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Kauai, HI
Destination Kauai by Joanne Epstein
The St Regis Princeville Resort
The
Grand Hyatt Resort and Spa Kuaui
Marriott Resort and Beach
Club,
Kauai
Living in South Florida allows us the
benefit of traveling to the Bahamas or Caribbean
Islands just about anytime we’d like. But a
change can be quite a delightful surprise.
Specifically, Hawaii and the island of Kauai,
nicknamed “The Garden Island”. This island name
was chosen because of it’s open spaces and
tranquil nature, as well as the gentleness of
the Hawaii People.
Our trip included visits to three of the top
hotels of the Island. The Princeville Resort;
soon to be a St. Regis, The Grand Hyatt Kuaui
and The Kuaui Resort Marriott.
After arriving in the Lihu’e Airport in Kauai,
after a 21 hour flight, due to delays from the
Earthquake the previous day, we took a beautiful
45 minute drive up the eastern coast of the
island passing a tropical paradise of majestic
mountains, open pastures, quaint villages and
beautiful Hanalei Bay on our way to the
Princeville Resort.
The entrance to this 5 Star
Hotel greets you with a large infinity pool and
grand lobby that brings a feeling of outside
inside. Then, bellmen draped us with Lei’s of
Orchids to begin our Hawaiian experience. The
extremely large tropically appointed lobby was
done in a Mediterranean style with granite and
marble floors, large colorfully painted wall
hangings of this tropical paradise, comfortable
furnishings, along with many Hawaiian staff
members dedicating themselves to our every need.
Built in 1985, situated as the focal point of
this 9,000 acre resort community, this 252 room
Luxury Hotel with 51 suites, is protected by the
mountains of Bali Hai and the Pacific Ocean.
There are four restaurants and lounges for you
to enjoy gourmet dining at the end of your day.
The Princeville also offers meeting and banquet
facilities, a signature - infinity designed
swimming pool that appears to be part of the
Pacific Ocean, three whirlpool spas and a
fitness center.
The guest rooms are very spacious and tastefully
decorated with vibrant colors of Hawaiian
flowers. There is complimentary Hawaiian coffee
and tea, bedside control panels on both sides of
your bed for your lighting and air conditioning,
a Sony DVD player/clock radio equipped with a CD
of Hawaiian Music, along with a complimentary
bottle of Malie Mist aromatherapy of coconuts
and pineapples fragrance to enhance your sensory
experience. A Lodgenet Movie System separates
the bedroom from the living room and dining
area,
One of the most unusual appointments is the
signature privacy window in most rooms that
electronically changes to allow for view or
opaqueness. In our suite, the window was located
in the large shower but can vary depending on
your rooms location. The bathrooms also include
thick, soft luxurious towels, bathrobes and
slippers along with Aveda bath products.
Café Hanalei over looking the Bali Mountains was
our first stop in the morning for a relaxing
breakfast, which can include a seafood buffet
with indoor and outdoor dining.
Evening dining can be a romantic Dinner by the
Sea, with a five course gourmet menu and a
dedicated staff to set the stage for a magical
evening.
Wedding packages are available for the new bride
and groom as well as for those interested in
renewing their vows on the Bay overlooking Bali
Hai. The Princeville Resort offers a daily
visiting Artisian program to demonstrate the
culture of this Island as well as children
programs to teach local arts and crafts.
The hotel’s beach is the entrance to some of the
finest snorkeling and surfing on the island. You
might also choose to have a relaxing massage
right down on the beach. What a feeling hearing
all those huge waves crashing against the large
rocks, while you are made to feel like there is
no one else on earth but you.
Renovations are expected to begin in 2007 and
completed in 2008 to transpose this already
magnificent facility into a St. Regis Resort
which will also include a new-state-of-the art
Spa facility.
The Garden Island Helicopter Tour is
breathtaking. This is the only way to really see
this island up close, since more of the island
is left in its’ natural state. Every year, more
than 300,000 people take a Helicopter tour of
the island to see the rugged terrain and endless
waterfalls.
The Waimea Canyon, also known as the Grand
Canyon of the Pacific, are sculpted cliffs over
4,000 feet deep. We ascended into many parts of
the Napoli Coastline and saw the location where
“Jurassic Park” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark”
were filmed. Above it all is Mt. Wai’ale’ale’, a
5,148 foot extinct mountain volcano seen from
all over the island. It is known as the wettest
spot on earth with a rainfall of 476 inches a
year. Kuaui remains mostly untouched with its
steep cloud caped canyons and mountain valleys.
The nearby Village of Hanalei, features stories
which adds to its’ charm, as the classic movie,
“South Pacific” was filmed here on Bali
Mountain, named by the movie studio, but it
seems that the letter “B” isn’t even part of the
Hawaiian language. One of the beaches that can
only be reached by boat or air is where Mitzie
Gaynor sang “I want to wash that man right out
of my hair”. Peter, Paul and Mary also left
their mark in the town of Hanalei.
It’s reported that the shape of the mountains
surrounding Hanalei Bay is where the song “Puff
the Magic Dragon” was written and when the
guides point out this area, you can see the
dragon. Many famous faces have homes in this
quiet paradise.
