Hale Makai Guide to Kauai and Photo Gallery
We invite visitors to Kauai and our Hale Makai Guests to take a personal preview
on what to expect while staying with us in Haena and the beautiful North shore
of Kauai.
The Hale Makai grounds section truly focuses on our small family run beachfront
resort, trying to display the particulars and differences within the cottages
and providing views of our tropical gardens on the beach of Kepuhi point.
In our Beaches from Hanalei to Bali Hai section we included pictures of the
various beaches in our neighborhood, most of them in walking distance like
Tunnels Beach, Haena Beach Park, Cannons Beach and Kee beach at the foot of the
Kalalau Trail. Wainiha Beach Park, Lumahai Beach and Hanalei Bay Beach are
along the road to Hanalei a couple minutes drive away. Since we have summer
surf, supposedly calm waters for swimming, and winter surf, supposedly too
rough to swim, we also included pictures in particular of the ocean conditions
during the various seasons. As we know, Hawaii weather conditions change
quickly and the ocean conditions with it. So we included some pictures taken
during the summer month with high surf conditions, suggesting “no swimming”, as
well as pictures taken during the winter month with mirror like flat ocean
conditions, where snorkeling and swimming is enjoyed all over the north shore.
The pictures in our scuba and snorkel Kauai section display snap shots of the marine life,
colorful reef fish, crustaceous and beautiful coral, along the North Shore from Kepuhi
Beach over Tunnels to Ke'e Beach. Basic equipment for snorkeling is relatively inexpensive
and easy to find. It consists of a mask with attached snorkel and a pair of fins. While
snorkeling, contact lenses can make the eyes burn due to the salt in the water,
decreasing the vision and the enjoyment of the snorkeling. Almost every mask can be
fitted with over the counter prescription glasses, best purchased ahead of time. Many
of our guests snorkel at Tunnels Beach where the water tends to be calm in the morning
as well as at Ke'e Beach where the cove to the left and the reef to right protects the water
from the winds. Kepuhi Point has less predictable ocean conditions and is more frequented
by locals, who are much better in judging the surf conditions. The best times to snorkel are
usually in the early mornings, when the winds have died down with calm ocean conditions
and clear water. After heavy rains the ocean water temporarily becomes clouded and murky
where the rivers run into the ocean. We do not advise to swim or snorkel under those conditions.
Our Garden Island Section is supposed to give our guests a little pre-view on
what to expect as they arrive at the airport in Lihue. Return visitors will be
familiar with some of our photos and will recognize places like Ke’e Beach,
Bali Hai, the Limahuli Gardens, the Wai’oli Hui’ia Church in Hanalei, the
Hanalei Village with its excellent restaurants and many small shops. Some
guests will have experienced a picture perfect sunset at the Princeville
Resort, have stopped at one of the many typical Kauai Juice bars along the
road, or still remember the memorable taste of Ono’s burger. We also included
some helicopter pictures with views from above, NaPali Ranges and valleys with
waterfalls and open pastures, Waimea Canyon etc. We hope new visitors to Kauai
and our new Hale Makai guests will equally enjoy the picture tour we prepared
and will book with us eager to explore the Garden Island of Kauai. Our Hale Makai guests seem to rate Helicopter tours and zipline Kauai (not
included yet, but great picture welcome) among their top activity on Kauai.
The Nature Section of our guide only gives a slim view of the diversity and
beauty of Kauai, the fauna and flora of the Garden Island.