Maui or Kauai?

saustria13

I'm planning a "just us two" ceremony in Hawaii over Memorial Day weekend...I just can't decide which island would be better-we would like a beautiful, scenic location near the ocean...but not necessarily on the beach in the sand.  Any advice on which island would be better?  Locations? Wedding coordinators?  Help!

breaness

Honestly, both would be great for that! I guess what you have to figure out for yourself is if you want to do two islands on your trip or just one! I think if you're going to just do one, go with Maui since it's well rounded and you can do lots of great stuff and also find a nice quiet retreat. Whereas Kauai is really quiet and your options may be limited for the rest of the trip. Both will be incredibly beautiful and from what I hear, both are worth seeing. I've only been to Maui so far and I absolutely loved every minute. My wedding bio has all of the info as to when/where/who we used.

We're going to be going back for our 5 year anniversary and will be doing the Big Island and Kauai that time.

breaness

I just wanted to add-- the Frommer's Hawaii books are amazing. We bought them and read about all of the islands before making a decision. We were originally going to do Maui and Kauai but ended up doing just Maui so we didn't lose half a day with travel and because there was SO much to see on Maui that we wouldn't be bored being there for a full week.

dianalynm

I honestly love both islands. I agree with Brea that Maui is well-rounded and that Kauai is more laid back. Kauai is definitely more secluded, but absolutely beautiful. If you are looking for a more natural, scenic Hawaii, Kauai is the place. Small quaint towns, beautiful hikes, secluded beaches.... Definitely great choices! We have island hopped before and if you have enough time, I say go for that. We have done one week on Kauai and one week on The Big Island during one of our previous trips. Interisland flights are very short, it's just the process of going to/from the airport. HTH!

jtoly

Welcome and congrats! I'm having a "just us two" ceremony on Oahu but next time there I'm definately going to Maui! It was a hard decision for us to pick in the beginning but the Navy resort won. (FI is in the Navy so the resort is only for military members and was a great deal). Good luck deciding, Hawaii is so beautiful no matter where you pick you can't go wrong!

sparklegirl84

You really can't go wrong, both islands have beautiful beaches. I found that the beaches in Kauai were less crowded and a bit easier to access (if you know where you're going. I really enjoyed the Kauai Revealed book, it helped tremendously with navigating the unmarked roads). To me maui seemed to have more beaches on resorts. I suppose it depends on what area of the island though. I have photo albums from both islands that I can share with you if you're interested. While Kauai dining options shut down somewhat early, we were hard pressed for time to just sit around and be lazy, i felt like there were SO many things to explore and see and we stayed busy every day. (We're not really foodies and didn't care about fancy restaurants though). I also think that the landscape is greener and much prettier in kauai.

kaesha

I like them both a lot. Kauai has a more intimate feeling, IMHO. But, I like the beaches on Maui better. The ocean around Kauai makes me nervous, to be honest. I like the more protected beaches on Maui.

hng2101

I'm doing a "just the two of us" wedding on Maui.  I don't know much about Kaui but I am absolutely in love with Maui.  

There are tons of good deals for eloping in Maui.  I'm paying 499 for ceremony, pictures, lei exchange, and a photo cd.  There are even cheaper deals but I liked this photographer best.

We also got a great deal for the Hawaii trip through AAA.  The last time we booked Hawaii we booked through them and they upgraded our car to a convertible for free and recommended some great trips and restaurants.  It made for an excellent trip!