Pierce Brosman is said to frequent one of the
best fish and seafood restaurants on the Hanalei
River called The Dolphin.
A tour of the Na’ Aina Kai , (“Land by the Sea”
in Hawaiian), Botanical Gardens was our next
stop. The history of this island begins with
some of the long time residents as Joyce and Ed
Doty. Their property consists of 240 acres of 13
different styles of gardens, a hardwood
plantation, meadow canyons, a pristine secluded
beach, and many different tropical varieties of
flowers and foliage.
Once a private estate that transformed itself
over 20 years, it was once devoted to sugar cane
and cattle grazing. These gardens now feature
more than 70 bronze sculptures that is one of
the Nations’ largest collections.
Some tourists believe that taking a small rock
of Hawaii is a great souvenir to take back with
them, but legend has it that if you take a rock
from these islands, you will have very bad luck
forever, which is why the Post Offices of Hawaii
receive many packages daily filled with rocks
from those tourists that experienced this
so-called myth.
Next we were off to
The Grand Hyatt Resort and
Spa with 50 immaculately-landscaped oceanfront
acres. Entering the lobby brings you to the
Islands of Hawaii, along with their open air
tropical landscape. This massive resort consists
of 602 rooms, 70 percent of which are ocean-view
and the rest are lagoon, garden or mountain
views.
Each room features plantation style furnishings,
a private lania, a separate sitting area, a
ceiling fan, Hawaiian coffee to wake up to and
bathrooms filled orchids spread around all the
delightful samples previewing what’s ahead in
the Spa.
The resort is built on a hillside overlooking
beautiful Keoneloa Bay and according to the
building codes of Kauai, no one is allowed to
build a structure taller than the tallest
coconut tree. Therefore, the layering of this
resort within this mountain range adds to it
ambience. The view from our room was exquisite.
A pond below was stocked with Koi and two swans.
White plumeria trees heavily spotted the
landscape, along with many coconut trees,
different varieties of bromiliads, ginger and
Anthiryums, to mention a few. A large lagoon
with many waterfalls surrounding the back of the
resort is home to Tidepools, one of their many
restaurants. This open air restaurant has
thatched roofs, with the romantic ambiance
expected in a Hawaiian setting. The food is
beyond our expectations, featuring some of the
finest prepared fish and seafood dishes ever
experienced. Chop sticks are offered at most of
the restaurants that we visited.
For our morning breakfast, you can choose to
dine at the Llima Terrace off the main lobby
overlooking the grounds and ocean views, pool
side for a light choice or one of my favorites,
a picnic on the beach. Your picnic basket is
brought to your room in the morning as a
delightful continental surprise.
The tiered pool features a waterslide that takes
you 150 feet down a slide into the next large
pool with lagoon bars and several Jacuzzi’s. You
might decide you’d rather relax in the five acre
saltwater lagoon. As you enter the lagoon, you
feel as if you are on a private beach that forms
this completely natural lagoon where you can
have a secluded swim or float on a raft in the
meandering waters that stretches the length of
the back of the property. There you can drift
through a tropical oasis of cascading
waterfalls, rocks and tropical foliage.
The Grand Hyatt also offers the Anara Spa. The
new 25,000 square foot spa offers a New Age
Restorative approach to cleansing your mind,
body and spirit. Spa activities and treatments
take place in peaceful indoor/outdoor facilities
and treatments rooms capitalizing on nature. You
can enjoy the latest unique Hawaiian therapies
for any of your spa treatments. There are eight
massage rooms, facial rooms, herbal wrap rooms,
loofiah rooms whirlpools, Jacuzzi’s and a 25
yard lap pool, not to mention a twelve head
Swiss shower, a open air lava rock shower
garden, steam rooms, sauna, beauty salon and
much more for your total and complete spa
experience.
For all the golfers, you can’t beat the
challenge of the adjacent Poipu Bay Resort Golf
Course. A 210 acre links style golf course and
driving range designed by Robert Trent Jones,
Jr., surrounds the hotel property and borders
the ocean. The golf facility also includes a
21,000 square foot clubhouse featuring a pro
shop, locker room facilities, club storage,
snack bar, restaurant and lounge. Ranked as one
of the top courses in Hawaii and the U.S., Poipu
Bay has been host to the PGA Grand Slam of Golf
since 1994, The Masters, U.S. Open, British Open
and the PGA Championship will compete this year
on November 21 and 22.
You never know who you might run into on this
famous course. So bring your best clubs and your
experience will be remembered for years to come.
There are many different Wedding packages
available at the Grand Hyatt. You may select the
Garden Gazebo Wedding site or choose from a
quiet Wedding for two on the beach, to an
elaborate Wedding of 1,000 quests, with
professional wedding planners available to
assist with all your plans.
Another experience you may enjoy Zodiac Rafting,
a great adventure through the best Kauai rivers.
You also might like to mountain bike on a guided
tour to the water falls, or take a boat ride out
to a special snorkel or diving site.
After all that hard day of golfing, shopping or
other activities, a relaxing river boat ride on
the Wailua River could be just what you need.
