My husband and I are planning a 25th Anniversary trip to Hawaii in September. We have never been to Hawaii and are SO excited! I was hoping for a week on Kauai and a week on the Big Island. We like B&B's or non"resort" lodgings. Please give any suggestions youmay have on lodging, dinig, activities, etc. We are not lay on the beach all week kind of people. Thanks for any help.

we spent our 25th anniv in Kauai of corse that was 13 of them ago. We stayed in a Condo for the week so not really sure what other are available. However, the Island is beautiful, with the waterfall an all, very much like a small Grand Canyon. There is quite a bit to see but very little night life.

Good for you. Now google like a hound from vrbo.com and other sites. Find a condo or cottage on Kauai and then find lodging in 2 areas of BI if you want to explore Volcano National Park.

Happy hunting!

Winifried, are you happy with a short drive (5 to 10 min.) to the beach from your b&b, or were you hoping to be ON a beach?

Elsiemoo, we are fine with not being on the beach.

have a wonderful trip Winifred! We were there in 12-03 & loved it (my favorite island was actually Maui, but they are all wonderful!). Anyway, we selected privately owned places to stay...2 stood out, I looked them up for you. On Kauai, ck out Kalama Cottage, up in horse country, away from hustle/bustle and had citrus trees all around it. Nothing like really fresh fruit at your fingertips. On the Big Island, definitely ck out Kahi Malu, a truly special place. There was another cottage right next door but it was not rented while we were there. Epitomy of well maintained. Very peaceful, hope your adventure was as great as ours.

Some places we have stay through the years and have loved.
on Kauai--right on Hanalei Bay--http://www.aloha.net/~seek/index.html
on the Big Island, near Honokaa and Waipio
http://www.hawaiicliffhouse.com/
in Puna near the Kapoho tide pools
http://www.apoparadise.com/lagoon2.html
in south Kona
http://www.hawaii4two.com/tikihut.htm

Check out Waianuhea--http://www.waianuhea.com/?source=adwords
Have never stayed there but have always wanted to. Love the area around there.

Gloria's Spouting Horn on the South Shore of Kauai is a lovely B & B right on the water.

Gloria retired (seriously). She shut down the B&B and now lives there full time.

Winifred, I have heard much good about Marjorie's Kauai Inn (http://marjorieskauaiinn.com/index2.htm) though I haven't stayed there.

Be sure to keep in mind that September in the Islands can be VERY warm and humid, and I would want air-conditioning whereever I stayed. I know all about island breezes but they were barely blowing on one of my vacations there during Sept./Oct., and I couldn't have stood it without A/C.

Thanks for all your help. We are leaning toward renting a cottage/house on Kauai. I've looked at VRBO. Anyone rented through them? or have suggestions of other websites?

We honeymooned on the Big Island. Do not stay on the Hilo side of the island since it rains most of the year. But do rent a car and drive all the way around the island. It's amazing to see the differences of the two sides. One is all lava rock and the other is all rainforests. Definitely visit the amazing waterfalls.

We stayed in Kona in a condo so we had a kitchen and laundry which was really nice. Kona is a very touristy spot. We were done the road from most of the touristy shops and restaurants so we could easily walk. If you don't want to stay in a very touristy area the big resorts off the main road are a good idea too.

Enjoy your trip!

We stayed at Poipu Plantation in one of their "vacation rental suites". It had a combination living room/kitchen, bed, and bath. You can also stay in the b&b section of the property, but we preferred the privacy. The owners decorated our suite with flowers from the garden. Thought it was a nice, reasonably priced place. Here's the link:
http://www.poipubeach.com/poipu_rentals.htm

Oops forgot to mention in my previous post that this place was on Kauai.

Congratulations on 25 years. If you want to do something extra special, splurge on a yacht charter. Try a sunset cruise…it will be unforgettable. Check out http://www.yachtchartershawaii.com for options.