I used to go to Kauai each year for work for 3 weeks in January. Kauai has great opportunities to do all of the activities you called out in the OP, in fact, I've done all of those and more there. I second what 3Gen said about VRBO and prepping your own food. In addition to the $$ saved advantage, making your own meals can save you a lot of time. Hawaii is pretty laid back, and in my experience, that extends to restaurant service. A meal can be a 2.5 hour affair, between travel, drinks, dessert, etc. Making your own allows you to control the cost and the schedule. One concern with VRBO is that the best places are usually booked pretty far out in advance, so you might have trouble finding something if you hope to travel in the short-term.
When I was there I always stayed out on the SW "corner" of the island in Waimea or Kekaha, so the advice I give below will have a little bit of a "south side" flair, although I've been all over the island. Also should mention that I haven't been since January of 2012, so some things may have changed.
Beaches
- Polihale - My favorite. Huge beach on the west side of the island, usually pretty quiet. Big waves, so it’s not a swimming beach. Pack a picnic and watch the sunset, then look up and see more stars than you've ever seen in your life (almost 0 light pollution)
- Poipu - People watching and a little snorkeling, but usually pretty crowded with tourists
- Anini (North Side) - Another favorite. Usually pretty quiet and pretty good snorkeling (better than Poipu IMHO)
- Tunnels Beach (North Side) - Decent beach, several celebs have homes in this area, in case that type of star-gazing is your thing
Ziplining
- We went through Princeville Ranch Adventures, but there are several outfitters on the island.
Whale watching
- We usually stayed in a house across the road from the ocean in Kekaha, so we just watched them with binoculars from the second floor lanai. We never went on any of the boat tours, but most of them depart from the harbor near Ele'Ele.
Hiking
- Waimea Canyon – definitely need to go to this park even if you don’t hike, especially the Kalalau lookout. As far as Hiking, I’d recommend taking the hike to the top of Waipo’o falls. It’s a pretty easy hike, as long as you’re not afraid of heights
- Hanakapiai Falls Hike – 8 miles round trip, 2 along the NaPali coast From Ke’e beach to Hanakapiai beach, then 2 miles upstream (sometimes literally through the stream) to the falls. There’s a deep pool of clear water below the falls that you can swim in if that’s your thing. Definitely a challenging hike! I’d suggest leaving earlier in the morning to find good parking at the trailhead and avoid lots of foot traffic. I think that it took us about 6-7 hours round trip
Food
- Waimea - The Shrimp Station, Island Taco, and Jo-Jo’s shave ice. All of these are small road-side affairs. Jo-Jo’s is pretty shabby looking, but its amazing (get the colada special with Macadamia Nut ice cream on the bottom)
- Kalaheo – Brick Oven Pizza. The name pretty much gives away what you’re gonna get here. About the best “bang-for-the-buck” as far as eating out goes
- Poipu – Keoki’s, Brennecke’s, Josselin’s. “Touristy” area, so more options, but more $$$ too.
- Lihue – Dukes (usually grabbed a bite here before the long overnight ride home)
- Other… - Bubba Burgers in Kapa’a or Princeville. Lappert’s ice cream – several locations including other islands
Other stuff…
- Kauai coffee – Cool little coffee plantation offering tours, etc.
- Kukuiolono golf course in Kalaheo – public course that’s extremely reasonable, and perfect for a hack golfer like me
- Get this book! -
Amazon product - Seriously worth its weight in gold, and they’re available for other islands too
- I’ve heard that there’s a cool tubing thing that you can do on some old cane field irrigation canals, but I never had a chance to do it.
- The house that where we stayed in Kekaha:
https://www.vrbo.com/47360 There are several other decent options in the neighborhood too.
About the only regret that I have is that in the years I went, I never tried to arrange my connecting flights through Honolulu so that I could take a day and visit Pearl Harbor. Word of advice, there are only a certain number of people that can go out to the memorial each day, and I believe that you need to book well in advance if you want to visit.
Feel free to PM me if you want more info.
