The site of a pre-contact Hawaiian village just inland from Po‘ipu Beach was set aside by the county in 2010. You can’t enter the complex, which is being restored by community volunteers. During the 14th century, it held a heiau (temple) dedicated to Kane, the god of fresh water, as well as homes, fishponds and taro patches. A viewing area stands beside a stone platform that was used for astronomical observations, where four carved ki‘i (tiki images) have been re-erected.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Poʻipu Beach Park

0.25 MILES

There are no monster waves or idyllic solitude at the South Shore's most popular beach, but it's a go-to spot with something for everyone. Patrolled by…

2. Brennecke's Beach

0.28 MILES

With a sandbar bottom and a notch of sand and sea wedged between two lava rock outcrops, this little beach flanks the eastern edge of Po‘ipu Beach Park…

3. Moir Paʻu a Laka

0.43 MILES

On the grounds of Outrigger’s Kiahuna Plantation complex, this diverting, if modest, cactus and exotic flower garden established in the 1930s boasts…

4. Poʻipu Beach

0.43 MILES

This long swath of prime sand west of Po‘ipu Beach Park is open to all, even if it does stretch right in front of the hotel and condo complexes from which…

5. Makahuena Point

0.82 MILES

West of Shipwreck Beach, condo-covered Makahuena Point is the southernmost tip of Kauaʻi.

6. Shipwreck Beach

0.99 MILES

Unless you’re an expert surfer, bodyboarder or bodysurfer, keep your feet dry at ‘Shipwrecks,’ the half-mile crescent of light gold sand that skirts…

7. Makawehi Point

1.19 MILES

This gigantic lithified sand dune towers east of Shipwreck Beach, overlooking Keoneloa Bay. Resist the urge to jump off the cliffs; people have died.

8. Baby Beach

1.2 MILES

Introduce tots to the ocean at this beach, where the water is barely thigh high. The sandy shore runs behind the beach homes on Ho‘ona Rd west of Koloa…