Oahu to Kauai Day Trip: Waimea Canyon and Wailua River Exploration

Embark on an all-inclusive day trip from Oahu to Kauai, exploring the stunning Waimea Canyon and Wailua River. Indulge in the beauty, legends, and history of the Garden Island.

Duration: 14 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Wailua River State Park - Embark on a spacious, open-air boat journey along Kauai’s Wailua River, surrounded by miles of lush trees and tropical plants. Enjoy the cool breezes as the captain narrates tales of ancient Hawaii, when the river was lined with numerous Hawaiian heiau (temples).
  • Fern Grotto - Enjoy a relaxing boat ride down the…
What's Included
  • Interisland round-trip airfare (overage charges may apply)
  • Tour narration by a professional driver/guide
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Airline flight overage charges
  • Lunch
Additional Information

Embark on a day trip to another Hawaiian island with our all-inclusive excursion. Enjoy your holiday to the fullest while we handle all the arrangements! Get roundtrip airfare from Oahu to Kauai, along with roundtrip transfers from Lihue Airport (LIH), a narrated land tour, and a lovely lunch amid Kauai’s tropical scenery.
Experience a day filled with…

Location
Daniel K. Inouye International Airport
Rodgers Boulevard
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.1
(71 Ratings)
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Wlw
Oct 14, 2025
Rosario's Polynesian Adventures Kauai Trip from Honolulu - Rosario was great. Pickup at LIH airport from HNL smooth. All canyon sites outstanding. Lunch at Kauai Brewing, e cellent. Coffee tasting at Kauai Coffee Co. Great. Blowholes, nice. River cruise and entertainment to/from Fern Grotto very nice. Drop off at LIH for flight back to HNL great. Overall great day w/Roaario.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
William_w
Oct 12, 2025
Kauai with host/drivet/guide Rosario - Flew from HNL to LIH. Met pro.ptly by our Polynedian Adventures driver, Rosario who kept the all-day tour interesting with just enough background and historical significance. Boat trip to Fern Grotto was entertaining and educational. We all were "married" again in a joint wedding ceremony. All stops were great, but the canyon views were spectacular. Thanks, Rosario
Review provided by Viator
Melaniemn3398ek
Oct 9, 2025
Excellent tour - The landscapes are amazing, the guide is very attentive and pleasant plus he shared interesting data. The tour is very complete
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Angelahx4565er
Dec 11, 2024
Kauai island tour! - Kaleo was an amazing tour guide, the Hawaiian Superman himself! Beautiful island tour and learned a lot! Would recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ronald_g
Sep 26, 2024
Kuaui is the BEST island for beautiful scenery! - The Waimea Canyon is the best pet of their tour. I will be coming back to take time to truly enjoy its beauty.
Review provided by Viator
Q8821kochrisc
Jul 22, 2024
Kauai Island tour - The tour wasi incredible, informative and educational. Kaleo did an ex ellent driving the bus and entertsining the group tour. He was awesome.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bfandry
Apr 17, 2024
Awesome Canyon and boat tour - Rosario was an awesome tour guide. He was funny and made the tour very enjoyable. He needs a raise so he can buy his 12 million dollar house!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Xavier_m
Jul 14, 2025
Glad We Didn’t DIY - Well-Paced Tour with Local Insight & Beautiful Views - This was a nice way to see a lot of Kauai. The stops were as advertised, so you can research them ahead of time if you want. While you could do the route and follow the itinerary in your own rental car, you would miss out on the tour guide’s knowledge and humor. (John was our wonderful guide - personable, happy to help with photos and questions, and local knowledge of the island.) Our lunch spot was in Old Koloa Town with plenty of options and shops. I recommend sampling the food trucks and getting a coffee or smoothie from the stores. In our group of 15, we were the only ones who flew in and out on the day. All the others were picked up from hotels and resorts on Kauai. After seeing the earlier review about someone’s bad experience with the pickup, we were on high alert for potential delays or issues, but it was just fine. It was outside the baggage claim that the instructions mentioned and immediately to the right in a small lot with parking spaces sized for tour bus mini-coaches and coach buses. There were other Polynesian Adventures buses that came and left, and those drivers were friendly and told us who our driver/guide was going to be. And when it took a little bit longer than expected, the dispatch staff on the phone were cheery and helpful. We got back to the airport with plenty of time to spare.
Review provided by Viator
Marie_f
Feb 13, 2025
Pickup started a Little Chaotic - Pickup was late and trip started late. Sabrina, our driver/guide, was knowledgeable and very helpful. Would have been nice to have a map of the Island to follow.
Review provided by Viator
Roshinisarah_a
May 6, 2025
A nightmare with Polynesian Adventures to Kauai - I went on this trip booked through Viator but run by Polynesian Adventures. The pick up at the airport was a disaster. They provided directions. After waiting for 10 minutes beyond the pick up time, I call as instructed and find the phone # provided does not work. Then I hunt and find another number, call to be told the driver is on the way, and I see the coach approaching but the driver does not stop at the designated pick up location but speeds off around a corner. I inform the representative on the line who assures me the coach will come back. I wait for another 15-20 mins and call again and I am told to wait. After a short while the coach comes around again and repeats the same thing - not slowing down but this time I step off the curb and notice the female driver gesticulating ahead. So I chase after the coach and find her parked around the corner and when I get in she tells me she would be fined for stopping there. Then why on earth do they give directions to wait at baggage claim. Why not say go around the corner of the building to meet the coach. I was tempted to chew her out for the general incompetence of the tour group but decided not to make a scene. Anyway, finally I get in and a short while later the coach hands off the customers to another coach. This was driven by a voluble lady named Sabrina. She started talking and did not stop till the tour ended. I indicated I had to catch a flight to Oahu and the boarding time was 6:14pm. She indicated she would drop me off at 6pm and made a point of indicating how small the airport was and how short the TSA check-in was. The tour itself was pleasant and scenic except for endless soliloquy. I have never met anyone who can literally gab for hours on end. Then at the end of the sightseeing I indicate I need to get to the airport. She says she has to drop off a couple of other customers at local hotels and she will get me to the airport. I had no choice. I thought why are airport passengers who have to catch a flight not given priority over customers staying at local hotels. But, she keeps on with the monologue and drops the first and then the 2nd customer by which time it is 6pm. Then I watch as she drives past the turn- off. I thought maybe there is an entrance further down for coaches. It did not occur to me she was so bird-brained that with all of her yammering she forgot she had to drop off the next customer, me, at the airport. But, she blithely keeps on driving and yakking and then I finally had enough and said when was I going to be dropped off. Then she says she forgot and she would turn around. She then executes a clumsy U -turn and goes roaring back. By this time I am certain I will miss my flight. She screeches up to TSA at 6:15 pm after my flight has started boarding. Contrary to her assertions the TSA line is long. I do not bother to say anything to her though I would have liked to give her a piece of my mind. But, there is no time for that. I rush through TSA and I look for my gate. Directions are not clear and I am casting around looking for the gate, asking around all the while getting more desperate as I hear the final boarding call. I try to run but my lungs are wheezing and knees are creaking. Finally, I reach the gate at the last second and rush through. This was a frenetic end to what would have been a wonderful trip to Kauai, thanks to an incompetent tour group with a thoughtless, garrulous driver with no ability to track what she should be doing instead of yapping nineteen to a dozen. So it started and ended with stress, though the sights were marvelous. It is probably best to avoid Polynesian Adventures and go with another tour group as PolyAd believes in needlessly getting your adrenaline flowing. But, Kauai is worth visiting. Just avoid Poly Ad and Sabrina.
Review provided by Viator
From $576
up to 9 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).