Mitch

Hyatt and Princeville are the 2 best hotels on Kauai. You can't go wrong either way. I prefer the Hyatt. Princeville has an awesome view of the Napali Coast but it rains too much on that side of the island. Weather is much better on the Hyatt side and it feels more Hawaiian and the lazy river pool is great.

MMN

Josie - what are you looking for in a hotel/honeymoon?

We didn't want to drive around much so we stayed on the East Coast at the Radisson (135/night oceanview) and loved it. Of course the rooms there were pretty standard so maybe you're looking for more than that - but the grounds were gorgeous and the price was GREAT!

We were able to drive North and South easily - 45 min to either shore.
My advice would be to try and plan what you would like to see while you're there - and see if either hotel looks like it might be a more convenient base. You don't want to spend your entire honeymoon in a car.

We saw most of the island while we were there - on our honeymoon also. We had lunch at the Princeville. It was a gorgeous hotel with incredible views. The pools was really nice, although small - yet somehow it didn't seem crowded - we were surprised about that. We LOVED the North Shore beaches - Anini, Tunnels, Hideaways, etc. We did most of our snorkeling there - right off the beach. And we showed North Shore pictures to my brother who had stayed at the Hyatt but didn't drive around - and he said he didn't know Kauai had such pretty spots.

Now, the South & East Shores we found we preferred for dining. We LOVED the Beach House (Poipu), Duke's (Lihue) and also ate at Keoki's (Poipu) which was pretty good. Roy's in supposed to be another great restaurant in Poipu that we didn't check out. (Of course, there are also good restaurants North - Cafe Hanalei, Bali Hai..but we found the South Shore's more to our liking) We had appetizers at Tidepools at the Hyatt and my husband liked that hotel b/c it had a tropical/Hawaiian feel to it. And the pools looked great! We did meet a couple there who said they felt like they had to drive far for a lot of their excursions. My brother spent most of his Hyatt trip at the resort & golf course and loved it for that.

Well, I'll stop rambling now. Ask any questions you like. Like I said, which hotel (I think) depends on what you're looking to do....or not do. We really preferred the East Coast and the convenience - Marriott would offer that same location. B/c we wanted to explore. But if you want more luxury & plan to spend a lot of time at the resort than I think Princeville/North was a prettier spot with better beaches. Hyatt/South Shore was a better dining spot with more elaborate pools. That's just my opinion.

If I went back to Kauai, I would happily stay at the Radisson again - or the Marriott.

bryan

I stayed at the Princeville for 5 days last November for my honeymoon and it was fantastic! We were concerned about the infamous rainy north shore, but other than some late afternoon clouds and one 5 minute sun shower, the weather was perfect.

The service was perfect as well. The hotel itself and the views were gorgeous and the food was excellent: best buffet brunch ever!

Our room (we upgraded to a junior suite) was fantastic, don't use those pictures as any type of guide. It was large and comfortable and the bathroom was very nice, with a huge window overlooking the bay that clouded for privacy with the push of a button.

We took a half day to drive down to the south shore to check out the Hyatt. This also is a great property and 'feels' more Hawaiian, but it felt too much to me like a huge family resort. There are water slides, a beach volleyball game going on, bands playing - all wonderful things, but not what I was looking for in my honeymoon. I would never take kids to Princeville, that's what the Hyatt is for. Princeville was absolutely perfect for a romantic honeymoon.

Casey

Princeville is the best!!!!! We stayed there for eight nights at the beginning of June for our honeymoon and it was utterly, completely incredible! Some people say that the hotel doesn't feel "Hawaiian". Well, I now live in Hawaii (since after my honeymoon) and have been to all of the islands and I can tell you that there is no one typical Hawaiian architecture. What is Hawaiian is incredible scenery and it doesn't get any better than the scenery at the Princeville. I cried when I first looked out of the enormous picture windows all along the entire length of my room and saw the view of the Na Pali coast. The room was fantastic and the bathrooms with their magic windows was really cool for a honeymoon! The Hyatt is typical, anywhere in the world resort, with lots of kids and the beach is nothing special. In May you will have good weather at the Princeville and will be so happy there.

jessie

I stayed at the Princeville last December and loved it. Those photos are horrible. Ignore them. It's a very pretty and romantic hotel. The grounds and pools are better at the Hyatt (haven't seen the rooms), but there seemed to be a lot of kids around. Not so honeymoony.

jo

We swam at a beach right in front of the Hyatt. It was great-lovely lagoon swimming pool, open lobby, seemed more friendly to me than Princeville.