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Kauai , aptly nicknamed the Garden Isle , is the Hawaiian island treasured for its lush tropical greenery and sparkling sand beaches . Visitors to the island worship not only its postcard-perfect beauty, but Kauai's diversity of cultures , activities , shopping , and dining .

Verdant rainforests, impressive golf courses , vibrant scenery, friendly faces, blissful breezes, and striking waterfalls are just a few of Kauai's spectacular offerings to its guests. Exploring Kauai is to unearth secrets more than five million years old, the world's greatest natural wonders , and an island that proves that, like fine wine, some things get better with age.

Walk along beaches where the ocean marries the coastline in a heavenly match, watch with childlike awe as dolphins and whales swim in their natural habitat, and observe from a premier vantage point in your helicopter the panoramic beauty of Kauai's remarkable vistas. Vacations to Kauai are lifetime experiences that you will want to share -- with the distinct difference as the one trip you'll take that your friends will want to hear all about (and with more than a tinge of envy).

Mother Nature's moods run the full spectrum for Kauai's fortunate visitor. Where else in the world can you discover an island that truly bestows everything to its guests: soft, refreshing coolness atop a mountain; brief, misty rain showers; arid desert land, and the ever-smiling warmth of the sun and the sand?

The city of Līhuʻ e, on the island's southeast coast, is the seat of Kauaʻ i County and the second largest city on the island. Kapaʻ a, on the "Coconut Coast" (site of an old coconut plantation) about 6 miles north of Līhuʻ e, has a population of nearly 10,000, or about 50% greater than Līhuʻ e. Waimea, once the capital of Kauaʻ i on the island's southwest side, was the first place in Hawaiʻ i visited by British explorer Captain James Cook in 1778. Waimea town is located at the mouth of the Waimea River, whose flow formed one of the most scenic canyons in the world. At 3,000 feet (914 m) deep, Waimea Canyon has been called "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific".

1992's Hurricane Iniki may have caused an indirect change in Kauaʻ i's ecosystem. Some say a chicken farm was destroyed, causing all of the chickens to roam free that one may see today. Others say that sugarcane plantation laborers in the late 1800s and early 1900s brought and raised chickens (for eating and cockfighting) and many got loose over the years and multiplied. Whatever their original source, Kauai is now home to thousands of wild roosters and hens, roaming the island with few natural predators. Wild roosters have been known to disturb evening quiet time at odd hours with their crowing. Currently, the Humane Society is investigating the death of large numbers of Kauai chickens. The deaths are most likely due to bacterial infections caused by over-population

The island of Kauaʻ i has been featured in more than 70 Hollywood movies and television shows, including the musical "South Pacific" and Disney's 2002 animated feature film and television series Lilo & Stitch . Waimea Canyon was used in the filming of the 1993 film Jurassic Park . Parts of the island were also used for the opening scenes of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Other movies filmed here include Six Days Seven Nights, the remake of King Kong and John Ford's 1963 film Donovan's Reef. Coco Palms Resort is a famous resort located on this island and many of Elvis' films including Blue Hawaii were filmed here. The resort was damaged in the Hurricane in 1992, but is set to reopen by 2010.

Kauaʻ i is home to the U.S. Navy's "Barking Sands" Pacific Missile Range Facility, on the sunny and dry western shore.

Kauaʻ i was known for its distinct dialect of the Hawaiian language before it went extinct there. Whereas the standard language today is based on the dialect of Hawaiʻ i island, the Kauaʻ i dialect was known for pronouncing /k/ as /t/. (In fact, Kauaʻ i retained the old pan-Polynesian /t/, while Hawaiʻ i has innovated and changed it.) Therefore, the native name for Kauaʻ i was Tauaʻ i , and the major settlement of Kapaʻ a would have been called Tapaʻa.