where do i even start? at the beginning of this month, we took a week away from reality to visit the beautiful island of kauai. we'd been to maui many times in the past few years and were excited to have the opportunity to see another island. it didn't disappoint. and we are still debating on which we liked better. there are so many different qualities of each, i've given up on trying to decide. i have, however, decided i am totally ok with visiting both of them every year ;)

we made our way around the island with our little guidebook ( these books are the only way to see hawaii) and relaxed on as many beaches as we could like it was our job. so today, i'm sharing a few of my highlights with you. enjoy!

[stopping for a fresh coconut]

[the na pali coast]

[cave that lead to a secluded beach]

[hiking to secret beaches]

[random lava pools we find while on a drive (after a steep hike that i may have gotten pretty beat up on. it was worth it)]

[group selfie ;) + a super photo bomber]

[see that way down there? my husband. he jumped from where i was standing. i didn't]

[queen's bath]

[snorkeling on the "forbidden island" of niihau]

[an endangered monk seal taking a nap on our beach]

[secret beach and the lava pools]

we did spend most of our time on the beaches and didn't get to too many hikes (unless in lead to a beach). my favorite spots were queens bath, a hike down to lava cliffs and a nice sized pool that the ocean would fill at high tide, and secret beach, a long stretch of beach almost all to yourself with lava pools at one end. both required a 10-15 minute hike to get to which promised they would not be completely overrun by tourists, probably why we enjoyed them so much. bring your snorkel gear, you'll need it pretty much everywhere. and as far as food and drinks? we stayed on the south shore in a condo, so we had a full kitchen and took complete advantage of that living like we would at home. we made a huge haul at the beginning of the week (even stocking up on mai tai supplies, hawaiian vacation necessity) and didn't get to many restaurants. locals had advised kauai wasn't known for it's food and we made a good decision to take advantage of the bbq's on our property. north shore would probably be a different story but we never had a chance to be there more than a few hours during the day to explore. i'm positive we will make our way back here at some point in the future, so i'd love to hear if you guys have been and what were your favorite parts!

i hope you all have a fabulous weekend!