Lydgate Beach — Attraction in Kauai

This is a Kauai must for family with young kids. The beach has two "pools" segregated by lava rocks from the ocean. Yes, they are connected to the ocean as fish swim in and out following the tides. The colorful variety is unbelievable for a snorkel at a beach so close ashore. The pond appears to be governed by a dozen BIG blue fish. How big? The length of my forearm! lol... They come out to patrol the ponds from time to time, often break into team of 7 and 5 per my observation. They love hearing the Wows from kids, and I could feel them laughing, hahaha. I was so curious where they reside, and followed them all the way to the lava rocks. Apparently, they live outside of the rock rings and only come in several times a day to "patrol". Some locals use the beach as a therapeutic place. Some of them come early in the morning, when the water is peaceful like mirror, finish their laps of the day, then go about their businesses. On the weekend, there's a volunteer who teaches water aerobic. So fun to join and splash for one or two hours. This is a beach where nature and human live in harmony and love, hence I say it's a must visit if you ever...

We went to check out this park with our toddler as recommended by a local. The park itself was very beautiful, the beach/ocean on one side of the parking lot, and lush green fields on the other. The grounds were very clean and had had picnic tables/shelters.

I’m giving this park 4 stars because I wasn’t as impressed with the playground. It was very large and creative with many pathways in/out and a variety of play features, but it overall seemed dirty, weathered and old. There were only two other families at the play structure when we were there, but I would raise caution during a busier time as you could easily lose track of your kids!

Overall it was a cool park, the playground was fun but it wasn’t a ‘must-see.’...

My 7 year old's favorite beach during our December visit to Kauai. Two large "pools" of ocean water that are protected all around by huge jetty breakwaters create calm conditions for swimming and snorkelling, especially for the kids (mine are 7 and 9). The smaller of the "pools" is shallow enough that my kids could touch bottom throughout, while the larger gets to be about 10 feet deep in the middle. Good snorkelling all along the jettys, plenty of fish to spot. Beach is protected by life guards and the park features lots of covered areas, picnic tables...