Koloa Landing Resort - by Madeline Lu @lumadeline

Off we go to Jurassic Park! No, It is not the Universal Studios in LA I am talking about, but the the Garden Island of Hawaii, Kauai. There’s a reason why this beloved lush island is the backdrop for many blockbuster films such as Jurassic Park, Indiana Jones, Pirates of the the Caribbeans: On Stranger Tides. This tropical paradise is the home of some of the most gorgeous scenery on the planet. Therefore, you can understand our excitement to explore this island this Thanksgiving break.

If you have done your research on where to stay in Kauai, you probably would reach the same conclusion as I did, which is the south shore of the island. It is the most sunny and dry part of Kauai. Moreover, there are a perfect string of crescent-shaped beaches, each having its own particular shoreline environment. The most popular of these is the legendary Poipu Beach. The calm waters, swimming, snorkeling, and diving have made it world famous and it is ranked as one of top best beaches in the United States. To my delight, I found out that Autograph Collection (one of my favorite collection of hotels) has a property here - Koloa Landing Resort. If you have never heard of Autograph Collection , I urge you to check it out asap. It is a collection of some of the most unique and beautiful Marriott resorts around the world. Back in April this year, we had the pleasure of staying at the Cotton House Hotel in Barcelona, which is one of my absolute favorites.

Located right beside the famous Poipu beach, Koloa Landing Resort is an exclusive Hawaiian retreat surrounded by lush topical plants and crystal blue waters. It is one of the island’s latest luxury hotels with panoramic view the South Shore. Our two-bedroom condo is not only spacious, but also very functional. There is a fully equipped kitchen (they even had blender and all the bakeware), a launderette, two full bathrooms, two bedrooms, a huge living room and lots of storage space. You can easily stay comfortably here for a week or two. There two pools in the resort, one infinity pool and another fun pool which include water slices, waterfalls, and jacuzzis. These pools were rated one of the best hotel pools in the U.S. by Forbes magazine.

There are many dining options in as well as close by the resort. HoloHolo Grill does fantastic Hawaiian style dishes throughout the day. And 2 minutes car-ride (less than 10 minutes on foot) away, you will find a beautiful shopping village, Kukui’ula, which has many great restaurants, gourmet market and other kind of shops.

Couldn’t wish a better place to start our Kauai vacation. Do make sure you check out their website/blog and they offer amazing sales from time to time.