KAUAI… With Kids. Jamie’s Final Blog

We were told that Aloha means Hello, Goodbye and also Love, by the lady at Kauai Food Truck who promised our food would be served with Aloha. As we get ready to leave Kauai, I would have to agree….there is something special about the Hawaiian Islands that we simply love and haven’t been able to find anywhere else. It is that feeling of Aloha and being welcomed.

 

We spent our last days exploring a bit more of the island. I had heard the best time of day to visit Spouting Horn was Sunset, but that Sunrise was almost as good and there would be a lot less people to block your view. As we were always up well before dawn, we decided to take in sunrise at Spouting Horn – a short 5 minute drive from our hotel. It was very pretty and worth seeing. Spouting Horn is a cavern through under the lava rock and the waves spout out a hole in the top. It can be quite spectacular when there are big waves coming in.

 

We took in the Kilohana Plantation which is home to the Kauai Plantation Railroad. It was about $80 USD total for 4 adults, a child and two infants and the train ride was about 40 minutes through different kinds of fruit trees, sugar cane, hardwoods, flower gardens and more. It also stops halfway and the kids can feed the goats, roosters and wild pigs. In and of itself, it’s probably not worth the drive (about 20 minutes) and cost. However, in the same plantation is the Kauai Rum Factory, with free Rum tasting, there is a pottery store, several gift shops, a day spa and a nice restaurant and the setting is beautiful. If you were to take a half day and take in the rest of the Plantation, it would be well worth it!

 

We took a leisurely drive up the North Coast to Hanalei Bay – about an hour and a half drive from Poipu. We stopped at the beach at Hanalei Bay, but it was a rough water day, so we didn’t venture in. We had lunch at a local rib and chicken stand and Sydney had a hot dog from the famous Puka Dog stand – best hot dog ever – worth the $6.45! We meandered our way back down the coast, stopping at a few beaches along the way. The scenery on the North Coast is quite different from the South Coast where we are staying. It looks like you stepped into Jurassic Park with towering mountains, waterfalls and rainforest. It was definitely worth the time, but we decided we like our sunny, calm South Shore as a place to stay.

 

We had seen a write up on the Kauai Food Truck, which is located near us in the town of Koloa, so we gave it a try for lunch one day and the food was really good – lots of local flavours with Kalua Pork, Shrimp and Fish Tacos, and lots of other great dishes. The staff was incredibly friendly and outgoing and our kids got a free cold coconut to drink which they loved. One other spot we hit up for lunch was Joes on the Green, which had been recommended by a friend and by the hotel. It is a 2-3 minute drive from our Kiahuna Plantation, on the Kiahuna Golf Course ($95 a round inc cart). The menu was extensive and very reasonable with most items being $10-$15. Mark couldn’t fit his mouth around the burger it was so huge and the Coconut Shrimp was as good as any I’ve had. They also mixed me up a special Mimosa with Guava and Mango juice – so good I had to have two!

 

All in all, we have loved our stay in Kauai and we will definitely be back. I have nothing bad to say about the Outrigger Kiahuna Plantation. We have had great service, our Condo was top notch and had everything we needed. The beach in front of the hotel was as good as any we have seen on the Island and we love the extensive grounds and gardens for walking through. We were able to see Whales and Turtles from the beach most mornings, which the kids loved. It is very kid friendly and was a perfect choice for us. The only small thing I could say is the pool is a bit inconvenient and it would be nice if they had a pool closer to the ocean and right on hotel grounds, but that is a really minor complaint. Thank you to the Outrigger and Kauai for making our stay so delightful, we hope to see you soon!

Now, let’s hope we survive the flight home tomorrow! Aloha!

Kaui…. With Kids – Jamie’s Blog Part 2

My what a fun and action packed few days we’ve had! Not that it has really been that busy, but every outing with small kids seems to be a big event. We have spent some time enjoying our resort. The grounds are stunning, with orchid and cactus gardens, wide green lawns, lush foliage, white sandy beaches…what’s not to love? The resort has many well maintained BBQ areas for use of its guests and some have picnic tables as well making it easy to have casual meals and enjoy the grounds. The staff are constantly upkeeping the hotel grounds and buildings and they go out of their way to be friendly and seem to really love little children. They make everyone feel very welcome and well looked after. I would definitely recommend the Kiahuna Plantation by Outrigger.

