10 Things You’ll Want While Traveling in Kauai

To give you an overview of our recent trip to the garden island of Kauai, I’ve compiled a list of 10 things one would need to bring from home in order to make their trip most complete and comfortable.  Sure, some of these comforts of home might seem obvious, but you’ll also get the chance to see some of the spectacular backdrops we enjoyed from our too-short week long stay.

1. Sunscreen.  At the top of the list, and coming from the girl who burned her back lifeguarding at an indoor pool.  Okay, I was sitting by a door the was cracked open a bit, but still! Who gets sunburned at an indoor pool? Me.  Protecting your skin anywhere, even in gray Seattle, is important, but especially crucial in Kauai where the sun is very intense.

2. Raincoat. Funny that a raincoat comes right after sunscreen, but we were happy to have these around in the event of a seemingly random shower.  The showers never lasted long for us, but they did happen.  Depending on the time of year, and area of the island you are staying, you may need them even more.  It was also nice to just have a light jacket around for the evenings when the sun goes down as fast as it came up, leaving us a little chilly (relative to the perfect daytime conditions).

3. Earplugs.  Kauai has some remarkable local birds.  The most abundant being “The Moa” or “Red Jungle Fowl” or this one you might have heard of: “Rooster”.  The locals don’t think they are too smart as they tend to crow at all hours of the day, and night, but most notably for us at 4:30 AM!  For most, earplugs are a must if you don’t want to be bothered by the local alarm clocks.

4. Swimsuit.  Yes, we did our far share of swimming while on Kauai.  It was actually a good idea to bring two suits so we had backup while the other took a break get a little cleaned up and dry.  Our favorite place to swim was at Baby Beach in Kappa’a.  Mostly because all we had to do was walk out our door to get there, but also because it was ideal for Bergen.  With a rock wall keeping the surf at bay, it was like swimming in a beautifully calm ocean wading pool.

5. Hat. Our poor little guy is still working on getting some hair at 15 months old, so we had to be extra careful in protecting his creamy white noggin.  Hats also kept the sun out of our eyes, shaded our faces from more burning, and came in handy during those funny rain showers.  I also liked throwing a big hat over my not-so-pretty beach hair.

6. Camera + Case. Another DUH! During our 7-day stay, I could not stop snapping photos.  Most were snapped using my regular camera that was strapped to me {it seemed} at all times, a few here and there using my ipod’s camera so that I could post and email quickly to friends and family. We ran into some serious photographers on our adventures.  Tripods, extra gadgets, and all.  I like lingering around them because sometimes they spot things I am not likely to notice with a little toddler waddling around at my feet.

7. Water Bottle. Bergen’s liquid intake skyrocketed during our trip.  Even back in Seattle it seems like he’s still on his Kauai liquid kick.  Good instincts that boy has, and we always had bottle full of water (or two) at the ready for him.  We always make sure to extra hydrate when we travel, and add the heat that we aren’t used to, it becomes doubly important.

8. Sturdy Sandals.  With all the beach time, flip flops might seem like the go-to shoe choice, but I was happy that I had my chacos.  I still had the luxury of an open-toed shoe, but I also hiked 4 miles with a baby on my back with no problems.  Keens (Slaed’s choice) or Merrill, whatever brand you like, a sturdy sandal covers you in so many Kauai activities.

9. Sunglasses. Another item we rarely took off. If only we could find a pair that Bergen would keep on his face, I think he would really see the benefit too!

10. Your Appetite.  They sure do like to feed you in Kauai! From the luau we checked out, to breakfasts spots, to the traditional plated lunch, we were not lacking in the food department.  In fact, many of lunches were just leftovers from breakfast.

Have you travel to Kauai, or one of the other Hawaiian islands? What were you glad to have with you from home?

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