Kauai looks small on the map and drives large. Princeville to Poʻipū is 90 minutes, Princeville to the Nā Pali boats at Kekaha is close to two hours, and everything funnels through Kapaʻa, where the traffic backs up twice a day. Where you stay decides which mornings are easy and which start at 5 am.
Here is how the four main bases compare, from people who make those drives.
The short version
- Poʻipū (south shore): the sunniest, the calmest swimming year round, 25 minutes to the Port Allen boats. The resort base. Our pick for winter and for families.
- Princeville and Hanalei (north shore): the most beautiful, the wettest, closed-out surf in winter, 15 minutes to the Nā Pali boat in summer. Our pick for a summer trip.
- Kapaʻa and Wailua (east side): the center of the island, mid-priced, the river and the bike path, 20 minutes from the airport. The practical base for seeing everything.
- Līhuʻe: cheapest rooms, the airport, the helicopters and the tubing at your door. Fine for a short trip; not the island of the postcards.
Poʻipū and the south shore
The case for it. Poʻipū gets about a third of the rain of the north shore and the trade winds blow offshore, so the water is calm when Hanalei is closing out. Poʻipū Beach Park has lifeguards, a keiki pool and a snorkel cove. The Port Allen boats are 25 minutes away, the Kekaha boat 45 minutes, the zipline five minutes. The Grand Hyatt, the Sheraton, the Kōloa Landing and hundreds of condos line a mile of coast.
The case against. It is the resort side, with resort prices and crowds, and the north shore is a 90-minute drive, so Hanalei becomes a full-day outing.
Stay here if you are coming in winter, you have young kids, or boats and sun are the point. Drive times: Port Allen 25 min, Kekaha 45, Līhuʻe airport 25, Kapaʻa 45, Hanalei 90.
Princeville and Hanalei: the north shore
The case for it. This is the Kauai people picture: Hanalei Bay under the waterfall mountains, the taro fields, Tunnels reef, the end of the road at Kēʻē. Princeville is the resort on the bluff; Hanalei is the surf town on the bay; Hāʻena past the bridges is the quiet end. In summer the bay is a lake and the Nā Pali catamaran leaves from the sand, 15 minutes from the cliffs.
The case against. Rain, and lots of it from November to March, when the surf also closes the bay to boats and the beaches to swimmers. The Port Allen and Kekaha boats are 90 minutes to two hours away, so a winter Nā Pali trip means a very early drive. Restaurants are fewer and pricier.
Stay here if you are coming May to September and want the beaches and the green. Drive times: Hanalei Bay 10 min from Princeville, Kapaʻa 50, Līhuʻe 60 to 70, Poʻipū 90, Port Allen 90, Kekaha 110.
Kapaʻa and Wailua: the east side
The case for it. The middle of everything. Twenty minutes from the airport, 45 from Poʻipū, 50 from Hanalei. The Wailua River kayak is in town, the helicopters and tubing are 15 to 20 minutes south, and the coastal bike path runs along the water. The best concentration of food trucks and mid-priced restaurants on the island, and condos and small hotels that cost less than either resort coast.
The case against. Trade winds and a windward coast: the beaches are better for walking than swimming, apart from the sheltered pools at Lydgate. The Kapaʻa traffic crawl adds 15 minutes to anything at rush hour. Every Nā Pali boat is a real drive: 50 minutes to Hanalei, 75 to Kekaha.
Stay here if you want to see the whole island from one base and care more about value than a resort beach. Drive times: airport 20 min, Līhuʻe 20, Poʻipū 45, Hanalei 50, Port Allen 50, Kekaha 75.
Līhuʻe, Kalapaki and Nawiliwili
The case for it. The airport, the cruise port and the cheapest hotel rooms on the island. The helicopters fly from the airport, the tubing base is five minutes north, Kalapaki Beach by the Marriott is a sheltered bay with lifeguards and beginner surf, and everything on Kauai is within 90 minutes.
The case against. It is a working town, not a resort. The beach is the harbor beach. You will drive to every day’s main event.
Stay here if you have a short trip, a red-eye flight, or a budget. Drive times: Poʻipū 25 min, Kapaʻa 20, Port Allen 35, Kekaha 55, Hanalei 60 to 70.
The west side: Waimea and Kekaha
Few visitors stay out here and the handful of cottages are the reason to. Waimea is the old plantation town with the road up Waimea Canyon; Kekaha has Kikiaola Harbor and the year-round Nā Pali boat. A night in Waimea turns a 5 am drive into a 6:30 am stroll and pairs the canyon with the boat. It is dry, hot and quiet, with Polihale and Salt Pond for beaches.
By season
December to March: south shore. Winter surf closes the north-shore beaches and bay, the south stays calm and sunny, and the Nā Pali boats run from Port Allen and Kekaha.
May to September: north shore if beaches are the point, south shore if boats are. The north shore is flat and the Hanalei boat is running; the south shore has the shortest harbor drives.
Shoulder months: the east side, for flexibility, when the forecast decides which shore you drive to each morning.
Split the stay
Many week-long trips do best with two bases: three or four nights on the south shore and three on the north, or the reverse. It saves hours of driving and gives you both climates. For what each shore offers day by day, see our 5-day Kauai itinerary and the regions map.
Written by Kauai locals who spend their days on the water and the trails. How we make money.
