qzseattle

I am not sure if I have asked this question before but, for a long time, I have been undecided between choosing one of these islands for my vacation. I have never been to Hawaii and I think it is best to pick one island rather than trying to cover 2 or more in a single trip. I think that would be cheaper and make the trip more relaxed.

So, let me ask this. Which of these two islands is your favorite and why? Many people tell me that Kauai is more beautiful than Maui. Yet, most people I know have visited Maui instead of Kauai. All of my friends who have been to Hawaii have visited Maui but not Kauai. So, Maui seem to be more popular. I am just curious why is that?

For me, the quality of beaches is more important. I would want to go to clean, palm-fringed beaches with clear, aqua-marine water and lush backdrop. You know, the kind of beaches you see in post-cards and travel brochures. Apparently, both Maui and Kauai seem to meet the requirements.

I do not know how many chances I would get to go to Hawaii but when I do get one, I wouldnt want to curse myself for having made a bad choice. Thus, I am in need of your feedback! Thanks!

JohnD

I can't decide whether vanilla or chocolate is my favorite and the same analogy applies to Maui or Kaua`i.

I believe Kaua`i is where I have obtained my most postcard-like "palm-fringed" and .

On the other hand Maui just has so many things to do. The "Road to Hana" for example, a drive through the US's largest tropical rainforest with waterfall after waterfall. A drive up 10,000 feet past the clouds to the summit and peek inside a dormant volcano at MtHaleakala. Some of the best beach front resorts in the US with snorkeling and swimming steps away.
Maui Ocean Center for learning about what you see snorkeling, and explaining about those cetaceous wintertime visitors from up north.

I don't think you can go wrong with either though in winter months the beautiful north shore of Kaua`i can have rough surf, so the southern, Poipu area (or central Lihue area-to go N or S) for example would make more sense.

pdxgirl

Many people choose Maui over Kaua'i because Maui has a bit more going on in terms of nightlife and shopping. Kaua'i still has a relatively rural, small town feel and there is not much going on in the way of nightlife. I don't go to Hawaii to shop or party, so I choose Kaua'i. It's the most beautiful place I have ever been.

regalada

Hi: Having been to Maui, Big Island and Kauai, if I had to pick just one I would choose Maui. As someone said above, Maui has a bit of everything: Haleakala, beautiful beaches, the best lu'au, the road to Hana, good shopping in Lahaina. It's also small enough to be able to see a lot without having to drive long distances like in the Big Island. It is not easy to pick since we loved all three islands for different reasons but my boyfriend and I agree that Maui has it all.

Kal

Another vote for Maui.

On Kauai:
Nothing to do.
No nightlife.
Expensive.
Always rains.
No shopping.

Hey gang...I miss anything?

JohnD

Yup!!!
How many more days?

Kal

Aloooohaaaa JD,
117 but who's countin'?

gyppielou

yup! most of the mediocre beaches in Kaui are not swimmable in the winter months...you could spend you whole vacation barely getting a toe in.......

JohnD

Only 275 days until that book of 5 Aloha pass coupons expires!

Kal

g'lou,
You are REALLY gettin' the hang of it, Sistah! ><

JD, 275! That's my weight right now! I know it's smooth sailing when it's under my weight!

freeny

My wife and I have been to Kauai twice and once to Maui, always in November. Kauai IMHO is more scenic no matter where you are on the island. Maui, on the other hand, is not as scenic near the resorts. The road to Hana is another story, VERY SCENIC. The beaches seem to be calmer on the shores of Maui than on Kauai as the North Shore beaches were rough. I prefer the Kauai beaches since they are not crowded and are very scenic (especially Ke'e Beach from the Kalalau trail).

The nightlife on Kauai is virtually non-existant other than resort bars and such while Maui has much to do, especially near the resorts. Both islands do offer the same types of daytime activities(ocean tours, helicopter rides, surf lessons, deep sea fishing) but Maui offers more variety. If your looking for a relaxing vacation of hanging out on various beaches but not worried about a lack of nightlife, choose Kauai. It's also a smaller island which allowed my wife and I to visit nearly every beach on the island.
You cannot go wrong regardless of your choice. Enjoy!

