Kauai

Ah, Kauai.  Just the name evokes paradise.  We recently vacationed in the Garden Isle for a week with the kids and the moms and we all had a great time.  It's our favorite Hawaiian island because it's laid back and mellow, precisely why we went on vacation in the first place.

Thanks to a healthy collection of Starpoints, we essentially stayed gratis at the Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas at the north shore.  The room has a kitchenette and laundry, two must haves when traveling with children.  Other amenities include a wonderful children's pool with a slide that Lucas enjoyed very much, as well as Weber gas grills sprinkled throughout the property, which we used one day to grill fresh fish.

While the north shore of Kauai is about an hour away from the hustle and bustle of Lihue, we enjoyed staying there because it is more lush and green than the drier south shore.  The beaches are also calmer in the summer months.  And that's really what it's all about  - enjoying the warm summer days on the beach.  The great thing about Kauai weather wise is that while the temperature stayed consistent around 85 degrees, the ocean breeze is always there to help cool things down.

We rented a trusty minivan to take us to other places on the island: Waimea Canyon (the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific"), Ke'e Beach, Poipu Beach, Anini Beach, Tunnels Beach, Wailua River, Koloa, Kokee, Haena, and other locations.  

Lediya and I also had a day to ourselves, thanks to the grandmas.  We had shave ice in Hanalei then snorkelled at Tunnels Beach where we swam with a huge school of angelfish.  After that, we had dinner at the Hanalei Dolphin Seafood Restaurant.  One of the best seafood meals we've had - rainbow poke "martini" and fried calamari for appetizer, grilled ahi steak for the main course, and three flavor ice cream for dessert. Yum!