Just a reminder, these Destination of the Week pieces are not meant to be comprehensive guides to de

As winter really begins to set in over most of the country with freezing conditions, thailand travel it's time to start considering some sunny destinations where you can earn and use your points. That's why this week's Destination of the Week is: Kauai .
Kauai is the northernmost and oldest of the Hawaiian Islands. Though it has a ton of hotels, it's not quite as developed as Oahu or Maui, so it still feels like you can have an authentic Hawaiian experience without hordes of tourists ruining your vacation.
Because of the lush rainforests that cover the interior, it has been dubbed Hawaii's Garden Island, and has a variety of gorgeous landscapes for travelers to visit including the rugged Waimea Valley (known as the Grand Canyon of Hawaii), the scenic cliffs of the Na Pali Coast in the northwest, and the gentle thailand travel beaches of Poipu on the southern shore. Then again, thailand travel you can just relax by the pool or on the beach, spend an afternoon swimming, snorkeling thailand travel or sailing, and enjoy a fireside luau in the evening.
If you're interested in learning more about the island, its history, landscapes and particular destinations, the Hawaii thailand travel tourism board has a great page devoted to   with tons of information and resources for travelers.
Just a reminder, these Destination of the Week pieces are not meant to be comprehensive guides to destinations since we don't have the time or funds to visit all these places in person and report back to you. Nor are they instant endorsements of all the hotels thailand travel we mention. They are simply roundups of top destinations that we have specifically pinpointed for the opportunity they present to use your miles and points to get to and stay there.
Everyone has a story about how their vacation on Kauai was ruined by rain (I even have one from my own childhood—my family left after 3 straight days of rain one March and went to Palm Springs). The good news is that it's usually the interior of the island around Mt. Waialeale that's the rainiest (in fact, it's the rainiest spot on the planet with over 400 inches a year), but it's usually not so bad on the coast, and when it does rain, it's usually at nighttime and over quickly.
December-March are the rainiest thailand travel months—just when most folks hope to go there to escape winter weather—and though the north and east shores get a fair amount of rain, the southern (Poipu) and western (Polihale) sides of the island are the driest.
Kauai's main airport is Lihue (LIH). Though small, the airport does receive direct flights to six US Mainland destinations: thailand travel Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, Seattle and Phoenix. Otherwise passengers must transfer through Honolulu Airport on Oahu (about a half-hour flight) thailand travel or Kahului Airport on Maui (about an hour-long flight). Lihue is serviced by the major US carriers thailand travel including Alaska (starting at 20,000 miles each way), American (starting at 17,500 miles each way), Delta (starting at 20,000 miles each way), Hawaiian Airlines thailand travel (starting at 20,000 miles each way), United (starting at 20,000 miles each way) and US Airways (starting at 35,000 miles roundtrip), meaning you can use miles from any of the alliances to get here, or use these long flights from the Mainland to rack up frequent flyer miles.
Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort Spa : One of the island's highest-end properties, the Grand Hyatt recently redid its 565 guest rooms and 37 suites. thailand travel All have private lanais, pillow-top beds, flatscreen TV's, and rain showers in the bathrooms. The hotel has a saltwater lagoon where guests can swim and kayak, two freshwater outdoor pools connected by swimming "rivers" and a huge sundeck, plus three tennis courts, and the next-door PGA Grand Slam Poipu Bay Golf Course. The resort has a whopping 11 restaurants and bars, the fanciest of which is Hawaiian-Pacific fusion Tidepools on the lagoon, and a 45,000-square-foot Anara Spa set in tropical gardens with waterfalls and a lava rock soaking tub. The lowest rates we could find in February were $510 for a Garden View Room. This is a Category 6 hotel, so free night redemptions require a minimum thailand travel of 22,000 Gold Passport points for standard rooms, 27,000 for club rooms, and 33,000 for suites.
