Kauai is one of the planet's most beautiful islands—lush, scenic, untrammeled, spellbinding—and the farthest of the main Hawaiian islands from the mainland American coast. It contains Mount Waialeale/Alikai Swamp, often noted as the world's wettest spot. Kauai event venues frequently share the island's ethereal beauty, by proximity if not design.
The island's airport, Lihue Airport (LIH), in Lihue, the island's capital and main town, serves the other Hawaiian islands and West Coast destinations, such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland and Phoenix.
There is no convention center, but hotels in Kauai serve meeting needs very well. To the south in Poipu are the 602-room Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa, which has 24,000 square feet of conference space, as well as gorgeous gardens with pools; and the 394-room Sheraton Kauai, which has two ballrooms measuring 2,200 and 5,900 square feet, respectively. Near Lihue is the 356-room Kauai Marriott Resort, which has a 17,280-square-foot ballroom. On the island's East Side is the 216-room Aston Aloha Beach Hotel, which has more than 13,000 square feet of indoor meeting space. To the north coast is the 346-room Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas, which is close to Hanalei.
Event facilities include the Naa-ina Kai Gardens, (which is close to, if you can find it, Secret Beach) in Kilauea, this beautiful botanical garden can look after up to 200 persons. In Lawai, just north of Poipu, another lush spot is the Plantation Gardens Restaurant & Spa, which includes the Moir Gardens and has space for 300. Famous on the island is the Smith Family, which started catering to tourists in 1946; they can put on luaus and return trips ending in feasts to the gorgeous Fern Grotto. Reopened in 2011, the Kauai Lagoons Golf Club now has 27 holes (the original 18 were designed by Jack Nicklaus) and a clubhouse with an open-air lobby.
Dining locations in Kauai include Duke's Canoe Club, in Lihue and named for Duke Paoa Kahanamoku, one of surfing's original stars; it has a large dining room and the Barefoot Bar. Keoki's Paradise in Poipu boasts a similar menu and the Bamboo Bar. The Beach House Restaurant, on the south coast close to the island's famous waterspout, can host up to 110 persons in a beach house, two private dining rooms and a garden. On the northern coast is the acclaimed Bar Acuda, which serves tapas amid jazz music. Finally, on the east coast, the Bull Shed, just north of Lihue, specializes in surf and turf and sits right by the ocean in a restaurant crowned with a dramatic roof.
