Heading to Kauai for a week - ideas ?

I'm taking advantage of the low airfares and hotel prices due to panic and hysteria , taking my kids to Kauai for a few days.
Any ideas of low cost / free easy stuff to fill the time ?
I want to do some hikes and maybe some swimming in the surf with my boys.
Thanks in advance

 

Haven’t been to that island. So my only suggestion, is to take me with you!

 

I'nm headed to Maui next week! I've heard some great things about Kauai though. One day I'll go check out that island.

 

good for you. here's my list...

1) wailua falls. park in the lot. grab a fresh coconut from the guy in the back of his truck. walk across lot then jump the guardrail onto the trail. hike down to the base of the falls. if it has rained, wear old clothes. you will fall on your ass and the kauai mud will stain and never come off. once at the bottom, you can walk around to the back side of the falls.

2) kilauea light house

3) hanalei. grab food in town then make your way to the beach. sit at the end of the pier at sunset, eat, watch the surf, stare at puff the magic dragon across the bay. yes, peter, paul and mary wrote the song from that spot looking at that same view. although they were probably more than a little high at the time.

4) queen's bath. you'll have to find this on your own. my one hint is that it is in princeville.

5) limahuli gardens. it's near the end of the road on the north shore.

6) ke'e beach. tends to get crowded but maybe not so much at this time of year. semi-protected with a barrier reef. usually some turtles swimming around.

7) kalalau trail. this is the beginning of the north shore side of na pali. absolutely stunning views. hike as far as you want.

9) waimea canyon and na pali state parks. no brainers.

keep a head's up on the surf if you go to the beach. direction will be changing this time of year from norther swells to southern and some spots could get heavy.

 

You can hike to one of the wettest places on earth and the highest elevation swamp(Alakai)at Waimea Canyon State Park. It's on the southwest side of the island off Hwy. 50

 

oh, if your kids are into dinos, you could go for the jurassic park atv tour.

 

hike the hanali trail, spend a night or two in a hammock on the beach.
It'll be one of the most surreal experiences of your life.

 

Buy and study this book! I used when I went to Kauai about 20 years ago, great trip!

The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook: Kauai Revealed (Ultimate Guidebook)

$11 The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook: Kauai Revealed (Ultimate Guidebook)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1949678024/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_kIsAEb0GFKX58

 

This is a great list ! No matter what you do it will be amazing...one of the most awesome places I have ever been. Your boys will love it, mine did

 

Kauaibackcountry.com

It’s tubing the old sugar channels...extremely fun.

 

Head over to Ni'ihau and tell'em the Robinsons' sent you...jk jk
Post 4 knocked it out of the park with what to do...been there many many times (lived Oahu for 18 years) usually when we went Kauai, we surfed pinetrees, and a handful of other spots, snorkeled for Tako, but mostly just ate ono grinds and pounded green bottles

 

wow dude, i was born and raised on kauai and u just about nailed it.

i like option 1 alot, its near my moms house and i try to do it when im home

If u rent a 4WD jeep theres a beach at the end of the road (going west) where u can drive on white sand for miles. Its called Polihale. Make sure to air down ur tires and u’ll be fine, the sand is soft.

2x on kauai back country. Its a fun little adventure for the family. ive done it twice.

 

i spent quite a bit of time between kauai and oahu when i was freelancing for surfer magazine. it's my favorite island. miss being down there.

 

Wow - Thanks bro!

 

Its like a haven for surfers. Most breaks aren’t crowded, and theres a lot of places to surf. I love going to the beach but I seldomly surfed, i just wasnt great at it lol. Spent most of my childhood riding dirt bikes or offroading my toyotas once i could drive.

 

i was a much better body surfer although i liked getting out and cruising the small stuff on a log. the body surfing just lent itself to being good at swimming around the impact zone with a camera...

 

gonna set up the tubing for one day , then hike for a couple days to some of these spots.
You all are great help - much appreciated

 

This^

Also check out Kauai ATV if it's still there or do the Jurassic ATV thing.

And definitely check out a luau. Usually hotels have them weekly, if not your hotel have them suggest one.

 

Right on! My wife and I just spent 16 days on Kauai for our honeymoon over the holidays. It’s an awesome place! We were also looking for reasonably cheap stuff to do. Kayaking was fun, tubing through the old drainage tunnels was a blast ( Kauai back country) zip lining, lots of hiking to do. ( though it was limited because of all the rain) Waimea canyon is amazing. We did lots of snorkeling too, mostly at Poipu beach. We also watched the sunset there every night. Make sure to see the whole island- North, South, etc. all parts are very different from one another. Dukes was our favorite place to eat, they make an awesome burger- also the Hulu pie is amazing.It rained just about non stop the whole first week we were there ha it was crazy. Don’t know if I’ve ever seen so much rain. Minnesota boy first time on an island I thought we might float away for a minute. Also extreme amount of Toyota’s on the island, it’s crazy. Hope you and the fam have fun!

 

When in Hanalei..... go snorkeling at Tunnels.

 

Like @Northwoods22 said. If u go to dukes to eat (at the marriott), get the Hula Pie. Its a must