Travel
Dear Community,
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
If you have questions about this, please email help@theknot.com.
Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
kauai hotels
I normally avoid mega-resorts when I travel, but we're doing a last minute holiday weekend trip, and that's all that's available in Kauai.
I know a lot of people recommend the Hyatt, and right now I can get an awesome (well, relatively) local rate. The problem is, there are no cars for rent on the whole island. So... is this going to be a problem? I'm happy lazing about by a pool and reading for a day, but I get antsy any longer than that and want to get out and explore. Will I still be able to do something?
I can also stay at Koa Kea in Poipu, the Marriott in Kahaka, or at a condo in Princeville for a bit less.
Re: kauai hotels
Don't you mean the Marriott in Lihue? I've never heard of Kahaka...
Anyway, getting out and exploring Kauai is a must, so if you can't rent a car I'd say look into the arranged tours by bus, or rent bikes and cruise around wherever you can. The Marriott in Lihue is where we always stay and it's in a good central location, not to mention being a totally awesome and beautiful resort. There are restaurants on site, as well as within walking distance, also shops and an ABC store. If you rent bikes in Kapa'a which is near Lihue, you can ride all along the Coconut Coast (see sig pic) and stop at many gorgeous beaches along the way.
I am similar in that I normally avoid large chain hotels at all costs - I love a small, boutique hotel with character. Having said that, the Hyatt was an exception for us. The grounds were immaculately kept, gorgeous. The pool complex was fun, pool chairs were never an issue, loved the lagoon pool. The beach isn't swimmable, but we found the beach there to be beautiful and there's great people watching.
We were there for 6 nights and wound up spending 3 of the days lying around by the pool. That's unlike us for sure, but we really liked the outdoor areas at the Hyatt.
The Koa Kea is smaller, of course, but I didn't love the look of their pool area. Something about the hotel reminded me of a motel. I have heard nothing but great things about it and it was our second choice. The Hyatt just seemed...grander and more impressive.
Normally, I would say a car is a must, but in this case I'd say go for the Hyatt without it. I actually think they had some Zip Cars on the property that you could rent? Maybe give them a call and ask? Not positive on that since we were able to rent a car....Either way, if you can get a relatively awesome rate at the Hyatt, I think it's a really nice choice.
**ETA: Just checked their website. The Hyatt has an Avis onsite which might not be any help, but they also offer Green Cars Hawaii for hourly or full day rentals. Not cheap but if you felt like you had to get out for dinner or a little exploration, it's not impossible. **
Sorry, I think there's another Marriot in Kaheka, but it's more expensive. The one in Lihue was the one I can get for about 200/night.
We do have one opportunity to go on a cruise of the na pali coast with a local friend, if she can pick us up, so we won't be entirely stuck.
There are seriously no cars at all on any of the neighbor islands this weekend. Sigh, holiday weekend in high season. I just want to escape the chaos of Waikiki, so it seems kind of counter-productive to go to another resort
I won't be swimming in the ocean, so that's not a concern. It's freaking February! Yeah, I'm a wimp who can't deal with low 70s water temps, at least not without my wetsuit.
OK, so the next question to help me decide, since we'll be resort bound... who has great food?
Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.
Mark Twain
My Travel Blog
You can actually walk to some decent things from Koa Kea (Plantation Gardens is a nice restaurant, Poipu Shopping Center with several nice and casual restaurant options and shops, Brennecke's next to Poipu Beach which has so-so food but a great bar, etc). The Hyatt isn't really in Poipu. It's in Koloa and you won't be walking to anything from the Hyatt, unfortunately. The flipside is that it is a beautiful resort and you could easily spend your entire time there if you don't mind not really leaving the property for anything. We've done something like that before at a Four Seasons and loved it, so it just depends on what you would prefer.
Not sure about the Marriott in Lihue but there may be bike rentals nearby so you might have some more options around there, too. The downside is that the area is less resort-ish in feel.
I LOVE the north shore but I wouldn't bother without a car. Hanalei is the best part and you won't be able to get there and will be stuck in Princeville at the St. Regis. No thanks.
Some success! I can get a car for Sunday and Monday, so if I can find a room that's not crazy expensive and has a minimum stay on the north shore, we could still spend half our time up there. That makes me much happier. The car is crazy expensive, but the flip side is I can stay at a cheaper place that's harder to get to.
I've never heard of the town of Kaheka. Are you sure you don't mean Wailea? Have you checked out last minute deals on condos? Maybe craigslist vacation rentals or vrbo? I bet you can find something for a great price.
We use http://www.discounthawaiicarrental.com/ for our car rentals and we never have an issue getting a car, even on the busiest weekends. We went for Christmas two years ago as a last minute trip and we scored a great deal on a car.
I actually, sort of meant what I said. It's Kekaha, not Kaheka. Despite living here, I get really dyslexic with my hawaiian names all the time. It's past Wailea, and there's an MWR facility right near there that I was looking into earlier. Yeah, I was getting pretty mixed up with all the different tabs I had open.
I've been trying to reach that car link all day. I keep getting shuttled immediately to a message due to high call volume. I tried emailing, too. Ah, well. A car for half the time is better than none.
Kekaha is super small. There isn't going to be anything to do there. Probably not a good option for your situation.
DH and I stayed at the Koa Kea in September and absolutely loved it. The service was excellent. Rooms were modern and stylish and loved the adult vibe (i.e. not that many kids, felt sophisticated). I would definitely stay there again. It was also close to the Poipu restaurants.
They had a 'stay 3 nights get the 4th free' special which we took advantage of for our stay.
And I figured out, while driving today, why I was stuck saying Kehaka. It's a street near me. This is why I'm so consistently confused.
Thanks for all the tips, everyone. We ended up going with 1 night at the hyatt and 2 elsewhere for half the price. I think it's a good compromise. And I'm being rescued by a local acquaintance who's driving us around when we're car-free on saturday.
Well, with only a handful of letters, all the names tend to start running together.
Glad the car thing worked out. Enjoy your weekend getaway! SO jealous. We were supposed to go back this summer but have to postpone since I'm due in July.