The sea temperature at Kauai (Na Pali Coast) today is 26.5 °C (80 °F) – refreshing to pleasantly warm water, ideal for most people. The usual October average is 26.6 °C. The forecast for the next 3 days is around 26.5 °C. Over the last 30 days the sea temperature has held at around 26.5 °C. Swimmable all year – the sea averages 24 °C or more in every month. Source: Sea Temp Map (seatempmap.com) – NASA MUR satellite data and the Copernicus Marine sea forecast.
| Month | Min | Avg | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24.1°C / 75.5°F | 24.5°C / 76.1°F | 24.9°C / 76.8°F |
| February | 23.7°C / 74.7°F | 24.1°C / 75.4°F | 24.4°C / 75.9°F |
| March | 23.6°C / 74.4°F | 24.0°C / 75.2°F | 24.4°C / 75.9°F |
| April | 23.9°C / 74.9°F | 24.2°C / 75.6°F | 24.6°C / 76.2°F |
| May | 24.8°C / 76.7°F | 24.9°C / 76.7°F | 24.9°C / 76.8°F |
| June | 25.2°C / 77.4°F | 25.5°C / 77.9°F | 25.8°C / 78.5°F |
| July | 25.6°C / 78.0°F | 25.8°C / 78.4°F | 26.0°C / 78.7°F |
| August | 26.1°C / 78.9°F | 26.4°C / 79.4°F | 26.7°C / 80.0°F |
| September | 26.2°C / 79.2°F | 26.7°C / 80.1°F | 27.3°C / 81.1°F |
| October | 25.8°C / 78.4°F | 26.6°C / 79.9°F | 27.1°C / 80.8°F |
| November | 25.5°C / 78.0°F | 25.9°C / 78.6°F | 26.3°C / 79.3°F |
| December | 24.7°C / 76.5°F | 25.0°C / 77.0°F | 25.3°C / 77.5°F |
| Month | Min | Avg | Max |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 21.7°C / 71.0°F | 22.4°C / 72.4°F | 23.1°C / 73.5°F |
| February | 21.2°C / 70.2°F | 22.0°C / 71.6°F | 22.7°C / 72.8°F |
| March | 21.3°C / 70.3°F | 22.2°C / 71.9°F | 22.8°C / 73.0°F |
| April | 21.7°C / 71.0°F | 22.5°C / 72.5°F | 23.1°C / 73.6°F |
| May | 22.4°C / 72.4°F | 23.3°C / 74.0°F | 24.0°C / 75.2°F |
| June | 23.2°C / 73.7°F | 24.2°C / 75.5°F | 25.0°C / 77.0°F |
| July | 23.7°C / 74.7°F | 24.7°C / 76.4°F | 25.4°C / 77.8°F |
| August | 24.1°C / 75.4°F | 25.1°C / 77.3°F | 25.9°C / 78.6°F |
| September | 24.3°C / 75.7°F | 25.2°C / 77.4°F | 25.9°C / 78.7°F |
| October | 23.9°C / 75.0°F | 24.7°C / 76.5°F | 25.3°C / 77.6°F |
| November | 23.3°C / 73.9°F | 24.0°C / 75.2°F | 24.5°C / 76.2°F |
| December | 22.3°C / 72.2°F | 23.0°C / 73.4°F | 23.5°C / 74.2°F |
5-year averages (2021–2025). Min/Max are typical daily lows and highs, not record extremes. (Copernicus ERA5)
Na Pali Coast holidays
No road runs along the Na Pali Coast, a stretch of about 27 km of fluted cliffs, hanging valleys and sea caves on the north-west shore of the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Its ridges rise to around 1,200 m in places, and the coast is protected as Na Pali Coast State Wilderness Park.
Beaches
Ke'e Beach, at the end of the road in Haena State Park, is where the Na Pali Coast begins; a reef shelters a lagoon that is good for snorkelling when the sea is calm in summer, and visitors from outside Hawaii should check the current rules and book entry with parking or with the shuttle in advance. Hanakapiai Beach, about 3 km along the Kalalau Trail, is beautiful but has deadly currents, and swimming is strongly discouraged. On the north shore of Kauai, Tunnels Beach has reef snorkelling and Hanalei Bay is a wide sandy bay with surf in winter. The sea temperature on this page is measured off Ke'e Beach.
Things to do
The Kalalau Trail follows the Na Pali Coast for about 18 km to Kalalau Beach; the first stretch to Hanakapiai can be hiked as a day walk, but going further requires a camping permit. Boat trips from the south-west of Kauai sail past the cliffs and sea caves, and helicopter tours fly over Na Pali and Waimea Canyon. From the other side, the Kalalau Lookout in Kokee State Park looks down into the Kalalau Valley. Elsewhere on Kauai, boats on the Wailua River take visitors to the Fern Grotto, and Kilauea Point has a lighthouse and a seabird refuge.
Weather and best time to visit
At Na Pali Coast the sea stays above 24 °C / 75 °F all year, even in the coolest month.
Kauai is warm year-round, and the north shore is greener and wetter than the sunny south around Poipu. From about May to September the sea along the Na Pali Coast is usually calmer, the season for boat trips, kayaking and swimming at Ke'e Beach. From October to April big north swells can close beaches and make the coast dangerous, and heavy rain can flood the streams on the Kalalau Trail.
Hotels and where to stay
Princeville and Hanalei on the north shore are the closest bases for the Na Pali Coast, Poipu on the south shore is sunnier and has big resorts, and Kapaa and Wailua on the east coast lie between the two.
Signature hotels: 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay (Princeville) · Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa (Poipu)
Airport and getting there
Lihue Airport (LIH) on the east coast of Kauai has flights from Honolulu and the other islands as well as direct flights from the US mainland. From Lihue it takes about an hour and a quarter by car to Haena and Ke'e Beach, and about 25 minutes to Poipu.