Spent 5 days on Kauai (April 8-13) and spent many hours on this forum researching the trip before we went. To me, a glaring topic is undiscussed here and I feel that it should be. Take a deep breath all you Kauai lovers...the following is one travelers experience and opinion and I%26#39;m not bashing everyone on the island or questioning your taste.
The place is absolutely breathtaking. I am so delighted that I went and got to see one of the most stunning places you could imagine. We stayed at the Princeville Resort. Location was excellent and maybe the place needs updating but only the PICKIEST person (like, a regular at new Ritz Carltons) could find fault with it. Service was wonderful. Folks at the hotel were relaxed, open, and friendly.
Here%26#39;s my gripe: We encountered pretty consistent poor attitudes and some downright unfriendliness from local service people (not at the resort). I%26#39;m not going to call out any of the specific entities, but at restaurants, coffee shops, snorkel gear places, and grocery stores, people%26#39;s behavior was not what I have come to expect from a resort town that is seemingly dependent on tourism. Attitudes ranged from begrudging acknowlegement to disdain.
At one place we placed our order for coffees, the young lady began to make them, and then as each ';local'; walked in she set ours aside to make their drinks with no comment or explanation to us. Obnoxious. At FOUR restaurants no greeting was given by the host/hostess--just a curt ';how many';--no smile either. At three of those restaurants our server never introduced themselves or smiled. Is this a diner in the Bronx or a fine restaurant at an expensive tropical island? I seriously had to wonder. By day three of the trip I was actually incredulous that people were this outwardly hostile.
My husband I kept having these experiences and looking at each other and trying to not laugh--it was that ridiculous, overt and childish.
Here%26#39;s another example: At a snorkel store in Hanalei Bay we arrive at 8:50am the door is PROPPED open, the lights and the and music are on. I get within 1 foot of the doorway and the girl (20-25 years old and standing right inside the door arranging a display) barks at me ';You%26#39;ve got to give me 10 minutes. We don%26#39;t open until 9.'; This, in a snippy tone. Ooops. Sorry. Didn%26#39;t think to check the hours of operation on your front door SINCE IT WAS OPEN. How about an ';I%26#39;m sorry, Ma%26#39;am. We don%26#39;t open until 9 and I%26#39;m not quite ready yet.'; That would have worked.
Went back AFTER 9am to get the gear from the snippy woman. We walk in and look around and go up to the counter and say ';Hi. We need some snorkel gear.'; She sneers at me, no greeting, and spits out a curt ';Rent or buy';. We say ';rent';. She says (pointing at me sharply ) ';Okay.
First. You. Leave the coffee up front or outside before we do anything.'; No ';please';, no ';would you mind';.
Overall I have to say that we experienced widespread simmering hostility. Maybe this is a north shore thing? People we met later said that they did not have this experience when staying in the Poipu area.
Now, I will call out the businesses that gave us exemplary service:
NaPali Catamaran--AWESOME, friendly, welcoming. Sam and Nick ran our tour and they were fantastic.
Polynesia Cafe--Very nice, very yummy, and very appreciative of our business.
Kalypso-The only restaurant that scored 100% for being friendly. Funny, but their ad says '; You will be greeted in a friendly manner. '; They must know this is an issue. THEY%26#39;RE ONTO SOMETHING!!!
Duane%26#39;s Ono Char Burger-YUM and nice--even though they were insanely busy.
Jo Jo%26#39;s Shave Ice--The total bomb. Nice guy. Cool place. Delicious goodies.
Again, probably our last visit. With vacation time so limited, a place gets one strike. Unless you all can convince me that there was some kind of planetary disruption....
First Trip To Kauai - Probably Our Last
Aloha from Kaua%26#39;i!
';widespread simmering hostility';!! -- first of all I%26#39;m sorry that your experience here on our beautiful island was so horrible. As you acknowledge, this is a beautiful place and we who live here are generally aware of how lucky we are to be able to afford to live here.
People here in my experience (I%26#39;ve lived here for 11 years) are almost invariably gracious, friendly and go out of their way for you - the number of times I%26#39;ve been helped out by a total stranger cannot even be counted. I have seen residents stop on the side of the road to help out visitors with flat tires or other automotive issues - pull people out of the sand at Polihale, the list goes on and on.
Service folk here depend on tourism for their living - we all know it - while I can understand that you might have run into one or two disgruntled folks (that happens anyplace on the planet) - I find it amazing that ';attitudes ranged from begrudging acknowlegement to disdain'; were found almost everywhere you went.
I don%26#39;t know you so I cannot say anything about you or your attitude towards others.
I know that a smile and a friendly attitude and not being being pushy make a big difference here in a place where ';island time'; is slower than on the mainland.
The girl at the coffee shop - maybe the folks who got their coffee ahead of you were workers who get the same order every day at the same time in order to get to work on time - I%26#39;ve had this happen to me numerous times at take-out places - no biggie.
Again, I%26#39;m sorry you have such a poor vision of this beautiful place - I assure you that it is not as unfriendly as you found it.
