A couple of years ago my husband and I finally made it to the island of Kauai.  We went as an extension to our winter break from work, to find some much-needed sunshine from the gray Seattle weather.

Finding a deal during December on any of the Hawaiian Islands is hard to do, but somehow, I found one!  We booked about 5-6 months out and were able to find a cute VRBO at a resort in Lihue town, Aqua Kauai Beach Resort.  It was such a good deal we couldn’t pass it up. It had amazing views, three pools, and a long uninterrupted beach.  You have to get the adult shaved ice. We didn’t realize this was an actual thing until our last day and were super sad about it, because who doesn’t love Koloa rum and shave ice!

Here are the places I would recommend for some of the best food and drinks on the island.

• The best sushi was at Kintaro Japanese restaurant.  It was recommended to us by the staff at the hotel as well as our tour guide during our float.  The sushi rolls and sashimi were terrific.  Keep in mind they are not on Open Table so get there as soon as they open because it’s first come first serve and it is always packed.
• The most romantic setting and best mai-tai on the island was at the Beach House Restaurant in Poipu.  Make sure to make reservations a couple of days early if you want an oceanside table for sunset because it has the perfect view.  We chose to go here on our last night and wish we would have come sooner.
• For a hidden gem and great happy hour visit the Garden Isle Grill in Koloa town.  This town is quaint and has some cute shops; we decided to stay and have lunch and then came back for happy hour a couple of days later.  The drinks here were hands down the best we had.  While we were here, they showed us how the geckos love to eat maraschino cherries, so we had a cute lunch guest.  The shrimp basket and the poke bowl were our go-to items both times we visited.  Ladies you have to get the dragon fruit margarita, it’s HOT PINK!!
• Coffee is life, so obviously I had to find a good coffee joint, I tried a couple but the one I ended up going to almost every morning was Java Kai.  They have the best cold brew that I’ve ever had.  There is usually a line out the door, but it is so worth it.  Not to mention they have great food and gear you can buy too.

We were there for a week, so we decided to pick two activities as well as doing a lot of exploring on our own.

• We had a lot of recommendations from friends and family to do the back-country float, as soon as I looked it up, I knew it was for us.  What’s cool about this float is that on the drive up to the top of the river, the tour guide stops at certain historical spots so you can get pictures and learn more.  You get to see the wettest place in all of the United States and floating down historic sugar cane canals and tunnels with headlamps. It is something I would highly recommend and would do again if we go back.
• We knew we had to see the Napili coastline and in December that is hard to do.  We were able to find a snorkel adventure through Captain Andy’s.  He uses similar boats as our favorite snorkel charter out of Maui does, so we knew it would be a fun ride.  We were glad we chose this charter because we got to see the amazing coastline as well as some excellent snorkel spots.  My favorite was where we stopped for lunch.  (You will quickly realize I’m obsessed with sea turtles) The reason lunch was my favorite was because there were about 15-20 turtles just sunbathing on the beach.  We also learned about noni fruit, and it is the most disgusting smelling fruit EVER!  It does have health benefits; they use it in skin care and energy drinks.

So, after our quick trip to Kauai, I have a couple of tips and tricks that might help you if you want to visit.

• Understand the weather during the month you are going.  We went in December, and while it was warm, they had a monsoon the week before.  So, we want to explore some more in the spring or summer
• If you go in December or any of the cooler / rainy months, rent a vehicle with all-wheel drive.  There were a couple of beaches we couldn’t get to with you little rental.
• Bring shoes to hike in; with so many cool hiking trails and waterfalls to see you don’t want to get stuck in flip flops
• Do the backcountry float!
• Drive around to all the small towns they usually are the ones with all the hidden gem restaurants, bars, and shops
• Book all your dinner reservations on open table that way you can get a better table and have dinner at sunset