Located on Kauai's Coconut Coast, Kapaa is a small town north of Lihue and south of Princeville. It provides easy access to some of the best golfing on Kauai (at Princeville and at the Marriott in Lihue), has value hotels, a small shopping area and some great local food. The beaches in the area are not among the most scenic on the island, but do offer unique opportunities.
Coconut Marketplace
Comprised of about 70 shops and vendors, Coconut Marketplace is an outdoor bazaar and shopping area that includes a movie theater. On weekend nights, there is often live music that you can enjoy while eating a gourmet ice cream from Lappert's. The marketplace is laid out with stall vendors in the middle, surrounded and brick-and-mortar shops. You'll find everything from locally made soaps and candles to clothes to Hawaiian music.
Coconut Marketplace
4-484 Kuhio Highway
Kapaa, HI 96746
808-822-3641
Lappert's Ice Cream
484 Kuhio Highway
Kapaa, HI 96746
808-822-0744
www.lappertshawaii.com
Food
Kapaa isn't a gourmet center, but it is does have a few local dining institutions. Eggbert's Family Specialty Restaurant in the Coconut Marketplace is a local favorite and has 150 omelets as well as banana pancakes, and you can have breakfast until 3 p.m. The restaurant has been around for more than 30 years. In town, the Kapaa Kountry Kitchen is kind of like a local Cracker Barrel -- besides serving up comfort food, there is a small shop with antiques and tourist items. The food is great and there's lots of it.
Eggbert's Family Specialty Restaurant
4-484 Kuhio Highway
Kapaa, HI 96746
808-822-3787
Kapaa Kountry Kitchen
1485 Kuhio Highway
Kapaa, HI 96746
808-822-3511
Beaches
Donkey Beach to the north and Lydgate State Park to the south are the best beaches close to Kapaa. Due to its fairly remote location (about a half-mile hike off the highway just past mile marker 11), you may find people sunbathing au natural at Donkey Beach. The surf here is rough, but it is a meeting point for good surfers. Lydgate State Park is a very popular beach, easily visible from the street, with plenty of parking. It features a protected swimming lagoon for kids and offers some snorkeling opportunities. On calm days, the swimming is good, but outside of the lagoon is not a snorkeling spot. Because it is a state park, you'll find a bath house, picnic tables and trash cans.
About The Author
Jill Dorson is a professional journalist who covered sports for nearly 20 years. A passionate golfer and traveler, Jill has covered professional and college golf, the NFL and everything in between. Jill has played golf all over the U.S.and hasn't found a destination she doesn't want to visit.
