Kauai--the northernmost and oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands--is a little bit out of the way. About 2,400 miles from the nearest continent, to the north the Pacific stretches unbroken to Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, and to the south about the same distance to the islands of Polynesia. Before dashing off to experience everything there is to do on Kauai, remember this island's main attraction is its natural beauty and the unassuming lifestyle of the people. Pace yourself and let the local culture sink in wherever you go. There's always something going on somewhere-free hula shows, coffee plantation tours, a ride on a slow boat up the river. You can rent a bike and fly down a mountain, find a kayak and paddle upstream, go diving, horseback riding, or sports fishing. You can go to a luau, take the kids to a discovery museum, listen to Hawaiian musicians strumming soft guitars or just stare at the moon. It's all good on Kauai.

Northernmost and oldest geologically, Kauai is the fourth largest of the main Hawaiian Islands. Nearly circular in shape, Kauai's land area encompasses 552 square miles, 25 miles long by 33 miles wide . Only 3% of the land area has been developed for commercial and residential use, leaving the remaining 97% divided between agriculture and forest. The majority of the island's approximately 58,000 residents live and work in the coastal areas leaving the interior of Kauai spectacularly beautiful and pristine.

Kauai is famed for its diverse and scenic wonders, such as the 3,567-foot deep Waimea Canyon, stretching 14 miles across the western end of the island and often called the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific," and the 3,000-foot high mountain cliffs that rise from the ocean floor to form the magnificent, unspoiled Na Pali Coast. There are a number of other differences that make Kauai unique from its sister islands:

No structure can be built more than four stories high, approximately the height of a mature coconut palm.

Kauai has 43 white sand beaches, more beach per mile of coastline than the other islands.

Kauai has the only navigable rivers in Hawaii.

Kauai has been the film location site for more than 50 major motion picture and television films including, classics such as "South Pacific", "Blue Hawaii" with Elvis Presley, and more recently "Jurassic Park", "Mighty Joe Young" and "Six Days/Seven Nights."

Kauai has three of the top 10 golf courses in the state of Hawaii, one of which has been ranked in Golf Digest's " 100 Greatest Courses in America."

The largest coffee plantation in Hawaii is the Island Coffee Company's 4,000-acre Kauai Estate Plantation.

62% of Hawai's taro production is grown on 200 acres in Hanalei, on the north shore.

The National Tropical Botanical Garden is head-quartered at Lawai.

Guava Kai Plantation in Kilauea, with 480 acres of guava orchards under commercial cultivation, is the undisputed guava capitol of the world.