Going to North Shore Kauai and beyond Princeville this summer is not likely to be easy. And you need to plan. But, we’ve got you covered, so read on.
Since the Kauai North Shore Landslide in March, the highway into Hanalei is one lane and can only be accessed at specific times during the week and all day on weekends. To complicate matters further, if you want to drive beyond Hanalei to places like Tunnels Beach, Haena, and Kee Beach, you will need to apply for parking and day-use permits. Otherwise, you can only drive but not stop. There is currently no shuttle service available. If you can find someone to drop you off, you only need a permit for day use.
Follow these three tips for visiting North Shore Kauai:
- Passes sell out quickly – 30 days in advance for both day use and parking. Be on their site at 12:01 am (HST). Click this link to reserve: Go Haena.
- If you want to park all day, keep in mind that you’ll need to purchase morning and afternoon passes. If you want to be there from park opening until sunset, then you’ll need to purchase all three time slots.
- Limited overnight parking is now available for campers with Kalalau overnight permits for Napali Coast State Wilderness Park.
Here’s what one of our readers said about the current situation:
“This is why I’ve rented a house near Tunnels Beach. The day-use entry passes for Haena are easier to get than parking & entry passes 30 days in advance because there are more of them offered, so I’ll be trying to get just day-use entry passes each day, so I can either walk the mile from Tunnels to Kee or ride a bike to Kee. The North Shore is a lot different than it was a few years ago.”
If you have recently visited North Shore Kauai, we invite you to share your personal experiences in the comment section.
Photo at Tunnels Beach.
We arrived on Kauai on Tuesday, May 11 and will depart Monday, May 23. Our reserved Budget rental was waiting for us; being a Budget Fastbreak customer meant we skipped a line at the counter that was easily two hours long. I had already secured four all-day parking passes for Haena by setting my alarm for 3 am PST on 4 different mornings (we live in San Diego) and being online the moment they became available.
The limited access to Hanalei has been a disaster for the local merchants; we have spent as much money with them as possible. From our standpoint, the limited access has meant we literally had Hanalei to ourselves Monday-Friday for two weeks. In and out restrictions are relaxed somewhat in Saturdays when the road is now open every 30 minutes, and on Sunday access open all-day. Doing anything outside of Hanalei during the week requires some planning, but is perfectly doable.
Thanks so much for these updates! Doesn’t it seem strange that there are no shuttles in light of the limitations on the road and bridge traffic? I would think if there was a park and ride option to get in and out of Hanalei and the main beaches, most visitors would be happy to reserve a scheduled ride and it could cut waaaay down on the number of cars and traffic backups.
We’re booked for a trip in early September and hoping that the repairs are done by then, but if not, crossing fingers there will be a shuttle option 😊.
Hi Carolyn.
Thanks. Yes, we too were wondering why the shuttle hasn’t resumed but perhaps starting in Hanalei instead of Princeville, in order to avoid unknown delays getting across the bridge.
Aloha.
I stayed until midnight to reserve the full day parking at Go Haena, paid in full, but when I arrived with the family, the road entrance to the park was blocked with signs that park is closed. Also saw locals protesting with signs reading tourists go home. There was no refund.
Wow. That is really disappointing Yury. Too bad you had to go through all of that. It appears a percentage of locals are fed up with the poor leadership over the past year. The whole mask issue of ALL the states has really been lopsided and no one is on the same page. Bad state of common sense in the life today for everyone. They all have their own personal reasons for the choices that they make. I just pray that the world will wake up from this mental block and we can all get along. Aloha
Are you kidding me? The Haena locals are so entitled. Sounds to me the situation was better before they pushed for a quota. These are the same people that pushed for the road to remain closed after the storm damage. Continued using the State Park even when it was closed.