This open-air boat comes equipped with its’ own
entertainment of Hawaiian musicians and Hula
Girls. A tour along the river shows us where the
movies that were supposedly made in Africa
really took place.
That evening we were ready for our first Lu’au
Grand Hyatt style. The show was spectacular with
all the colorful costumes and Hawaiian music.
While dining from their elaborate buffet which
included pork from the pig that they roasted,
steak, many salads, all the fresh native fruit
and Poi, which is a staple of the Hawaiian
people and is their starch that they eat at
every meal. The Poi comes from the Taro Plants
that cover many acres in Kauai. In the movie “To
End all Wars”, the Taro fields were used with
the mountains in the background to depict the
rice fields in Asia.
With all this mentioning of movies, the Hawaiian
Movie Tour is a must. There have been over 60
movies that were made in Kauai. To mention a few
others, besides my favorite “South Pacific”,
there was “Honeymoon in Vegas”, “Outbreak”,
“Lilo and Stitch”, “Donavan’s Reef”,
“Dragonfly”, “The Amazing Race”, “Baywatch”
“Hawaii”, “Mighty Joe Young”, “Six Days - Seven
Nights”, “Lord of the Flies”, “The Thorn Birds”,
“Outbreak” and many more. We toured the beach
where “Gilligan’s Island” filmed its’ first
episode. Sylvester Stallone built a house on
this secluded beach. He was a big supporter of
local sports on the island for many years, but
since has sold the home that he originally built
for his mother. We continued with a tour of Coco
Palms Resort, now closed, where Elvis filmed the
classic “Blue Hawaii” and spent his honeymoon.
Numerous other films were made here, including
the original “Fantasy Island” series. The resort
is in the process of finally being restored to
its’ original luster, so at this time the
Hawaiian Movie Tour Co. and their guests are the
only ones allowed to visit.
Kilohana is Kauai’s legendary Plantation Estate.
In the 1930’s sugar was in it’s heyday in Kauai.
So Gaylord Wilcox decided to build his dream
home and brought the best architect, Mark Potter
who was renowned for his Diamond Head Homes
along with richly crafted woods from San
Francisco, the Orient and Hawaii to help create
his island mansion. He intended to have the most
expensive home ever built in Kauai with over
15,000 square feet.
Kilohana was the center of a 26,000 sugar tract
and since 1888 has served as the family
homestead for many generations. The 35 acres of
grounds offers not only beautiful tropical
gardens of native and imported flora, but also a
working farm with century old cottages.
Today Kilohana has been restored to its’
original elegance and has become one of the
finest dining establishments in Kauai, offering
a setting for candlelight dinners to romantic
weddings for up to 800 people.
The horse drawn carriages can escort you through
this tranquil estate, which only adds to its’
ambience.
Our last stop was
Kauai’s Marriott Resort and
Beach Club on the south side of the island,
nestled within the 800 acres of the Kauai
Lagoons Resort. This facility encompasses a mix
of a world class hotel and luxurious villas as
part of the Marriott Vacation Club
International.
All 356 rooms including 11 suites include the
new “Revive” bed and linen collection, with
their famous two to four inch mattress toppers
and are furnished in a beautiful island motif.
The Kauai’s Marriott Resort and Beach Club is
home to Hawaii’s largest heated swimming pool
with 26,000 square feet in a scalloped shape,
with mosaic tiles in a design reminiscent of the
Hearst Castle pool at San Simeon.
The hotel also features a 2,500 square foot
Fitness and Aerobics Center with state of the
art equipment.
There are eight large meeting rooms, along with
60,000 square feet of outdoor meeting space.
A ballroom of 15,552 square feet can be divided
into three separate rooms for Weddings or other
events.
Weddings are a major part of the ambience of
this hotel. They can be planned as quiet or as
elaborate as you wish. Besides the ballroom you
might choose the Beach, by the pool or
an outdoor wedding and reception in a covered
lanai with high ceilings, beautiful columns, and
furniture and paintings on the walls that make
you feel as if you are indoors, encompassing
this beautiful tropical setting.
With the beach at its’ backdoor, the guests have
the luxury of enjoying extensive water
activities which extend from Dukes Canoe Club to
the Luau Gardens. Snorkeling, sailing, boogie
boarding, surfing and even water bicycles, as
well as the Kalapaki Kids Club are available, so
parents can enjoy their time alone as well as
the children.
The Kauai’s Lagoons Gold and Racquet Club
include the Kiele and Mokihana courses that
offer 36 spectacular holes of world class golf
in a picturesque oceanfront setting. Both
courses are designed by Jack Nicklaus.
The tennis complex includes a lighted stadium
court that seats 612 for tournament or
exhibition play.
Kauai is a dream come true with memories of this
Garden Isle to be a part of you forever. |
Watch Barry Epstein's
live tv show weekly on wrpbitv.com.
Barry R. Epstein, President,
West Boca Leaders
Founder, West Boca Chamber of Commerce
Luxury Chamber of Commerce - South Florida
Contributing writer for
Jewish Journal - Florida
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