Called the ‘Garden Isle,’ Kauai has – just like the other Hawaiian Islands – a unique vibe and character. While Oahu is more cosmopolitan and friendly (yet beautiful as well), and Maui a bit overrated and touristy (yet very scenic), Kauai is more of an ‘Eden,’ unspoiled and underrated, with a chiller, ‘local’ vibe to it.
Is Kauai sunny all the time? No.
Does Kauai have rainbows everywhere you go? No.
Does Kauai have wild chickens crowing in the middle of the night, inducing insomnia? Yes.
Still, this is the island that’ll leave you with the strongest impressions.
My first one? An airport full of birds, an air filled with sky-high humidity, and a fickle weather with unscheduled downpours that will have you racing against them all day.
That said, Kauai is famous for being the filming location of over 70 movies and blockbusters, like Jurassic Park, Avatar, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Descendants (there’s even a book covering all the local movie sites).
The oldest of the Hawaiian Islands and the smallest of the 4 large ones, Kauai has a population of 70,000, as opposed to Oahu’s 1 million, with plenty of space for everyone to scatter. Most visitors stay in Lihu’e, Po’ipu or Kapa’a areas.
We choose Lihu’e, a small town in the southeast corner of Kauai; the commercial center of the island and home to the airport.
It takes all of ten minutes to get to our 3* condo resort. While in Maui we were received by turbine-force winds blowing the tops of palm trees maniacally around, here, drumming playfully on the windows of our Jeep is a light drizzle coming down from grey skies.
Not that we’re not used to it at this point.
To get a better feel of the town, we take a little walk.
Lihue’s Kalapaki Beach is covered by washed-up driftwood, the water is of the same dreary color as the sky. Looking back at us with blind eyes is a handful of houses perched on the hilly side of the cove. There’s no ship in the cruise terminal.
Fifty shades of grey, literally. I take 3 pictures.
Why in the world would anyone want to shoot movies here?
More on Kauai read https://bohemianhag.com/hawaii/kauai/