Take me back to my Hawaiian Honeymoon!!!

I was looking through some folders the other day and I stumbled across my list of things we did during our Hawaiian honeymoon. Oh what wonderful memories we have on Hawaii. 

So this post will be about some of our favorites, incase any of you decide to go to Kauai any time soon (hint, hint: Jacob and Danika for their own honeymoon?)

Where we stayed

After flying into the Lihue airport, we got our rental car and drove the exhausting 5 minutes to our hotel :)

Haha, but seriously, the Marriott in Lihue was a great place to stay. It was a very nice hotel located basically in the middle of the main street that runs around the island. We were offered to stay in the more ritzy Princeville side of the island, but both Andrew and I are glad we decided to stay in a more central location. The Marriott was a great place to stay.

Fabulous Food Choices

When you go on vacation, ask the locals for their favorite go-to spots. That is exactly how we found some of our favorite restaurants.

• Verde-  a fun twist on delicious Mexican food
• Lihue Marriott Hotel Buffet for breakfast-  it came with our hotel stay and was wonderful. The friendly hostess who greeted us daily was one of the best parts :)
• Lappert's-  yummy ice cream. I'll admit, we made a few trips to Lappert's during our Hawaii stay.
• The Beach House-  Ok, this was a shnazy restaurant that was recommended to us by our good friends. Once you know you are going to Kauai, call and make a reservation ASAP. This place was way pricey, but it was totally worth it for a romantic and amazing dinner. We loved macadamia crusted fish.
• Snow Cones at JoJo's- I'm sure there are great snow cone shacks all over the islands, but we did enjoy this one we found close to Waimea canyon.
• Duke's- This was close to our hotel, but I'll be honest in saying that it definitely wasn't a favorite for us. They did have a pretty good salad bar, and Andrew's blackened fish was pretty good. But I probably wouldn't go back.
• Kilauea Fish Market- Ok, you HAVE to try this place. It seems like a strange spot to find the most amazing fish tacos, but I kid you not when I tell you this was one of our favorite meals of the trip.
• Papelino Gelato- This was a pretty good dessert. 
• Luau at Smith's- I'm not crazy for luau food, but we did really enjoy this meal and the experience that accompanied it.

Great Go-to Activities and Locations

• First thing we did in Hawaii? (besides check into our hotel)....We went to Costco. It was a smart idea as we were able to stock up on water and a few snacks for the week.
• Blue Dolphin Catamaran NaPali Tour/Snorkel- This was a great choice. We debated between taking a helicopter tour vs a catamaran tour of the NaPali coast. If you want our advice, the catamaran was totally the way to go. Here is the breakdown:

Helicopter Tour:

• nearly $300 each
• 1 hour
• view of cool waterfalls and scenes that can only be seen by helecopter

Catamaran Tour:

• a little over $300 for BOTH of us
• 5 hour tour
• included breakfast and lunch
• snorkeling stop on your way
• saw a ton of dolphins and a few whales while we were out on the water
• beautiful view of the amazing NaPali coast

• Snorkeling was another highlight of our trip. Poipu is definitely the best beach on the island for snorkeling. It was relaxing and so fun.  Rent your gear close to the beach and jump right in.
• Kayak to Secret Falls- This was a fun and pretty vigorous adventure. We kayaked in and then hiked through quite a bit of mud to arrive to the falls. They were beautiful. We snacked on lunch provided by the Kayaking company, swam in the cool water of the falls and then headed back. The return trip was pretty exhausting, but it was a fun activity all around. 
• Smith's Family Luau- This is kinda known as a more theatrical luau, but it was a great experience. The food was good, and the entertainment was on point. A great smattering of various Polynesian dances. It was a fun way to end our trip.

So hopefully that information helps any of you planning a Kauai vacation. We loved our honeymoon. It couldn't have been better. Andrew is even nervous to ever return to Hawaii because he fears it wont be able to live up to this wonderful experience.  ...but I'm sure I'll figure out a way to convince him to go on another Hawaii vacation with me some time in the future :)