 

There is a shopping center across the street with a few restaurants including a Thai place, a hot dog place, Starbucks, a Gelato shop and a really nice restaurant called Keokis Paradise. We had a nice date night there last night thanks to Grandpa and Grandma being willing to babysit for a couple of hours. Shrimp, Crab Cakes, Steak, Mojitos and no kids….hmmmm. Enough said.   In addition to the restaurants, there is also quite a few shops featuring local clothing, shoes, art, gift shops and a Whalers General Store (similar to an ABC store – which I have yet to see in Kauai!).

 

The nearest town is Koloa which is about a 5 minute drive away. There are some neat local shops and food trucks in Old Koloa Town and there is a Big Save Grocery store with everything you will need to stock up on food and essentials while you are in the Poipu area. Prices were actually quite reasonable on most things and it saves a half hour drive back to Lihue to go to the Costco or Safeway.

 

We did a drive to the Kauai Coffee Company Plantation, about a half hour drive along the South Shore. They have a good gift shop, a cafe, a small museum and free walking tours (self guided and also guided) that take you through their coffee and sugar cane plantation. Well worth the drive, a great little stop.

Tonight we went to the Auli’i Luau at the Sheraton Kauai. We picked this Luau because the Sheraton is right beside our hotel and it was less than a 5 minute walk from our door to the Luau. Convenience won, since we didn’t know how long the kids would make it and it would be easy for one of us to bring them home if needed. This was my third Luau, I have been to one in Oahu and in Maui. This was my favorite. It was a smaller crowd and a beautiful oceanfront setting. The staff were very helpful and went out of their way to make us comfortable. The performers were very good and the hostess was very entertaining. The best part was the food! Luau food can be a bit hit and miss since it’s buffet and meant to feed a bunch of people. Auli’i had an appetizer buffet, which was nice, an open bar with cocktails and wine as well as coffee, pop and juice and the dinner buffet was awesome – the best Kalua Pig I have had yet as well as really nice fish, chicken and beef dishes and lots of salads and sides. No one went hungry and it was a very enjoyable meal and evening. The highlight was when they brought our 7 year old up to learn the Hula. She loved it, something she’s not likely to forget soon and she can’t wait to tell her friends and other grandmas and grandpas at home all about it. Well done Sheraton Kauai! The cost was just over $100 for adults and around $70 for kids, toddlers free. We included the upgrade to the premiere seating which meant you got to check in first, got a flower lei and had reserved seating in the first two rows, so perfect for viewing the performance.

I am really glad we opted for a 12 day stay in Kauai instead of only 7. Otherwise, it would be almost time to think about coming home.   Instead we have another full week before we have to leave. The island of Kauai has so much to offer, we can’t wait to keep exploring!

Kaui…. With Kids – Jamie’s Blog Part 1

Last spring we started talking about where we wanted to go for a winter holiday. It would be our first holiday as a family of 5 instead of 3. We would now be travelling with a 7 year old and twin one year olds. We debated hopping a quick non stop flight to Mexico and staying at an all inclusive,but in the end we chose Hawaii. Hawaii has been a long standing favourite. We wanted to have a condo so we weren’t stuck eating out every meal with kids (it’s just not that fun, relaxing or enjoyable with two toddlers!) and we love that in Hawaii you never have to worry about what you are eating or drinking, you can safely drive yourself around and you can be as busy or relaxed during your holiday as you choose to be. We settled on Kauai as it was one island we had not yet visited. We settled on the Outrigger Kiahuna Plantation at the recommendations of friends and because it seemed to be a very good value. The biggest downside was the flights. From Saskatoon, there is really no way to get around a 10-12 hour travel day, or longer. In our case we had a 5 hour layover in Vancouver which meant a total of a 13 hour travel day from take off to landing. What else would a sane mom and dad do, but call in the recruits – grandparents. My in laws had not been to Hawaii before and were happy to come along on our adventure (yay us!).

 

Our travel day started off as expected, flights to Vancouver smooth and on time – thanks Westjet! Layover in Vancouver a breezes – thanks Premium Plaza Lounge for giving us a private conference room to keep our family contained. We had a small room with 4-5 chairs, coffee table, etc which was quiet and allowed our kids to nap and allowed us to keep them in a safe area where they weren’t bothering anyone else. Premium Plaza offers a great service and well worth the cost on a long layover. We enjoyed a free meal, snacks and drinks while in the lounge.