Malama Pono,
Janet
First Trip To Kauai - Probably Our Last
Been to Kauai 4 times and have never had rude treatment but then again, we always stayed in the Poipu area. Always had good service at Snorkel Bob%26#39;s. Not sure where you went. We haven%26#39;t been back to Kauai since 2002 but not because of the people. When we go to Kauai, we want to spend a lot of time hiking and unfortunately our kids aren%26#39;t big on long hikes. I would go there again just for the nature experience, get a condo and skip the offending restaurants and snorkel shop. It could be a north shore thing.
Thanks for all aspects of your trip report. The same topic of local, non-resort attitudes appeared on this forum a couple of months ago (when I intially started my research for travel to Kauai). I was startled by it then, but it%26#39;s always been in the back of my mind. I%26#39;m hoping for the best and expecting the worse.
Wow, t8, I%26#39;m so sorry you had such bad service.
We%26#39;ve been here 15 days so far and we%26#39;ve experienced nothing of the sort on the north or anywhere! In fact, quite the opposite and we%26#39;ve had really friendly people help us out when we were lost etc.
I wouldn%26#39;t count this island out all together. Who knows, perhaps down the road you may want to give it another chance. There is so much to do here and perhaps next time you will not encounter any negativity.
The only hassles we%26#39;ve had a couple of times was on the road. We%26#39;ve had some pushy people and one guy almost ran us into a ditch trying to squeeze by us. Someone cut us off once and another person beeped his horn and gave us the finger when hubby was stopped for a minute while picking me up from the grocery store. We just shrugged and took it... that kind of stuff happens everywhere.
Just because you%26#39;ve had some bad service (which is a shame on those places), it should%26#39;nt reflect the island as a whole.
I hope you take the good memories of this place with you! I know we will and will definitely be back again (although with our funds probably not for a while! :)
Take care,
Jen
blame it on planetary disruption. we always stay in north shore and have never experienced any negativity. it certainly is not a north shore thing. the whole island; the people, places, and the natural wonders, it%26#39;s all so wonderful. we%26#39;ve been going to kauai for years and have never ever had any bad experiences. my husband is a surfer, a blond mainland surfer, and even he has not encountered any hostility. if you know anything about the surf culture, you%26#39;ll know surfers are territorial. we go back to kauai year after year, sometime twice a year, for the aloha spirit, and the surf. we love the easy going life style most locals embrace. sorry to hear about your bad experience but i think if and when you return, you will agree there was certainly a disruption. what you experienced was an exception, not the norm.
Hmmmmm. I%26#39;ve never encountered anything like you experienced anywhere on this island. Strange. I can%26#39;t even begin to imagine what went wrong for you.
I am a big believer in if you give respect, you get respect.........if that doesn%26#39;t work I try to walk a mile in their shoes, if something there goes wrong, hey, I got their shoes, plus, I%26#39;m a mile away. I have also learned to treat disrespect in a certain way there is no mistake in my returning it tenfold. As you can tell, I keep myself pretty busy at times.
Must have been a full moon.lol Generally a smile invites a smile, but guess there can be rude people anywhere. Never had a problem when we visited. I wouldn%26#39;t let all the rudeness in the world though keep me from coming back if we can ever manage it again.
It saddens me to hear of such unfortunate and negative experiences. By and large I have had nothing but positive experiences on Kauai. Of course, no place is 100% perfect and friendly. One thing I must say too, there are times when some mistake the slower pace with rudeness. I%26#39;m not saying that you have done this; I%26#39;m merely pointing out what I think is a significant point. I remember when I visited Kauai back in 1996, when I brought my mother with me (her last vacation with me before she died two years later). We decided to have dinner at the Green Garden Restaurant (no longer in business) in Hanapepe. We thought that since it was regarded as a great ';local'; type place that it would be a great experience. The food was good, not excellent, and the service was very slow. My mother and I were the only patrons in the restaurant, though there were some locals at the bar. Our waitress seemed ';indifferent';, in that she did not ';pamper'; us as we might have experienced in a five-star restaurant. She took our order, served our food, and pretty much carried herself with no sense of urgency. For a brief moment or two, my mom and I were ';slightly'; irritated, but then realized that we were experiencing part of the culture of Kauai. It is a culture where being in a hurry is usually foreign. It wasn%26#39;t like the staff hated our being there, but I really had to convince myself that I was the one who needed to adapt. Yes, my hard-earned money is being deposited on this beautiful island and contributing to the Kauai economy. Yes, regardless of location, basic manners and kindness are universal and should be extended to all. My sense is that the experience I shared would be regarded by many as ';rude';. The waitress never asked us where we were from. Even though we were the only customers there (other than the people she obviously knew at the bar), I didn%26#39;t feel that she was being rude or inconsiderate toward us. Honestly, I walked out of the restaurant happy that I had experienced something ';local';, even though my mom and I weren%26#39;t greeted in the most warm and friendly manner. We need to remember that we are visitors, not just contributors to the Kauai economy. Had the waitress and her friends at the bar given us what is commonly referred to as ';stink eye';, or had been outwardly rude toward us by saying something mean or sarcastic, I would have been outraged (and rightfully so). Instead, the entire experience was ';laid back';, and the ';island pace'; simply prevailed. Slowing down and taking my time are a huge part of the Kauai experience for me. :)
I have been visitin Kauai almost every year since 1985 and I have NEVER EVER received the type of treatment stated. Actually, most people in most restaurants, stores, hotels, condo%26#39;s go out of there way to be super hospitible.
Very sorry to hear of your experience.
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