Shar

Been to most of the islands and hands down, I would go to Kauai over any of the others. It is old Hawaii, lush, green, not commercial, low rise not high rise hotels and condos, wonderful beaches and of the 10 times we have been to Kauai, we have never been rained out. And, they do have a night life - not Oahu style but it is there. I'm on the plane Tuesday for trip #11.

Rusty

Night life on Kauai? Tell us about a few of the hot night spots that are open past midnight? You are lucky if you can get a drink after 10 pm on Kauai.

gyppielou

Ah Bruddah Kal,
Dontcha know? G'Lou is looking for a crib. Gotto protect your own....the future is at hand...

amelie

Kauai definitely had the better beaches, even the ocean water was prettier (I think I heard because of less pollution). It felt like true Hawaii to me, and is not to be missed. That said, I liked Maui slighly more. I think that has to do with the fact that we stayed in a glorious resort and went there first (on Kauai we stayed in a condo). So Maui felt more luxerious to me, and I felt more pampered.

Like everyone said though, you can't go wrong with either.

dargen430

I have been to Maui twice and Kauai once. I love both islands, but if I had to choose just one I would go to Maui as well. Although Kauai is more beautiful, Maui just has more options on things to do.

Cornelius15

I would say Kaua'i because of its
strong Hawaiian feel. and ancient hula.
but to get more bang for the buck
Maui at west side one can see Moloka'i
and Lana'i and south maui
Kaho'olawe and east maui one could
see the big island.

Knowing

We were in Kauai in February. This was our first Hawaiian trip in ten years and our first to Kauai. I had so many people saying to me that there were no restaurants there and they knew this because so many other people had told them that! My own parents who have been to a number of the islands-although not Kauai pretty much told me that it was VERY remote. Thank God for the Kauai lovers on this board because they smoothed my fears. Our Kauai vacation will always be the most nostalgic we've ever taken. We found plenty of restaurants, including the Barbecue Inn in Lihue. For about $7.00, we got a fruit cup of the best fruit I've ever had in my life, a huge sandwich, iced tea and when we were done, our waitress said, "Let me go back and see what's in the kitchen for dessert". Wow! We were there for fourteen days and didn't even get halfway through our list of places to eat and still never saw everything.

Melissajoy

I fell in love with Kaui when we took a family vacation there several years ago. It's beautiful, very green on the north side, and it's WONDERFUL that it's not all-built-up.

There was plenty for us to do. It depends on what you like! If you like hiking, picturesque beaches, quaint little shopping areas, snorkeling, nature, and lots of good restaurants with outdoor seating in lovely locations, fun restaurants (not stuffy), that's what we found in Kaui. We also saw our first luau.

Now I'm going to Maui with my husband because he wants to see Maui for our wedding anniversary and his 50th birthday. Seeing pictures of Maui, I can tell you that Maui is much more built-up than kaui. This means more night life, of course, but it also means more "city stuff", like high-rise hotels, traffic lights, concrete, etc.

Kaui is cute, gorgeous, and quaint. It's my favorite island, and I've been to the Caribbean as well, to the US Virgin Islands, St. Lucia, and Dominica. I think from what I can tell about Maui that it will be exciting.

People's reaction to Kaui depends on their personality and loves and dislikes...We loved Kaui, but my travel agent said for her, there wasn't much to do!!! But you see, she probably doesn't like hiking, snorkeling, etc., because we found plenty to do every day. My husband (biologist) loved examining the wildlife all around kaui...there are these lizards (geckos? I forget what they are called) everywhere. They are really cute and fascinating.

What I loved about Kaui is that everywhere you went you still felt like you were in a unique place, a tropical island...there weren't any big-city areas that looked like the mainland. they have laws in Kaui limiting building heights, and that really creates a wonderful cute tropical island look.

heidijo

We visited Maui last October. We just got back from Kauai yesterday. We had a great time in Kauai, very relaxing. However, if I were to go back I would go back to Maui. We stayed on Kaanapali beach in Maui where we could walk to shops & restaurants. Maybe it was just us but it seemed like the people were friendlier in Maui. More activities to pick from in Maui, or you can just hang out at the beach. If you are really into hiking and nature then you would love Kauai. It's a beautiful island but for what we like to do Maui is the island for us.