Traveling down a windy sandy path through the sugar cane fields to the Na'pali coast was an adventure in itself. Don't worry, you will get there. Be careful where you park if you do not have 4-wheel drive. We did not and did just fine.

The drive is well worth the it. This was the most beautiful beach we had seen -- miles and miles of white sand beaches. The remote location can guarantee few people on this stretch of sand.

Only Na Pali Coast Tour that is permitted to sail out of Hanalei Bay. Only takes a couple of minutes to reach the Na Pali Coast. All others are out of Port Allen on otherside of Island and take 15-20 minutes to get to the coast. Family run boat, nice small groups, I believe 15 was the limit. Great history and story telling by captain and crew. Saw spinner dolphins, green sea turtles, and the gorgeous Na Pali Coast. Great trip, probably the best activity we did all week.

To see the Na Pali Coast, we took a Blue Dolphin charter boat, which departed from the southern coast town of Ele Ele, just 15 minutes' drive from Poipu. There are at least a dozen companies offering charters to the Na Pali Coast, and Blue Dolphin seemed to be reliable and one of the cheaper options. We took the Sunset Cruise, which departed at 2pm and returned just in time to watch a spectacular sunset!

It's about a 4-hour ride altogether, starting out along the southern coast, then turning north up the western edge of the island, which is dominated by these unbelievably beautiful green and red cliffs rippling and soaring into the blue sky. On the way there and back, we must have seen a few dozen whales jumping and playing in the water--it was amazing! They were usually far away, but you could make out their huge backs and massive tails disappearing into the ocean as they dove under.

The crew on the boat were great--really personable and funny, telling stories about Kauai's history and quirks. The one major drawback for me was that I got extremely seasick about 30 minutes in, and never recovered until we returned to dry land--stupid me! I forgot I was seasick-prone and didn't bring along any meds. The crew took good care of me, basically just bringing me water and consoling me, which was about all they could do. I admit that by 6pm, every single minute of the &%@$! sunset felt like an hour, and I was in no mood to admire the dazzling colors in front of me. But everyone else on the boat enjoyed the free drinks and buffet of snacks.

All in all, a great experience-but I will remember the Dramamine next time!

Snorkeling is the greatest -- you feel free to hang out with all the fishes and ocean life...giant sea turtles, white tip sharks at a distance, all kinds of colorful fish. The waters are so warm and clear that you can see forever. The boat ride is a lot of fun. Great people, food and drink. The Napali coast is awesome -- untouched by all the man made elements. You will love it.

If you plan to stay in Princeville area and go on a sea tour to Na Pali coast, you will find that most boats leave from Port Allen or Poipu in the south. Since passengers must check in around seven in the morning, you would have to be up before five and drive down an hour and a half to get to the port, which isn’t the greatest thing to do during a vacation.WHY JUST ONE COMPANY IN THE NORTH?There is only one company, which sails out of Hanalei Bay near Princeville—Captain Sundown. The company offers various types of sail including morning and afternoon sail (see www.captainsundown.com). We took a six-hour snorkel tour with lunch for about $130, the most expensive among its kind. However, besides getting more sleep and saving driving time, the tour was well worth the price. By the way, the reason why Captain Sundown is the only boat out of the north is that, years ago, flourishing boat tours from Hanalei Bay wreaked havoc on its environment. The government came in and outlawed boat tour businesses except for Captain Sundown, which put up a legal fight, or so goes the story according to Bob, the captain.ADVANTAGES OF SAILING OUT OF THE NORTHAlthough choice is limited, sailing out of the north has plenty of advantages, especially if you stay in the north. The 40-foot catamaran, designed by the captain himself so it’s suitable for Kauai waters, limits passengers to 15 people so it does not get too crowded. You check in after 8 a.m. so you don’t have to hurry too early. It sails less than a half-hour before you can begin to enjoy the sight of Na Pali coast, unlike those that sail out of the south, which must cruise for an hour or so before reaching the scenic coast. The boat is too large to enter caves but it gets you there near enough. It stops close to the southern end of the coast where you can snorkel for an hour (they provide the gears). Then you turn back and sail further away from the coast to have a wider perspective of the coast. The captain tops it off with one hour extra sail out to the ocean north of Na Pali coast where wind is strong and waves pound over the boat so you get soaking wet. It’s kind of like "perfect storm" except you come out alive exhilarated.ONE MINOR LACKCaptain Bob and his assistant were really folksy people who took a good care of the passengers, explaining and answering questions. They only left us wanting for better quality food (we had a choice of roast beef or turkey sandwich), although they had plenty of drinks. But then, during a sail, you probably don’t want to indulge a gourmet meal lest you get seasick. Anyway, after we came back to the calm waters of Hanalei Bay, we were convinced that we had taken the best sea tour in Kauai.