I did helicopter the first time, they took us around the entire island. Zipping75’ above the ground and all of a sudden having Waimea Canyon drop off below was vey cool. Then following it to the coast, but I’d love to sail it.
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That’s our current thinking.
Sea caves, snorkeling, etc.
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Wine shops?
HELP!
As much as I like Warren’s Champagne on big island trip, we’re also bringing golf clubs so a wine suitcase might not be practical.
One week just north of Lihue
One week in Waikoloa
One week at Waikiki
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We did a boat tour this past September with a small family run boat
Catamaran Kahanu https://catamarankahanu.com/
We were very happy with the experience.
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While on the Big Island, Kona wine merchant
73-5613 Olowalu St #1, Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
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Tamura’s on Oahu and Maui. They have multiple locations.
Oh yeah, on the way into Hanalei on Kauai there is the Blue Dolphin restaurant, go around back for a fish shop experience to cherish. Get the highly addictive Ono salad, poki, great rolls or very fresh fish. There is another good one in Koloa Town on the way to Poipu.
Be sure to go to the shop called Havaiki in Hanalei which specializes in South Pacific culture, art and artifacts, sorta like going to a small museum, but you can buy what you encounter.
I just got back from 10 days at the family house on Hanalei Bay with one day of rain 80-81 degrees daily and it rained at night.
There is good reason why there are so many billionaire’s homes on the island-hard to beat Kauai.
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ATMs?
It looks like fees are high (and double ended).
Plus, we have sucky suck suck Wells Fargo–I’m not sure the best way to get cash. I don’t want to travel with a giant wad of cash.
Do you really need a lot of cash? When I’m on island I pretty much use my credit card everywhere including some vendors at the local farmer’s market that take venmo and such nowadays. I usually get about $400 out of my local bank before I board and that’ll last me at least two weeks.
My two cents…
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Do you have a Schwab or FIdelity account? If so, get an investor checking account linked to your brokerage account and the debit card you get doesn’t have fees they charge. My Schwab reimburses the hosting bank’s ATM fees up to 4 x per month.
Stop into a Long’s Drug and buy something, get cash back. Bypasses atm fees.
Thnx for replies.
We’re still figuring it out. I rarely carry much cash so if I can use a card at most places, I should be good.
Credit unions frequently issue no fee atm cards.
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Kauai is my favorite island for sure, but the big island is nice for golf and more reliable weather. Mauna Kea and the new Auberge properties are great. Golf is great. Food just okay as it is in Kauai.
I actually like Honolulu for good food. I hang out at the Outrigger Canoe Club during the day or go for a day trip to lanikai. Easy to add on a couple days in HNL to any hawaii trip.
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Remember that Kauai has basically one road, so moving around the island can be a pain. Personally, I would recommend staying on the east or north coasts. Getting around the island from Poipu will be very time consuming. (Edit: hadn’t realized how old this thread is. may have been overtaken by events. 
)
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I agree with @Joe_Dulworth. We’re headed to Maui in a few days, and I’ll take a couple hundred in cash, mainly $20 and $5 bills, planning on using it primarily for tips. Credit cards are almost universally accepted.
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Love the blue dolphin. Go early though because they can run out of stuff.
Our trip is pretty much planned (Sept)
These are planned highlights, plus lunches (lots of food trucks), farmers markets, short excursions and a separate budget just for Poke.
7 Days Kauaii just north of Lihue–Na Pali Catamarans, Waimea Canyon, Aina Kauaii, Golf at Poipu and Wailua
Fly to Kona/Drive to Volcano–1 night at Volcano House, Crater Rim Dr and Chain of Craters Rd to Sea Arch
7 Days Waikoloa–Greenwell Farms coffee (Maybe Mountain Thunder too), Napua, Pololu Lookout and hike, Several trips to Hale da Fish House, Renting snorkels for the week, Golf at the three nines at Kings’ Land
Fly to Honolulu (no rental car)
7 Days Waikiki–Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head, Okonomiyaki Chibo, House Without a Key, Probably no golf, maybe surfing (I understand that your balance really improves as you age)
I’ll post hits and misses.
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Great snorkeling directly in front of Napua. Highly recommend bringing
Your snorkeling gear with you if you are going for lunch.
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Long winded update (sorry), but with recs for future travelers.
KAUAI
Stayed at Wyndham Vacation Club property just north of Lihue. The bad news is that the property is not in great condition. The good news is that they seem to be renovating. The grounds are beautiful and the location is breathtaking. It also looks like the old Kauai Beach Resort has been bought by Outrigger, which should deepen Wyndham’s resolve. In spite of the disrepair, this was our favorite lodging of the trip.
The Saturday morning market at the community college is a must-do if you want local fresh. Plan to get there right at opening; you might still have a hard time finding parking. Bring cash because most vendors don’t accept cards. Costco and Safeway in Lihue are great. Make sure you get the Safeway app/member savings card. You’ll save a ton of $. Poke at The Fish Express was good, but not even close to our fave. Aina Kauai is really good, but the menu needs an editor. It was simply too much food, and too many flavors to be a sequential Kaiseki progression. That being said, every course was delicious, and did make use of local ingredients. Waimea Canyon is simply unbelieveable; pictures cannot capture the grandeur. I had a bit of congestion, and a little headache so we went to Hamura Saimin for some Hawaiian Penicillin, and lilikoi pie–delicious!
