Can we do these in one day? Waimea Canyon,Poipu,waterfalls..

Hi,

I need the help from all you kauai experts again. I am trying to come up with an itinerary for a day trip to take my elderly parents and several other wedding guests to see the West and South sides of the island in just half a day. We will be staying in Princeville. We will start at 8am. This is my itinerary so far.

1) Drive from Princeville to Waimea Canyon. At the canyon, we will stops at a few accessible roadside lookouts.

2) Drive to Poipu Beach. Have lunch there

3) Visit Opaekaa Falls and Wailua Falls

4) Go back to Hanalei and take a 3pm sail from there to the Naplai Coast with Captain Sundown.

Note that we will not have time to swim / snorkel. Most of stops are just for taking pictures and maybe some short strolls.

Is it possible to do all of the above?

Any other suggestions?

Thanks

Katieling.

Can we do these in one day? Waimea Canyon,Poipu,waterfalls..

katieling...whooooosh! Unless Earnhart, Jr. is driving you won%26#39;t get to the finish line and boat in Hanalei by 3 p.m.

I can relate to the excitement in wanting to entertain family and friends...cramming in as much Kauai as possible. Your outlined plan, IMO, is too much, too fast under any circumstances and especially when you must account for the ';elderly'; and/or ';a group'; all being ready to roll at 8 a.m., those same folks getting in and out of vehicles at the several planned stops, potty stops, 1-1/2 hours for a group lunch (menu decisions and service likely slow), potty stops again, and, most of all, traffic. Personally, if you we (you all) could get back to Hanalei by 3 p.m., I would be too pooped to board for that sail* and without a doubt could not enjoy it to the fullest.

So, what to do? I am thinking you can do a photo stop from the vista at Waimea Canyon and make potty at that site but don%26#39;t risk that Kalalau lookout will be visible...buy a postcard photo (not the same, but you have time constraints). Head back downhill to Waimea town and over to Poipu thru the ';Tree Tunnel';, do your lunch stop at Brennecke%26#39;s (2nd floor lanai over Poipu Beach and Park) for the view...not especially the food (or prices) and then head back to Hanalei, skip the waterfalls and head right back to Hanalei to meet up with Captain Andy*.

*start folks on meclizine (OTC Bonine) for seasickness the day before the sail and consider that may be helpful for that half-day car tour as well. Don%26#39;t do Dramamine...your guests might nod off.

Can we do these in one day? Waimea Canyon,Poipu,waterfalls..

Hi Katie,

I agree with bj, especially if you are bringing along your parents. you do have to take into consideration bad traffic (there is only one two lane highway that goes around the island) and potentially slow service at lunch. It also depends on the weather. If it%26#39;s a cloudy day in the mountains, vistas in Kokee (near Waimea Canyon) can get fogged in with limited visability. The drive from Princeville to Kokee could take you 2 hours alone.

Having said that it may be potentially doable, especially since you can cut things out if you see that you are running behind (perhaps going to either wailua or opaekaa falls, opaekaa is closer to the main highway).

Prepare to get up at the crack of dawn. If you do, you might even have time to see Spouting Horn.

Is there any way to sneak in an extra half day for sightseeing?

I pretty much agree that hoping to get everyone moving the same direction early in the morning and there isn%26#39;t a fire maybe optimistic. Kauai was too relaxing for us to try rushing around so unless this is the only chance everyone will have to see these places you might scale it back a little. I%26#39;m not sure I would even try going to Poipu just to do a quick turnaround and go back. You will see some of sights on your sail that you would from the canyon but from a different angle they are all well worthwhile ideas just a little more time consuming particularily with other people invovled remember relax and enjoy.

Thanks for all your input.

I would love to have my parents staying longer. But the earliest they can get there is Fri AM. The wedding is on Sunday. They are leaving Monday morning. So they%26#39;ll only have a day and a half to see some sights. Not to mentioned that we%26#39;ll have to squeeze in a welcome dinnner on Fri night too. I really want them see the Naplai Coast from the sea. I also want to take them to Kee%26#39;s and Tunnel. So I figure that on the day that they arrive, we can go to kee%26#39;s in the afternoon and then the welcome dinner. The next day we will sightsight the West and South Side, and go on the boat tour.

