Wailua River
The Wailua River is a wide river very popular for kayaking and paddle boarding. It takes about three hours round trip to paddle board and it is full of luscious rainforest and stunning views every where you turn. From it, you can paddle to Secret Falls, located in a small village about half way through your trip and one other Waterfall. We rented our boards from an amazing shop very close to the main entrance for the river, Stand Up Paddle.
O’opaka Falls
O’opaka Falls is easily accessible to view, it is a massive waterfall that you can see from a distance right off the road, in the middle of Kauai’s luscious rain forests.
Wimea Falls
Wimea Falls is a very tall waterfall, also easily accessible. The view point allows you to see from the top down, though you can also climb to the bottom which I highly recommend.
Wimea Canyon State Park
Wimea Canyon State Park is an absolute MUST SEE on the Island of Kauai. You can spot gorgeous views throughout the entire park, waterfalls, canyons, forests, red sand areas and several incredible viewpoints.
There are several hiking paths in this park as well that supply spectacular views!
Na Pali Coast
This is what Kauai is famous for and is also a MUST SEE in Kauai. The most north western corner of Kauai contains no roads because of this untouched, incredible, natural landscape of canyons formed by lava and now covered in lush green. The formations are simply unique and you must see this area to understand it’s true beauty.
There are many ways to access the Na Pali Coast, most of which costs you money, such as a boat tour or a helicopter tour. Both of these, we wished to have done, but it was simply too expensive but I do recommend it if you have the money for it.
But because of our low budget, we ended up finding a 3.5 mile hike that led us right in the middle of this incredible landscape and even allowed us to see the ocean as well. This is the most incredible scenery I have ever experienced.
The trail was called Awa’Awa Puhi Trail and was seven miles round trip and very beautiful, the hike wasn’t difficult downhill, but it will leave you a pretty exhausted on the way up.
Queen’s Bath
Queens Bath isn’t necessarily hard to find but you must be patient to see this beautiful location, it is located in a private estate area in Princeville with very minimal parking. We had to wait about 40 minutes just to be able to park and there were plenty of other people waiting their turn too.
But it was well worth the wait. The hike was about two miles long and not difficult, it also had a little waterfall along the way to view.
You will arrive on lava rock elevating above the ocean, the previous waterfall leads into another that leads right into the ocean and is quiet beautiful.
Continue heading to your right and you will find Queen’s Bath, an area for a small cliff jump into an ocean connected pool where the waves meet the rocks.
This area can be a little dangerous if your not careful but it is an exhilarating experience!
There are many other incredible places to see on the island of Kauai, but these were my absolute favorites.
This island is magical, you can even spot the forbidden island of Niihau, from the western part of the island.
It is much more luscious greenery than the other islands.
