coast is to the 2-mile marker that goes from Ke’e Beach to Hanakapi’ai Beach. While this was considered an “easy” hike, I found it a little difficult. There is a variation of incline and decline, on top of hot and humid.
You used to just be able to pull up and start this hike, but this is not the case anymore. Now, you need to get a reservation to do this hike. If you want to drive and park your car, the tickets sell out ridiculously fast, so check tickets right now to see if they even have your time. They also offer a shuttle, but this ticket is pretty expensive.
This took us about 3 hours. This path is heavily hiked, so you will not be alone.
I would recommend making sure you have a good breakfast, bringing snacks and lots of water or something with electrolytes to stay hydrated. After all, you are in the jungle! Find more information about hiking and camping here.
Lydgate Beach
If you decide to hike, you will have time to hit the beach after. Most of the north shore of Kauai beaches were not swimmable due to swells (September). This is more likely to happen if you visit during the fall and winter.
Lydgate Beach is one of the few you can visit, regardless of the high swells. What’s really cool about this beach is that it’s protected by a rock cove, which protects you from the wave break. It also has great snorkeling by the rocks, so enjoy a dip in the Pacific Ocean!
If the swells are not high, some other popular North Shore beaches include Tunnels Beach, Ke’e Beach, Ha’ena Beach Park, and beaches in Princeville. They are even considered some of the best beaches in Hawaii!
Opaekaa Falls
After some much-needed relaxation at the beach, take a drive to Opaekaa Falls. You can see the waterfalls, but it’s pretty far away. On the other side of the highway, you can get a glimpse of the Wailua River. We spent about 10 minutes here. If you are pressed for time, you can skip it.
Wailua Falls
If you still have daylight left, head to Wailua Falls. This waterfall is a must for your itinerary!
You can drive right up to this waterfall and get a really nice view. In the past, there were trails that brought you to the top of the falls but have been closed off with fences due to safety concerns.
When we went, we saw that many of the people were hopping the fence and hanging out on top of the falls despite the big “No Trespassing” sign. We didn’t do it, but you can make your own decision.
Wailua Falls was our favorite waterfall on the island and is definitely worth the stop.
Day 3: Secret Falls Day Trip
On our last day, take a day trip to see “Secret Falls.” These falls are by no means a secret, as they were packed with people, but we really enjoyed our trip here.
Although we usually prefer to do everything on our own, sometimes it’s nice to have a native give you some background.
We did our tour through ali’i kayaks and had such an amazing experience. Our tour guide, Phil, was so knowledgeable and gave us a lot of information about Kauai’s history, lands, plants, and wildlife. (Not sponsored!)
You can only access these falls by water transportation and a short hike to the falls. It was really beautiful and took the full day, but it was worth it!
Other Activities to do in Kauai
With 3 days in Kauai, you can cover a ton before hopping to another island. With that said, there were still some places we missed. I still think 3 days is a great amount of time to spend if you plan on island hopping. If not, then try for 5 days here.
If we had more time, I would have loved to check out the Sleeping Giant hike, Poipu Beach Park to look for green sea turtles, and the Kauai Coffee visitor center since I am a huge coffee person. I guess we will just have to save that for the next time we visit.
Where to Stay
During our visit, we stayed at The Royal Sonesta Kauai Resort Lihue (which used to be a Marriott Resort). The resort was huge and absolutely beautiful! It has a private cove beach, tons of pools, and a jungle vibe.
Since it was our Honeymoon, we were also gifted a bottle of Champagne with a really lovely welcome card. We also really loved the Lihue location.
We did have to pay each day to have our car parked (which we found at all resorts), but we couldn’t have been happier with our experience at the Resort!
Other beautiful Kauai Resorts that are highly rated include:
Best Time to Visit
This is a popular destination year-round, but the best times to visit Kauai will be during the shoulder seasons. September- the beginning of November and April- May will have pleasant weather, lower costs, and fewer crowds.
Wrap-up
This itinerary includes activities and relaxation, so I hope you have the best time enjoying everything this island has to offer.
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