I just don%26#39;t know what to do! There is really not enough time.

Luckily, I and my future husband will arrive three days earlier. We%26#39;ll have sometime to enjoy the island.

Katie have 1 more idea do you think you could them into a helicopter since there are several helicoptor tours available on Kauai I was thinking this would be away for them to see many of these areas.

Katie

Holy Kauai chickens, and the roosters!

You, indeen have a very, very busy day planned, since you are driving from the north shore, and back, and also stopping along the way.

It will be pretty high stress, for the normal appreciation of the island, and as mentioned, thar aint no freeways, just the two lane coastal road. You must realize, you probably will be slammed with traffic slow downs at that hour. They will begin well north of Kapaa.

use the by passes that are available if you wish.

Still, I would say about 2 hours from Princeville to the first Wiamea Canyon lookout. This is a stunning view of the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.

Back to poipu will take about an hour, Lunch at Poipu, and looking around about another hour at least.

Then, driving up to Opeakea Falls LOOKOUT.....no hiking allowed...

will be about 40 minutes, give or take. Now driving up to Hanalei will be about an hour from the falls.

Honestly, that is a very harried day, if indeed everything goes smoothly.

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Agree with the Suggeston, of having them take a ( 1 hr) HELO tour. For your parents, might suggest, Air Kauai, Lihue,or one of the helos out of Princeville airport.

Then, on the way back up north, stop at opeakea falls for some neat photos. They will have already taken photos from the helo of Waimea Canyon and the Kalalau valley.

Continuing on north, you could stop at the Kiluea Light house, and have lunch at one of the quaint places up there. The hunger pangs will be starting to snarl up about that time. Beautiful views of the coastline, from up at the light house.

If you have some extra time, you might drive past Hanalei town, and take a self guided, or guided tour of the lush Limahuli Gardens up on the north shore.

Whew ! Then your Capt. Sundown trip out of Hanalei.. I am construing that you will be hear May or later. As the winter time the north shore boast do not operate out of those harbors due to the swells.

Please take into consideration that you are on Kauai, and nothing moves very quickly. Trying to cram a huge amount of driving from one shore on a whirlwind itinerary might be a wee bit to hectic.

And remember, max speed is 50 mph,with much of the route at

25 mph.

Just enjoy safely what you can, and what beauty you can share, with your loved ones, and keep in fun.

Denny

I agree with Denny about going to Kilauea Lighthouse. It is a great photo-op. for pictures with family, (nice panoramic view). I also recommend lunch at nearby Pau Hana Pizza in the Kong Lung Center. They make wonderful pastries and gourmet pizzas (the smoked Ono is to die for), and while you wait for your pizza, you can shop for souvenirs in the little shops surrounding the courtyard.

Thanks for everyone%26#39;s input. Since 1 day do it all is impossilbe, I am revising the itinerary. Here it is. Please keep in mind that the wedding will be in the end of May.

Day 1

10am Arrive Lihue airport

noon Arrive Princeville house

2pm leave Princeville to Waimea Canyon

4pm Drive up to Waimea Canyon Road and stop at Waimea Canyon Lookout and Pu%26#39;uo kila Lookout

5pm Drive to Spouting Horn

5:30pm Drive to Po%26#39;ipu and have a short stroll on the beach

6pm Drive to Lihue for the guest welcome dinner

Day 2

9am Leave to Kee %26amp; Tunnels Beach

11am back to the house

3pm Captain Sundown boat tour

8pm Dinner at Hanalei Dolphin??

Day3

3pm Wedding in Kilauea NWR ( already arranged)

7pm Reception in Princeville

Day4 Parents going home

I think we just have to skip the waterfalls, unless you all think that Opaekaa Falls and Wailua Falls are very much worth seeing than Poi%26#39;pu.

So, does it look better ( or worse???)

Also, my parents do not like to fly on a helicopter. They are afraid of height.