 

We then boarded our flight to Lihue and that is where the fun began. We quickly became “that family”…you know who I mean. My 1 year old son fell asleep before take off – score 1. That’s where our luck ended. Our 1 year old daughter fought sleep for the first two hours, getting quite cranky by the end of the second hour. Then she fell asleep at the same time as our older daughter….well, good – time to order a snack and a glass of wine and celebrate our win fall. That’s when disaster struck. Our little guy, who had been sleeping so nice, started to get a little restless and then started to throw up…and throw up and throw up and throw up.   Oh wait – and the flight got turbulent and then rougher and rougher and rougher (my fear of flying is kicking in). So, we have a little guy throwing up over everything and everyone including his 7 year old sister, his grandma and his mom and his dad (gross), we have a turbulent flight and we have 4 hours left till we land. As my 7 year old said “WORST FLIGHT EVER!” I will never again complain about a noisy kid or a sick kid on a flight. Once you’ve been “that family”, there is no going back.

 

We arrived at Lihue at 930pm local time (130am our time). We had to pick up our luggage, take a shuttle to the Dollar Rent a car, then drive to the Outrigger Kiahuna Plantation. All along the way, things improved. Our little guy was feeling better by the time we left the flight, the Dollar shuttle driver was super helpful as were the staff at the counter. They quickly got us on our way and gave us easy to follow instructions to the hotel.

 

As we were leaving Dollar, the attendant mentioned that there was a new Safeway in Lihue we would pass on our way if we wanted to stop for groceries…um, it’s 11pm by this time and we have 3 tired kids, 2 cranky parents, 2 grandparents questioning their judgement on coming along…so I was very glad I had made arrangements for grocery delivery with Kauai Kiss – more on that later…but no thank you to a midnight stop at Safeway!

 

We arrived at the hotel, tired, hot and smelly. The lady at check in quickly had us on our way to our rooms, which were very close to the reception. We have the lower two floors with our 2 bedroom condo and my in laws are one floor up above us. They met every request – rooms close together and renovated condos. I can’t speak for all of the condos at this resort, but ours is phenomenal. It has been renovated, has nice furniture, new laminate floors, granite counters, new kitchen, comfy beds. It is quite a bit better than I was expecting. I was worried that we had no AC at this hotel, but it’s been fine. It’s 25-26 degrees during the day, 21 or so at night and there is a nice breeze and ceiling fans, keeping the unit very comfortable.

 

The best thing I did in our planning was arranging for Kauai Kiss to stock our unit with groceries. I picked enough food for a few days so we wouldn’t have to wonder what the heck we would feed the kids the next morning and we wouldn’t have to rush first thing to the grocery store when we were sure to be tired after our long day. Boy, was I grateful we did that! We arrived to a fully stocked kitchen – kid friendly staples like spaghetti, burgers, hot dogs, Kraft Dinner, chicken fingers, plus the necessities like bottled water, coffee, bread, milk fruit and veggies and the best part – COLD BEER and wine 🙂

 

When we were all up at 6am after a mere 5 hours of sleep, I was very, very happy to have coffee brewing and toast and cereal ready to go. We did a little tour around the property, did a quick beach walk this morning – a 5-7 minute walk from our unit which is at the back of the property by the road. We saw humpback whales breaching and surfers. We also used the well maintained BBQ areas for lunch and had a short swim in the pool before afternoon naps. The pool is across the street, about a 5-7 minute walk from our unit as well. It has a waterslide, zero entry area and hot tub. It wasn’t very busy despite the hotel being full and was family friendly with a snack bar and towels provided.

 

The things I liked about this resort when I was booking – no resort fees, free parking, free WIFI, free towels and chairs at the beach. The only Extra is a cleaning fee at checkout, which is understandable as these are condos that need to be cleaned between visitors. We get three cleaning services during our stay – one is just a towel change, one is floors, garbage and linens and one is a full clean. That should be sufficient, but we can pay for extra cleaning if needed.

 

So, I am happy to report that we survived our “WORST FLIGHT EVER” and our stay on the beautiful island of Kauai is looking up. More to come!