…Then, that evening my trmperature started spiking. All negative with the testing, but the symptoms certainly were reminiscent of my bout with Covid. Fever left overnight, but I mostly slept for a couple of days (missed a round of Golf at Wailua Golf Club, and our snorkel sail to NaPali).
Pono Market is a wonderful plate lunch spot in Kapa’a–highly recommended. The waterfalls are also great.
HAWAII
We flew Hawaiian Airways (love it) to Kona, picked up car and drove Saddle Road to Volcano House. On the way we stopped at Matsuyama Food Mart for a very good plate lunch. Squeeze into a parking spot amid the large pickup trucks (usually a good sign for local eats). The Saddle Road drive is spectacular. We really enjoyed Volcano House; don’t expect The Ritz. Since it is a National Park lodge, the camp vibe is ever-present. We ate at The Rim, which was better than expected. It was not the best fish cookery ever, but there are a few interesting bottles on the wine list, and the setting is very cool. So after touring the park, and taking the Cheain of Craters Road to the sea arch, we pressed on back to the west side of the island.
Then Madame Pele decided to speak. The joke is on me, we missed the eruption by one day. My story going forward is that I made the volcano erupt. Lunch was The Real Aloha Poke, in Captain Cook. GREAT stuff, I recommend highly. We did the coffee plantation tour at Greenwell Farms, which was gorgeous and informative. The coffee is great.
We stayed a week at the Kings’ Land Waikoloa, which is an amazing property with modern kitchens and baths. They measure approx. 1600 sq ft.
Golf–We played all three of the “nines.” Beach course has lotss of encroaching lava, and some narrow landing spots. The Kings course has a links flair, with a really cool short par 4, which has a deep greenside bunker with two giant boulders in the middle. I should have hit 3 wood from the tee; I carried a driver a little too far into a crappy side hill lie just beyond the green. I still had a chance to shoot even par until an ugly 3 putt on the final hole. The Lakes course was my favorite. The people at the desk, and the starter said that it was the most challenging course, but I found that it really fit my eye. The #2 long, water-carry par 3 is a nightmare with a tradewind blowing in your face. The #8 short, water-carry par 3, with the 30 foot lava wall behind the green is wonderful.
Snorkels–We also rented snorkels for the week, We did the lagoon at the Hilton (day before the Monk Seals showed up–apparently Madame Pele was pissed that I took credit for the eruption). Beach 69 was great, but lumpy the couple of days we were there. Our favorite was Mauna Lani, at the beach in front of Napua. It’s a 10-15 minute walk from the parking lot to the beach, but you pass lava tubes, petroglyphs, and a hundreds-of-years-old fishpond.
We did no “dinner out” this week, because I discovered Foodlnd Farms at Mauna Lani resort. And they actually have a decent wine selection. The Poke is great. GET THE APP. I saved 16 bucks on a $68 grocery trip on our first visit. Best mangoes of the whole trip were from Foodland.
The Pololū valley lookout, at the end of the road, on the north shore, is a religious experience. The hike is quite strenuous, so make sure you are fit, and wear good shoes. Make sure you stop at Manuela Malasadas on the way home. You will stand in line. That’s ok because they are all cooked to order.
The midweek market in Waimea is worth the spectacular drive. We found great Calamansi, Lilikoi, Apple Bananas, long beans and short beans. On the way home we stopped at Hale la da Fish House for lunch. The Poke was really good, but not our fave. btw–THEY HAVE MOVED (across the street). At the end of the week, on the way to the airport, we did the Mauka drive the Mountain Thunder Coffe (great site and great coffee). Hawaiian Airways again to HNL.
OAHU
We found that taxi to/from Waikiki is cheaper than Uber. We stayed a week at Hilton Grand Vacations Hokulani, corner of Kalākaua and Lewers. We loved the property, and the city vibe, after our first two weeks. The rooftop pool bar kept lots of my money, and we were short walks to the bech, or to The Bus. I preodered wine from Kakaauo–nice selection and free delivery to Waikiki. We checked in, started unpacking, and the doorbell rang. Prices were comparable to WS Pro.
We did Diamond Head (quite strenuous hike), and Pearl Harbor (very somber). The meal highlights for the week were Okonobiyaki Chibo, House without a key, and Helena’s Hawaiian Food. We also recommend Holy Grail Donuts, 5-Star Poke, Angry Shrimp, Lahaina Shave Ice, and Duke’s Barefoot Bar. Probably the best bite of food all week was Poke Fix, best of the trip BY FAR.
HRH bought a uke (her third), and I bought a Kahala shirt. All other funds went to the bar.
Summary
Poke
1–Poke Fix, Waikiki
2a–The Reel Aloha Poke, Captain Cook
2b–Foodland (the new cripy garlic Ahi)
4–Five Star, Waikiki (food truck)
Mac Salad
1–Helena’s, Honolulu
2–Pono Market, Kapa’a (Kauai)
3–Matsuyama Food Mart, above Kailua-Kona (Big Is)
Sweets
1a. Manueala Malasaladas, Waimea (HI)
1b. Holey Grail, Waikiki (get the Lilikoi)
1c. Manju from Pono Market, Kapa’a
FTW
The Hawaiian people, and the environment they have nurtured. In 22 days we didn’t hear a single cross word, a single car horn, or a single complaint.
(then Delta screwed up our seats on the way home, and smashed 4 of HRH’s golf clubs)
Still didn’t put much of a damper on our trip.
I’ll edit this post for typos etc.
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