Kauai Photo and Wedding Locations
Aloha Ever After’s list of Kauai photo locations and wedding locations (many on the beach) is the place to start when seeking the perfect spot for your Hawaii wedding or vow renewal ceremony. The Garden Isle has some of the most beautiful beaches in the state. Additionally, you could find your Kauai wedding location on the grounds of the island’s many resorts and hotels, as well as in hidden and private botanical garden and tropical waterfall spots.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: North Kapaa Beach (NoKa) (East Side)
“North Kapaa Beach” (note: there is a sign with this name next to it, but the online maps do not register this location) is right across from the NoKa Fair in Northern Kapaa before the Kealia Bluff. This beach is a nice one not only because it’s centrally located (even if you are coming from the other side of the island it takes you right into the heart of Kapaa which is a must see … just make sure to use the Bypass Road as to avoid traffic!) but also as it has more background options than many other locations. It has the beach (of course) but it also has a properly manicured greenery area, an option for shade under trees in case it’s really sunny AND a small grassy, coconut grove area only 2 minutes walk away. As if all those weren’t enough reasons, it’s a really poor swimming beach which makes it perfect for photos, since there are not many people around to mess up your background. Finally, if you were considering using the Kealia Bluff location, NoKa Beach is only a 2 minute drive away, so longer shoots could potentially use both locations for a better variety of backgrounds. As a side note, if anyone in your party has a disability, this is the beach you want to choose, as it’s the easiest one to walk to and is completely flat (you can drive up to within a couple hundred feet of the sand).
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Kealia Bluff (East Side)
Kealia Beach is a beautiful beach on the east side of Kauai, often frequented by locals on the weekend after a hard week’s work. Just to the south of Kealia Beach itself, and up above looking over it, is wonderful private Kauai wedding or photo location that we have called Kealia Bluff or Kealia Lookout. It is a mostly unknown spot with no official name, although there is a car park very close to it. Kealia Bluff is a great choice for people wanting a high cliff location, overlooking the ocean, without having to pay the high prices charged by resorts and hotels for such a spot. The following photos feature both Kealia Bluff and Kealia Lookout.
Because of its stunning vistas, we recommend Kealia Bluff as the best location for a Kauai photo shoot or wedding.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Waipouli Beach (East Side)
Waipouli Beach is right in front of the Waipouli Beach Resort, located in the center of Kapaa town. It has the advantage of being centrally located, and having a lot of trees (right near the beach which is unusual) that provide shade from the hot Kauai sun.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Anahola Beach (East Side)
Another of the East Side Kauai wedding locations, Anahola Beach is long stretch of beach with a great variety of backdrops – river, mountain and forest. It is “the” beach of choice for local Hawaiians to hang out, go fishing or spend an afternoon with their friends and family around a barbecue. If you are looking for an authentic Hawaiian feel, this is the beach for you. Luckily, as the beach is so long, it is still easy to find a quiet, private spot where you can get married.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Nukolii Beach (East Side)
This Kauai wedding location is located near the Kauai Beach Resort hotel, on the east side of Kauai (between Lihue and Wailua/Kapaa). Nukolii Beach is a beautiful and secluded little beach that rarely gets a lot of visitors. A hidden gem, this location has a tree to two for minimal shade (not too much) and parking nearby at the resort, although like all beaches in Hawaii it’s a public beach and open to anyone. However, normally you need to park at least 5 minutes walk away, so keep that in mind if you a bride with a long dress or have elderly/disabled people in your party.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Lydgate Beach (East Side)
Located near the sacred Wailua river, on the east side of Kauai (near Kapaa), Lydgate Beach is a nice beach when it comes to Kauai wedding locations. Since most visitors do not know about the private hidden areas within the longer beach, it is rare to see another wedding there. Every beach on Kauai is public, so you may see an occasional person fishing or taking a walk. In recent years the tide has changed a lot at Lydgate, erasing parts of the beach with the ocean now coming right up the higher area (level with the bike path).
We no longer recommend Lydgate because:
(Note: in the unlikely event of a rain plan being necessary, Lydgate beach has pavilions which provide a covered area to conduct the wedding free of charge.)
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Anini Beach (North Shore)
Anini Beach is a thin, long beach with a lot of trees. It has almost no waves (shallow reef) but a lot of pavilions, a camping area and a general beach area. It is often quite populated near the camping area, but since the beach is so long, it is easy to find secluded sections for a more private ceremony, making it another great Kauai wedding location.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Hanalei Bay (North Shore)
Hanalei Bay is a picturesque Kauai wedding location. It boasts a variety of beautiful backdrops: the pier, the large mountains and the long, wide beach, curving around the bay. It is a bay which is calm in the summer but with large waves in the winter, and thus has many visitors. The two main places to get married at Hanalei Bay are by the pier and by the pine trees, but of course you can choose to get married wherever you like best.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Shipwrecks Beach (South Shore)
Shipwrecks Beach (aka Keoniloa Bay), located in Poipu, is a long, lovely beach. However, because of its proximity to large resorts, it is quite populated every day so you will never be alone on this beach. It’s the most popular Kauai wedding location beach. Depending on the day, you may be one of many weddings happening at the same. Understandably this is not preferable to most couples who would rather have a more private ceremony. For this reason, we generally recommend Shipwrecks as a back-up beach in case of rain, and not as a first choice.
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Mahaulepu (South Shore)
Mahaulepu is an unusual Kauai wedding location. It’s located in Poipu, past Shipwrecks beach, at the end of a long, bumpy dirt road. It’s a beautiful beach, off the beaten path. There are plenty of pine trees for shade, and often a monk seal may be seen resting on the sand at the end of the beach. The beach has cliffs and mountain views. Visitors are allowed at this beach only until 6pm. (There may be a possible extra travel fee for some vendors.)
Kauai Photo/Wedding Location: Tropical Garden, Waterfall and River Locations
Remember, you can have your wedding anywhere you want it! Kauai wedding locations are not just limited to beaches, resorts, hotels or vacation rentals. There are a variety of private grounds, gardens, waterfall locations or botanical gardens, all of which are stunningly beautiful and which would provide the perfect setting and backdrop for an intimate wedding. Kauai is an extremely diverse island, with terrain ranging from flowing, pristine rivers to eucalyptus forests to pine woodlands to bamboo groves and more. Just tell us what your dream is and we’ll help you create it!
Alternative Kauai Wedding Locations (Gardens, Waterfalls and More)
There really are an abundance of Kauai wedding locations. Kauai is blessed with an abundance of hidden waterfalls, tropical settings, botanical gardens, jungle and mountain scenery, and more. Some of these contain picturesque rivers and bridges. They make a stunning setting for a wedding, and a beautiful backdrop for photos.
Please note: There is a travel fee $85 for events south/west of Lihue, and $75 for north of Anahola.
What happens if it rains? It rarely happens that there is rain during our weddings – we have wonderful luck with the weather, and even if it does rain it’s normally so brief it does not matter (tropical Kauai sprinkles pass in just a few minutes).
