11 Best Hotels in Kauai, Hawaii

A low-rise, Hawaii-plantation-style design gives this 6-acre beachfront property a pleasant relaxed feeling; the guest rooms are spread over eight three-story buildings, each with a lanai that looks out on lovely green lawns. The rooms are small, with showers and tubs, Wi-Fi, mini-refrigerators, coffeemakers, and microwaves. They are available oceanfront or with garden or ocean views. A free-form pool sits next to a golden-sand beach that's perfect for a quiet stroll, and there's a poolside bar and coffee shop on-site. It's located across the street from Coconut Marketplace, with its many shops and restaurant.

Perched on a rocky point above the pounding surf—perfect for whale- or turtle-watching—these three low-rise buildings have individually owned condos with full kitchens and washer-dryers. All condos have large windows, and many have bedrooms on the ocean side; each unit either shares a sundeck or has its own lanai. There's an oceanside pool, and weddings are sometimes staged on a little lawn beside the sea. A sandy swimming beach is a 10-minute walk away.

Nestled alongside Wailua Bay and the Wailua River, this low-key low-rise chain hotel is a convenient place to stay as it's within walking distance of Lydgate Beach, with its lifeguard and lawns, and also close to shops and a variety of restaurants. Rooms and suites, in two wings with a choice of beach, mountain, or ocean views, have mini- or full-size refrigerators, microwaves, and coffeemakers; two-bedroom cottages are also available. Complimentary Wi-Fi and cable TV are included, and the hotel has a modest fitness room, a business center, meeting rooms, and a swimming pool. The resort fee includes yoga classes, a cultural sunrise ceremony, and daily two-hour bike rental.

This longtime Kauai condo project consists of 42 plantation-style low-rise buildings with individually owned one- and two-bedroom units set on grassy fields leading to a lovely beach. The units vary in style, but all are clean, have lanai, and get lots of ocean breezes. Green-thumb visitors will enjoy wandering the Moir orchid and cacti gardens that surround the sugar plantation manager's home, which now houses the front office. Guests have complimentary access to the Poipu Beach Athletic Club, with its restaurant, pool, and fitness classes just across the way.

Ruling Hawaiian chiefs once returned from ocean voyages to this spot, now host to comfortable condominiums, and OUTRIGGER has created attractive plant, water, and rock features. The one- and two-bedroom condominium units are all individually owned, so some are nicer than others. They all have a full kitchen and a lanai. Though there's generally no air-conditioning, there's typically a good breeze. The landscaped grounds include lighted tennis courts and a large pool. The beach is swimmable, and the property is near shops, restaurants, and a coastal walking and biking path. There is a three-night minimum stay.

This plantation-style hotel provides a relaxing, upscale oceanfront experience close to the airport, but without the noise. The rooms are extremely comfortable with a casual tropical theme, and the oceanfront grounds are beautifully landscaped. Four pools with fun features like slides, sand bottoms, and waterfalls are a highlight, as are the torch-lighting ceremony and the reasonably good Naupaka Terrace Restaurant. The beach fronts a rocky ocean unsuitable for swimming, but it's perfect for a long stroll.

Set down within an extinct volcanic crater known as Piha ke Akua, or "Place of the Gods," these two-bedroom condominium units in South Pacific–style townhomes are fairly spacious, with large windows, high ceilings, and full kitchens (some have air-conditioning). It's family friendly and one of the best-priced properties with ocean and beach proximity; Keoneloa Bay (Shipwreck Beach) is a great spot for family holiday card photos.

The condos here—many with cathedral ceilings and all with large furnished lanai and big windows overlooking the lawns—give the 85-acre development the feeling of a quiet retreat inside and out. All condos—one- to four-bedroom units, as well as two-level units with sleeping lofts—are furnished with full kitchens. Villas have air-conditioning and their own gym. Walking paths connect eight distinct resort zones to both Brennecke's and Shipwreck Beaches, but to swim or snorkel safely, walk the extra 100 yards past Brennecke's to reach calmer Poipu Beach. The eight-court tennis club is well established, offers pro lessons, and hosts tournaments.  As one of the largest condo developments in the area, Poipu Kai has a wide variety of unit styles and sizes, and multiple rental agencies. The one- and two-bedroom units offered by Aqua Aston are a good value.

White-frame exteriors and double-pitched roofs complement the tropical landscaping at this resort, which offers spacious one- and two-bedroom condo units—with full kitchens, bedroom air-conditioning, entertainment centers, and garden or ocean views—that are minutes from Poipu's restaurants and across the street from a nice beach. Four deluxe 2,600-square-foot penthouse suites have enormous lanai, private elevators, and cathedral ceilings. You can mingle at the Friday coffee hour held beside the ocean-view gated pool, or play tennis or pickleball. Fresh seasonings are ready to be picked from the herb garden to go with your poolside or courtside barbecue. In winter you can whale-watch as you cook.

Plumeria, ti, and other tropical foliage create a lush landscape for this small resort, which rents a four-bedroom/four-bath house and nine one- and two-bedroom cottage apartments. All cottage units have wood floors, full kitchens, laundry access, and are decorated in tropical shades. The cheerful 1930s plantation home set in a century-old plumeria grove has four bedrooms with private baths and can be operated as four bed-and-breakfast suites.

One of the few true oceanfront properties on Kauai, this popular hotel sits on a ribbon of sand in Kapaa and has bright spacious rooms that face the ocean, garden, coconut grove, or pool. Rooms include a coffeemaker, free Wi-Fi, and HDTV, and there's a gift shop, fitness center, coffee shop, juice bar, and three restaurants on-site. Each oceanfront room has a large lanai. The 11-acre site has always been desirable, nestled as it is among ancient coconut groves and close to a coastal bike and walking path, shops, restaurants, and the ocean. Cultural activities include hula, lei-making, and a luau.