5 stars for excursion, some logistics noted - This was a fantastic excursion! Our guide Will was great! He is knowledgeable, enthusiastic, patient, and passionate about sharing his knowledge (and respect for) the history, culture and nature along the tour. The tour is five hours of fun and gorgeous scenery. We never felt crowded or rushed (which can sometimes be a downside to group excursions). Note: The guide has the challenge of keeping their eyes on everyone at different skill levels. A few folks on our tour couldn’t complete the hike portion so it required some adjustments and patience. Note: whether you booked directly or through a third party, you should make sure you place your lunch order in advance. If you do not receive a request (we did not), you get a default turkey sandwich. In my case, I am vegetarian, so that was a problem for my diet. There is no way to adjust your menu option once onsite and you will be super hungry after the paddling and hike! Note: our booking (3rd party) said walking sticks are included. They are not, but you can find your own along the way, which became kind of a fun game. They were very helpful once found. Note: Wear good strong soled shoes! I am so glad I saw this on a previous review. Not water shoes or water sandals. I am glad I muddied my Hokas. The tread is needed. The mud and rocks are super slippery on the hike portion. Good cushion and traction made all the difference. Note: it’s not an “easy” trek. Know your activity level. We are active adults in our 50-60s and loved it. Some struggled. This is 2 hours kayaking, and 2+ hours hiking through mud, crossing through water over unseen and slippery rocks, etc. It’s not for everyone, but it’s absolutely five stars if you know what to expect!

Great trip for all! - Our group of 6 loved this adventure! Our guide, Izzy was amazing. Highly recommend booking the 1:00 trip. You will be a bit wet and muddy, but it is worth it!

Izzy is the best tour guide! - Absolute amazing trip. Far exceeded our expectations. We had done a kayak-hike to the secret falls 15 years ago. This trip now is so much better, even after the terrible floods Kayak had in April. We learned so much about the trees, birds, and devastating floods that required so much time and effort to rebuild. Izzy gave us so much more than just a kayak and hike tour. We got to feed and interact with the bird, Baby and her bird dad. We got to kayak at our own speed. We got to swing on a rope swing (not sure my ride constitutes a swing 😜). We had a great lunch at the waterfall. Since the floods, the trail is challenging but doable using walking sticks (if desired) and taking your time. You are crossing river sections, walking on a new boardwalk, but also walking on very muddy, rocky areas with roots. Izzy did an awesome job making sure everyone was safe and together. She had a tremendous amount of knowledge and information about Hawaiian culture and the natural surroundings. There were also many benefits by using Kayak Kauai - they depart right from the river; they provide lunch choices you select when making your reservation; you receive fresh pineapple at the end of the tour; and Izzy makes sure you get pictures in various places along the tour. If we could give a higher rating than 5, we would. A++++++ for Izzy and Kayak Kauai.

Amazing Experience - Izzy was incredible. She took the time to help two couples make the trip and went above and beyond for them with patience and compassion. She also made sure the rest of us had an awesome time. The trip on the river and hike to the falls are strenuous, but well worth it. We even got to feed the “pet” birds on the trail! 10 out of 10!

Great experience- highly recommend! - The experience was awesome! Our guide, Justice, was amazing! He made the trip fun and was very knowledgeable about Hawaiian culture and the area where we kayaked and hiked. The secret falls was breathtaking! It is not an easy trek - 4 miles of kayaking and 3 miles of hiking through the forest over areas that were rocky. Bring really good shoes! It was definitely a fun adventure and I highly recommend!

Amazing experience - We had the best day!!! From the beautiful weather, the calm kayak conditions, the lush hiking environment, the spectacular falls and our amazing guide Justice, we could not have had a better experience. Justice was incredibly friendly, super knowledgeable, funny (dad jokes lol), patient and an overall great guide who thoroughly enjoys what he does. As novice kayakers, we had no issues but the river was very calm with very little wind. As intermediate hikers we found the trail fairly easy to navigate as long as we were mindful on the rocks and roots. On the hike, you WILL get muddy and you WILL get wet crossing 4 streams and 1 river but it’s all worth it once you reach the breathtaking falls. The lunch supplied by the tour was pretty good too as we picnicked at the falls. Hiking shoes/sandals or running shoes are best. For anyone with mobility issues, they may find parts of the hike difficult. We would highly recommend this tour as it was the highlight of our time on Kauai!!

Great Experience for Seniors - We really enjoyed this kayak and hiking experience. We’re about 70 years old, and this was close to the edge of our envelope, but it was exhilarating. Our guide, Jason, was great. He was safety conscious, entertaining, knowledgeable and friendly. I had the impression that he loves his job. He was also very careful with the well being of the older people in the group. The river is beautiful. You just can’t beat the scenery. The trail is rough, but the muddiest spots are boardwalked. The falls are lovely, and the history of the place is very interesting. The overall organization of the service seemed very good to me. Our experience was smooth and uniformly a lot of fun. The equipment was in good shape. Thanks for such a good time Wailua River Kayaks (and Jason)! Our party was photo 36.

Multi-sensory Active Adventure! - Excellent multi-sensory Active Adventure! We were a family of 7 adults who went on the afternoon tour 3/22/24 with Will as our guide. The kayak portion was beautiful along the winding Wailua. Will provided information about the historic significance of the hills and mountains, as well as Hawaiian culture during the paddle. Then a true hike through the rain forest, across streams, and over well- worn but uneven terrain on dirt paths. Our final destinations, the sacred Falls, was beyond any of her expectations. We had 45 minutes to enjoy the waterfall pool in the Falls and a great picnic lunch. The water was refreshing and invigorating and energized us with the food additionally for the hike and paddle back. Our ages range from 34 to 69 and Will made it incredibly meaningful and enjoyable for all. Definitely a repeat experience for anytime we return to the island and we will tell our friends it’s a “must - do”if visiting Kauai! Thank you Will and Kayak Kauai!

Beautiful kayaking experience - Kayaking up the river and enjoying all the green around us was amazing! The river was going to fast so we were unable to go on our hike but they let us know that we would be getting a partial refund for not going on the hike.

Favourite adventure day on the island! - We rented two double kayaks from Kauai Kauai and ventured out for the day on our own. Kayaked for approximately 45-60 min down the river which was peaceful and beautiful (we were not in a rush). Parked the kayak and hiked to the sacred falls (again about 45-60 min). It is not a manicured path - which we loved as it was a bit of an adventure. Wearing good shoes that could get wet (needed to hike though streams) was imperative. Finally getting to the falls was pretty amazing - and swimming in them was incredible. One of our favourite days on the island for sure! Recommend if you have a bit of an adventurous spirit! (There were lots of guided tour groups but we loved going on our own).