Waimea Canyon Question

Hi there,

We are going to be on POA 10/25-11/1 and have reserved cars for all of the ports.

For Kauai, we did reserve our car for both days, even though the second day is a half day.

My question: If we leave the ship on the second day (the half day) early, would we have time to drive up to Waimea Canyon and be back to drop off the car around noon? Is that even possible?

About how much time does one need to get from the pier to Waimea Canyon (the top lookout spot) and back?

There is so much we want to see in Kauai, and so little time!

Thank you in advance for any help! :p

I would allow 2 hours of driving each way to get to the furthest lookout point, although you could turn back sooner if you were concerned about time or if traffic is moving slower than you'd hoped (there are lookouts along the way, so even if you don't get to the furthest point, you'd still have some amazing views.)

Sunrise is around 6:40 a.m., so if you got started then, it gives you almost 5.5 hours. It doesn't leave much leeway in case of traffic delays though.

Is there any way to fit it in on day 1? It's definitely worth seeing!

Enjoy your cruise:)

I would allow 2 hours of driving each way to get to the furthest lookout point, although you could turn back sooner if you were concerned about time or if traffic is moving slower than you'd hoped (there are lookouts along the way, so even if you don't get to the furthest point, you'd still have some amazing views.)

 

Sunrise is around 6:40 a.m., so if you got started then, it gives you almost 5.5 hours. It doesn't leave much leeway in case of traffic delays though.

 

Is there any way to fit it in on day 1? It's definitely worth seeing!

 

Enjoy your cruise:)

Thanks Susan! We could go up on the first day, but we also want to see the north side of the island and don't want to try to do too much in one day.

We had also thought about doing Waimea Canyon on the 1st day, and getting up early to go to the north side on the morning of the second day.

From your experience, do you think that might be better?

I wouldn't recommend it... the road on the east side of the island, I think it is rte 56, is, for the most part a 2-lane road, and can be VERY busy between Lihue and Kapaa, especially during what goes for runs hour there

I would use the full day to go to the North Shore. Don't forget to visit the Kilauea Point lighthouse, still one of my favorite places. I have a poster hanging on my wall

I wouldn't recommend it... the road on the east side of the island, I think it is rte 56, is, for the most part a 2-lane road, and can be VERY busy between Lihue and Kapaa, especially during what goes for runs hour there

 

I would use the full day to go to the North Shore. Don't forget to visit the Kilauea Point lighthouse, still one of my favorite places. I have a poster hanging on my wall

Okay, thanks. That's what we wondered about (traffic). Is the traffic just as bad coming back from the south end to Lihue? And that lighthouse is also on our list of things we hope to see!

We'll just have to play that second day by how early we get up. :)

OR...we'll have to go back to Kauai soon to see what we miss. Yeah, that's a good plan. ;)

Okay, thanks. That's what we wondered about (traffic). Is the traffic just as bad coming back from the south end to Lihue? And that lighthouse is also on our list of things we hope to see!

 

We'll just have to play that second day by how early we get up. :)

 

OR...we'll have to go back to Kauai soon to see what we miss. Yeah, that's a good plan. ;)

OR do what we do- stay in a condo and rent a car to tour the island. There is a lot to do-tube the irrigation ditches, bike ride down Waiamea Canyon, kayak to Secret Falls. catamaran the Na Pali coast, Kilauea Lighthouse.

If you go to our website, there are 3 stories about our trips. We are always happy to answer questions

Thanks Susan! We could go up on the first day, but we also want to see the north side of the island and don't want to try to do too much in one day.

 

We had also thought about doing Waimea Canyon on the 1st day, and getting up early to go to the north side on the morning of the second day.

 

From your experience, do you think that might be better?

You're welcome.:)

Agree .. it's too much for one day to do both. I think I'd stick with the north shore for the first day as there are a few places worth stopping at along the way - Wailua Falls, Kilauea Lighthouse, the town of Hanalei, and Ke'e Beach which is at the end of the road where you can also hike a bit of the Kalalau trail if you feel like it. All of that would easily occupy a full day.

The Waimea Canyon drive is doable in a part day ... and as mentioned, even if you don't get to the furthest point, it's still a scenic drive. I don't think you'd regret getting on the road at daylight in order to see the canyon. The traffic that fendbass mentions is north of Lihue, so not an issue coming back from the Canyon to the port.

Both ends of the island are worthy of exploring, but in two days if you want to stop and explore all the treasures the island offers. You especially want a full day for the north side if you like to do a little hiking!

The canyon can be enjoyed with the many stops all the way to the top. I'd recommend to drive directly to the very very end and work your way back to avoid crowds and pace where you want to stop versus run late and miss the very end. The hike at the end is well worth it on both ends

Waimea Canyon is a place not to be missed.

Some people say you don't have to go all the way to the top. IMO the most beautiful view was in Kokee SP - the Kalalau Lookout. You can see the Pali Coast & Valley - it was awesome. Later when you are the ship cruising the Pali Coast, you will see that spot from the sea level view.

IMO, I would go to Waimea Canyon on day 1 since you don't have an all aboard. We stopped at the Sprouting Horn (another spot I would recommend), then Wailua Falls. It was around 3pm by then, traffic was starting to pick up so we decided to return the rental car and go back to the ship and relax in the hot tub.

We considered driving to Hanalei but we had had enough driving for one day.

Day 2, we took the Anchor Mall shuttle, walked around the shops, and went swimming at the beach.

Waimea Canyon is a place not to be missed.

Some people say you don't have to go all the way to the top. IMO the most beautiful view was in Kokee SP - the Kalalau Lookout. You can see the Pali Coast & Valley - it was awesome. Later when you are the ship cruising the Pali Coast, you will see that spot from the sea level view.

 

IMO, I would go to Waimea Canyon on day 1 since you don't have an all aboard. We stopped at the Sprouting Horn (another spot I would recommend), then Wailua Falls. It was around 3pm by then, traffic was starting to pick up so we decided to return the rental car and go back to the ship and relax in the hot tub.

 

We considered driving to Hanalei but we had had enough driving for one day.

 

Day 2, we took the Anchor Mall shuttle, walked around the shops, and went swimming at the beach.

Thank you for all of the replies! :) So, now that we are back from our trip, I'll share what we actually DID! On our first day we went north, all the way to Ke'e Beach, turned around and drove back...went to the dry caves across from Tunnels beach, the lighthouse, a little shopping in Kapa'a...and then all the way down to Poipu. It was raining off and on all day, and the waters were too choppy to swim or snorkel, but we saw amazing things and saw the Spouting Horn in Poipu too!

On our second half day, we left the ship early and went up to the top of Waimea Canyon. However it was raining and we couldn't ever see anything. I was bummed, but we did get a little bit of a view on the way back down at the lowest viewpoint. We also stopped at Kauai Coffee on the way back to drop off the car at the airport.

Sooo...my point here? That YES, it is totally doable to go up to Waimea Canyon on the second day. We were off the ship and in our car by 7:15 or 7:30am, and made it to the very top lookout easily by 9am.

I need to write up a review...just haven't found the time yet! :rolleyes:

Thanks for the follow up!

We did pretty much the same you but we had our helicopter tour of the Canyon scheduled for day two and it was cancelled due to weather so we hopped in our rental car and drove to the canyon to see it.

Like you we had a lot of rain so our visibility was poor but had a few minutes of sun popping thru the clouds for some great pictures!

So another vote that it is possible, and we didn't start till later once we found out our helicopter was cancelled!