Best beach/coves in Hawaii for 1 year old?
 

As I've posted before, DH and I were supposed to leave for Hawaii this past week for our 5th trip, but since we are having our first baby in a couple of weeks, we had to put our trip off. So, the FF miles went back in the bank, and we plan to use them next summer, when our little boy will be 1 year old.

We've been to Hawaii 4 times (BI 3 times, and Oahu/Maui/Kauai all 2 times each) so we're familiar with all the islands, and have stayed at many of the resorts there. I'm trying to figure out which island would be best for us for the 1st trip with a baby (I already posted a thread about that and got some great answers) but now I'm thinking about specific beaches/coves/hotel pools that would be great for a baby that age. I'm looking for shallow, easy water for the baby to be able to play in with us without getting knocked over.

Some thoughts I've had on the shallow beaches and protected coves:
-- Fairmont Orchid on BI
-- JW Marriott Ko'Olina on Oahu
-- Poipu beach on Kauai
** Can anyone think of others that I'm either not thinking of, or not aware of?

And what about hotel pools? We have stayed at all kinds of hotels in Hawaii (Outrigger Waikiki, Hapuna Beach, Marriott Waikoloa, Hyatt Maui, Grand Hyatt Kauai, Sheraton Maui, etc...) but I've never had to look for those little kiddie/shallow pools before? Any hotel have a great one that you'd recommend?

Thanks so much for all your advice, tips, and experiences!

We just returned from Kauai/Oahu with a 4 y/o and a 1 y/o.

If you are going in the summer, I can highly recommend the beaches on the North Shore of Kauai. We stayed in a house on Weke Road in Hanalei and Hanalei Bay is a perfect place for little babies. The water is shallow and it is very calm (not so in the winter).

Another beach that was great for snorkeling and for little babies with a protected cove was Ke'e Beach, which is where the Kalalau Trail begins. The water there was crystal clear, warm and the beach area was protected.

In Oahu, the beach at The Kahala is very calm and shallow. In addition, they have a little kiddie pool separate from 2 other regular pools.

Mauna Lani on BI has a designated kids beach on their lagoon, complete with minature picnic tables etc. Very shallow and smooth. Our then 3 yr old loved it.

Thanks for the suggestions! I will look into them both.

Anyone else?

How about Anini beach or tunnels beach on Kauai or Hapuna beach in the BI.

Hi beachgirl86,

2 years ago we stayed at the Marriott Ko'Olina Beach Club. It was a little bit down from the JW. We just loved the resort. The pools were great. Especially for a little one. One of the pools is sand and zero depth, which is great. Our kids were 3 and 7 and they just loved the place.

The lagoon area as you know is wonderful for kids.

Hope that helps. Have a great time!

Thanks for more ideas! The only one I'm not sure about is Hapuna beach, because as much as my husband and I love it, it has always been full of waves the 3 times we've been to the BI.

Beachgirl86!! You did it!! Congratulations!!!!!!
I don't "visit" Fodors much now, so just saw your post. You and DH and BabyBeachBoy08...and dreams of your first family trip to Hawaii!!!

In Kauai, i recommend the Hyatt. I think you'vew been there? So you know there are lovely places in the pools for baby, magnificent grounds, and that man-made lagoon where babyand you can safeky wade(although beach shoes might be good--the sand is a bit rough if i recall right). they also rent little kayaks to row there.

Friends recently went to Kauai with their one yr old daughter. They started at Lae Nani condos in Kapaa--a lovely central location, right on the ocean. What's nice there for a young family, besides the condo lawn and pool, is that there is a boulder enclosed ocean area with gentle waves.

There is also Poipu Park Baby Beach, and a less known "baby beach " aera along the water in the north side of Kapaa. And in Kapaa,you're near Lydgate Beach, with its boulder-enclosed area , and great nearby playgrounds.

These same friends finished their trip at the Hyatt and couldnt say enough good things, about the property and their welcoming attitude toward them with the baby.

IMHO The BEST guidebook for Kauai that is oriented to families, is Lenore Horowitz's Kauai Underground Guide (I think that's the title). She writes very much with family-oriented viewpoint, love for the island, and has loads of recs for best family beaches.

I stayed at Ko Olina Beach Club on Oahu last September and think it'd be a wonderful place for baby! There are 4 (maybe 5?) man made lagoons that are lovely, and easy to swim or wade in. The grounds and pools at the Beach Club are much nicer than at the Ihilani Hotel, which is an easy walk along the lagoon-side path should you want to visit. And the construction at the Ko Olina Beach Club is supposed to be complete by 2009--including an additional, more elaborate pool. The interiors of the condos are beautiful. You may abe able to get a great deal through Marriott Vacations Club customer service, if you say you are interested in seeing a condo. The price saving may be worth 1.5 hours of your time--their presentation is apparently quite low key.

