Kauai’s Timeless Intrigue

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The matriarch of the Hawaiian Islands, Kauai is a natural wonderland with visual gifts so bedazzling that Hollywood covets it for one blockbuster after another. Even the most talented of set designers would be hard-pressed to create more stunning scenery.

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Mother Nature's gifts are matchless here, from the vibrant colors of Waimea Canyon to Polihale's 17-mile secluded stretch of sand. Toss in jagged ridges and deeply etched valleys bathed by cascading waterfalls, and you'll uncover one postcard-perfect setting after another.

Remaining mild-mannered and free of razzle-dazzle, Kauai mesmerizes with its own refreshing flavor of resorts, accommodations and activities. Princeville's lush Bali Hai enchantment on the North Shore stands in contrast to the sun-splashed southern shores of Poipu. Even lower key are the West Side, with its quaint shops and empty beaches, and Kalapaki and Royal Coconut Coast near the gateway town of Lihue.

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On the accommodations horizon for 2009 are Poipu's 121-room boutique-style Koa Kea Hotel & Resort and the 323-unit Koloa Landing at Poipu Beach. And on the North Shore, the high-end Westin Princeville Ocean Resort has added 173 two-bedroom villas to the mix. Taking it up another level this spring, Princeville Resort will reopen as a St. Regis, elevating its status to Starwood's most exclusive brand.

While ocean action is a powerful lure for most, serene Kauai is even more magnetic for trailblazers eager to explore new paths. Arguably, few treks are as spectacular as the zigzagging Kalalau Trail that overhangs the breathtaking Napali Coast.

Not up to the rugged 11-mile trek but bent on witnessing its beauty? Operators like Blue Dolphin Charters (www.kauaiboats.com) depart Port Allen Harbor to cruise up the imposing coastline past 3,000-foot sea cliffs, lush valleys, waterfalls and sea caves - all as spinner dolphins put on a show.

For diversions that move to a different beat, you can catch a bird's-eye view of Kauai's plush landscape from a helicopter tour with Island Helicopters (www.islandhelicopters.com) or thrill to a full-moon zip-line trek with Just Live (www.justlive.org). Explore the island's diverse agricultural roots aboard the Kilohana Plantation Railway(www.kauaiplantationrailway.com), or book a kayaking trip up Hawaii's only navigable rivers with Kayak Kauai (t="_blank">www.kayakkauai.com). And you won't want to miss the decadence at Steelgrass Chocolate Farm (www.steelgrass.org/chocolate/ index.html) - take a tour of its eight-acre tropical garden of vanilla, bamboo and theobroma cacao, the chocolate tree.

My offbeat pick, however, is flopping into an inner tube to thread through tunnels and plantation irrigation ditches into the island's heart with Kauai Backcountry Adventures (www.kauaibackcountry.com). The water does all the work as you kick back and go with the flow.