Kapaa Archives - Casa Bouquet

The east side of Kaua’i has the mouth of the beautiful Wailua River. Take a river trip to see Wailua Falls, Fern Grotto, and the Smith Family Luau!

The Wailua River mouth is on the east side of Kaua’i, between Lihue and Kapa’a. It’s a gorgeous river and accounts for many of the natural wonders of this Hawaiian island. The Smith Family owns a lovely piece of land along the river and have planted a tropical garden, run boat tours, and produce a famous luau and show.

Begin your Wailua River Cruise experience at the boat house waiting room. Learn more about Walter and Emily Smith who started the business in 1946.

The barge type boats have seating, guides, and stunning views of the mountains.

Once the boat lands near Fern Grotto, take a paved trail through the jungle to the Grotto and enjoy all the varieties of ginger.

The ginger and rushing waters.

After Fern Grotto, the boat heads to the gardens. There’s excellent Hawaiian entertainment on the boat!

The tropical gardens are available for strolling or you can ride a little tram to see the extensive grounds. I loved the peacocks roaming around!

The gardens are very peaceful and a beautiful place to relax right before sunset.

The luau is in a covered shelter. The buffet has excellent food for this kind of giant tourist luau. See the guava bread? Poi, lomi lomi salmon and other Hawaiian treats are part of the spread. It is very organized and easy to get seconds or thirds. We met people from Ohio and Oklahoma at the table and they were quite bewildered by the food (maybe do a little homework before you visit Hawaii?). There is musical entertainment and hula while you eat.

After dinner go to the lakeside outdoor amphitheater for the Polynesian show. Highly skilled young dancers perform hula and other dances from Tahiti and other Polynesian lands. It’s a highly produced and entertaining show.

You can visit the Wailua River and Fern Grotto with other tours and the Wailua River State Park. Don’t miss this beautiful part of Kaua’i.

Map for Wailua River

Getting there

From Lihue, take Route 56 north. Turn left just before the Wailua River bridge to get to Smith’s.

Resource links

Smith’s Kauai Luau and Fern Grotto

Smith’s Kauai: Garden Luau, Fern Grotto Wailua River cruise, Tropical Paradise

Wailua River State Park

Wailua River State Park from Hawaii Division of State Parks

https://www.viator.com/Kauai-attractions/Wailua-River/d670-a1162

Wailua River tours from Viator

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Kaua’i overview

Kaua’i Shores Hotel

Hawaii regional cuisine

The Kauaʻi Shores Hotel is a great place to stay when visiting Kauaʻi. They are host to one of my favorite restaurants, the Lava Lava Beach Club!

The Kauaʻi Shores Hotel is on the Royal Coconut Coast near Lihue and Kapaʻa on the east shore. The hotel has been renovated with happy colors with different wings surrounding a beautiful landscape and pool. We stayed in the Lei wing and our second floor room had a nice view of the ocean and the grounds.

The hotel staff is very friendly and there is a nice laid back vibe. There is so much style everywhere. I love the mid-century and Hawaiian touches. I was very inspired to try some of these ideas in our home!

I enjoyed exploring the flowering plants on the grounds. And finding little touches of style everywhere!

The Lava Lava Beach Club is the restaurant for the hotel, under direction of Executive Chef Kim Brun. The restaurant and bar are right on the beach so you can choose to eat and mingle at the bar under the roof or take a table outside on the sand. The menu has items starting at 7 am.

We enjoyed hanging out at the bar and meeting guests and locals alike. Whether you want bar food pupus or regular entreés, you can find it on the menu.

Breakfast was really fantastic at the Lava Lava Beach Club. The sweet muffin with macadamia nuts and local favorite loco moco were so well executed. Loco moco is a famous Hawaiian breakfast, traditionally consisting of rice, a hamburger, fried egg, and gravy. You can see this version was made to order, and I’m thinking I need another one right now!

Map for Kaua’i Shores Hotel and Lava Lava Beach Club

Getting there

From Lihue, take Route 56 north. After crossing the Wailua River bridge, look for Papaloa Road on the right. The hotel is tucked behind the Coconut Marketplace.

Resource links

https://www.kauaishoreshotel.com/
- Kauaʻi Shores Hotel
https://lavalavabeachclub.com/kauai/
- Lava Lava Beach Club Kauaʻi
http://bigislandgrinds.com/2006/09/loco-moco-recipe/
- Loco Moco recipe from Big Island Grinds

This post contains affiliate links: if you make a purchase using these links, I’ll receive a small compensation towards maintaining this blog, at no extra cost to you.