Hope this helps a little and again--thanks for sharing your wonderful news on the Forum!!!!!

I highly suggest a condo as opposed to renting a hotel room.

With a condo you'll have a full kitchen.

If they baby needs to go to sleep at 7PM you and hubby aren't forced to sit in the dark quietly.

CaliNurse: Great to hear from you :) Yes, we are very excited about our little baby boy, and of course, are already planning trips! Thanks so much for your suggestions. We have stayed at the Grand Hyatt Kauai twice and loved it, and it is certainly at the top of our list for family travel at some point in the next couple of years. My only hesitation is that our last 2 trips were to Kauai (in 2006 with Maui and in 2007 with BI), but I do love that hotel! And that's great info. about Ko'Olina. I've always heard about the lagoons there, but haven't visited that part of Oahu in the two times we've been there. It sounds wonderful!

Congratz bg86.

Kauai...Lydgate and Salt Pond come to mind.

Alohaaa Cali.((H))

Hi again, Beachgirl,

(And "Aloha" back atcha to da Kauai Kal! Many "Mahalo"s (-: )

Here's a number for info on Ko Olina for you, Mahuakine Beachgirl:

1-800-235-6618.

You could ask for anyone in Customer Servicce, but the very helpful lady I spoke with is Veronica, at
ext 2300 (they get paid partly on commission). If you are seeing this today, Sunday, she is there now.

It is $748 for 6 days,/5 nights, and that includes a Hertz rental car. It doesn't include the typically exorbitant parking fee (about $20/night, if i recall correctly).

You pay now, and then have 15 months to make reservations.

There is a nearby modern town , Kapolei, with Safeway, Long's, etc, where you can shop, and find realtively inexpensive restaurants. There's also a "shrimp truck" in Kapolei, in the Kaiser Clinic parking lot, in case you can't wait to make it up to the North Shore!

This is a high-rise condo, and it is defintely more resort-y, vs the rpivacy of a private condo such as one from VRBO. My info is from 10 month ago, so hopefully it's still accurate.
I loved the atmosphere there. They have a great resort"host" and a wonderfull, small scale luau (which you can easily see from the lobby, if you don't want to eat) called FiaFia. You can be "social" or you can have quiet times on the beach or strolling.

Feel free to email me for any more details or questions: [email protected]

Oops,Beachgirl86-- it's maKuakine, Mommy! Time to get back and refresh my admittedly minmal Hawaiian word knowledge.
Hugs to you, from Calinurse.

CaliNurse: Thank you again so much :) You are so sweet and helpful to look up all that info. for me, I can't tell you how much I appreciate it! Planning trips helps me keep my mind off waiting for the baby, ha-ha!

I would second Ke'e or Tunnels or Anini on Kauai. I wouldn't recommend Poipu but it was rough when I was there last summer and I wasn't aware that there was a "baby beach" there that's more protected or I would have been right in there with the babies!

South Shore Kauai tends to have high surf in the summer. I just returned last week from a stay in Poipu. Rough surf both there and at Salt Pond. Also very hot..perhaps not the safest nor most comfortable weather for baby.
If Kauai is your final choice, consider east or north shore for summer visit. I like east side. Lae Nani is a good suggestion. Also look at the new Waipouli Beach Resort luxury condos. Not sure of their pool situation, but close to Lydgate and the baby beach in Kapaa.

I'm far from an authority on the subject but other than a highly protected area like Lydgate, or a sandy bottom hotel pool area (e.g. Hyatt-Kaua`i, Grand Wailea-Maui, Waikoloa Marriott-Big Island) would share your concerns about a child near ocean waters and inquire if lifeguards would be present.
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/ap...ING01/80801027

Congratulations! We stayed at the JW Marriott Ko Olina last fall and the beach is very baby friendly. In fact our "little boys" - a teen and tween were bored since there was no wave action. We ended up taking several trips to the North Shore. I'd recommend staying at the Beach Club rather than the JW as it would be nice to have a separate room for a napping baby and a kitchen would be a big plus. The biggest downside to the Ko Olina area is that it is out of the way and there are very few restaurants except for those found in the hotels.

We stayed on Kauai (Poipu) the previous year and the water was very rough and choppy (including Lydgate) during our entire visit.