Brennecke Beach Trail

This is a big beach park.  There are large grassy areas with trees that are perfect to hammock in.  There are also many picnic tables.  The are two sides to the beach, with one side being very kid-friendly.   The waves can crash very hard into the rocks and create a lot of spray.  There are little tide pools to explore, but always be careful of incoming waves.

The outer reef at Kiahuna provides opportunities for advanced surfing. For a beginner-friendly experience, head east down the beach towards Kala Kai Point and you’ll see a mellow stretch of reef and sand on the inside. Chances are you'll see a bunch of longboards in the water - that's where you'll want to paddle out. Parking is available via a public parking lot and there's a bathroom and showe...

This easy-to-handle trail is a good one for the whole family. The trail starts from "Shipwrecks Beach", in front of the Grand Hyatt and follows the coastline for 2 miles to Maha'ulepu Beach. Along the way, you'll witness beautiful, rugged coastline and multiple lookouts over the ocean. This trail is fairly easy and flat. This beach typically has strong winds and shorebreak waves, so exercise ...

On the South Shore you can find the Spouting Horn. There's a small beach park with a great lookout where you can watch a blowhole spout a plume of thundering water into the air. This waterspout occurs whenever the waves are forced under the rocky shelf and up through a lava tube. The water sometimes hisses and roars. If the light is right, you may be able to catch a rainbow in the sea spray.Acc...

The shoreline of Glass Beach is covered with millions of brown, aqua, clear and blue sea glass pebbles, but also consists of other remnants from what looks to be a former salvage yard (do not walk barefoot in this area). Although that may be the case, there is a lot of beauty to be captured here, and it is often drier than other parts of the islands which is ideal for capturing a sunset. This...

There are lots of options for heli rides in Kauai, ranging from plush interiors with AC and noise canceling headphones, to deeply discounted, crowded rides, but my personal recommendation is to find a company that offers a doors off option (there are two options as of winter 2015/16). Not only will this let you get much better photos from above, but there is something pretty exhilarating about...