Kauai Marriott Resort and Kauai Beach Club: This is the classic Marriott hotel on the island, located not too far from Lihue on the southwest coast, so it's usually pretty sunny over here. This is a very family-friendly resort, so guests can swim at Kalapaki Beach, thailand travel and in Hawaii's largest single-level outdoor pool (a perhaps dubious distinction), play at the Kauai Lagoons Golf Course, or relax in the Alexander Spa Salon. There are also local excursions to Waimea Canyon State Park, Wailua Falls, and adventures like ziplining. Though the buildings are a little dated, the guest rooms look like they've thailand travel been redone recently thailand travel with crisp white linens and red-orange accents like throw pillows and sofas, and the bathrooms, thailand travel while they seem small, thailand travel do look nice with designer-ish sinks and full shower-tubs. thailand travel It's also got six restaurants and cafes including a sushi bar.  There are also Marriott Vacation Club Villas onsite at the Marriott Kauai Beach Club, in studio, one- and two-bedroom categories thailand travel with full-size living rooms including fold-out beds, plus kitchenettes. Rates for guest rooms at the hotel right now are starting at $269 a night, while villas at the Beach Club are starting at $234 a night. Both are Category 5 redemptions, requiring between 20,000-25,000 points for free nights, and when booking four consecutive nights using redemptions, the fifth night is free.
Marriott's Waiohai Beach Club : This is a Marriott thailand travel Vacation Club property thailand travel on the southwest side of Kauai near Poipu Beach. The guest rooms here are 2-bedroom "villas" that sleep up to six people. They have open living-dining thailand travel rooms with a full-size kitchen including a dishwasher, a washer-dryer unit, private balconies or patios, a queen-size sofa bed in the living room, and a master suite with a king-size bed and an deep soaking tub and separate shower in the bathroom. Another little perk? WiFi is free and there are no resort fees. The resort has three pools and five Jacuzzis, thailand travel a fitness center and game room for the kids, plus a roster of daily activities to keep families busy and an Alexander Day Spa. The one downside: no dinner restaurant on property. Instead, there's thailand travel the Honu Pool Bar and Grill for lunch, and the MarketPlace for groceries, so think about using one of the barbecue areas on the property. Rates in February start at $578 a night, This is another Category 5 hotel with the same point requirements.
Marriott's Kauai Lagoons : This MVC is actually quite near the Lihue Airport and adjacent to the Kauai Lagoons Golf course. There are only 72 two- and three-bedroom villas with bright, Hawaiian-inspired furniture. The villas include master suites with king-size beds and private baths, open-plan living/dining areas, private lanais, fully equipped kitchens with stainless steel appliances and granite countertops, washer-dryer unites, and flatscreens with DVD players in the bedrooms and living rooms. This is definitely more of a serviced apartment thailand travel situation since there are no restaurants on property, and just one outdoor pool. Rates start at $470 a night in February. This is another Category 5 hotel with the same point redemption requirements.
The final Marriott property on the island is a Courtyard near Coconut Beach in Kapaa on the island's east side. It was recently renovated to the tune of $13 million, thailand travel and now there's a fire pit by the pool, rooms have all been redone with native elements like koa wood. Though construction is done, apparently some recent guests still had no WiFi and said breakfast was subpar for the moment, thailand travel but hopefully the hotel is on top of that. There are 309 rooms total and they look spacious and pretty standard for Courtyard product.  65% of them have ocean views and private lanais. The hotel has a market, a casual breakfast restaurant, and another open-air restaurant overlooking the pool that's open for lunch and dinner and serves pupu platters. There's thailand travel a mid-size outdoor pool, and the property fronts Makaiwa Beach, which is safe for swimming, and there is also a full-service Pua Day Spa onsite. Rates start at $229 a night this month, or Category 4 redemption options of 6,000-7,500 points per night with the fifth night free.
St. Regis Princeville Resort :  One of the toniest resorts on the island, the St. Regis Princeville Resort is built into the cliffs overlooking Hanalei Bay on the northern coast, and has tons of luxury features and amenities in the 252 guest rooms like "privacy glass reveal" windows in the bathrooms that cloud up or clear on demand for views of the scenery. thailand travel Guests have access to the Makai Golf Club, a 5,000 square foot infinity thailand travel pool overlooking the ocean, five restaurants and bars including the Kauai Grill from famous chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and the Halele'a Spa. One of the resort's most unique thailand travel features thailand travel is its on-staff marine biologist "Ocean Butler" who can escort guests on snorkeling and scuba tours of the coral reef in the bay below the resort. The hotel has also just opened a cabana designed by Trina Turk where guests can spend the day surrounded by the designer's wares (she designed everything in it from towels thailand travel to dishes), or use it for a private romantic dinner on the beach. Rates in February start at $450 a night. thailand travel This is a Category 6 hotel requiring between 20,000-25,000 Starpoints for a free night, or 8,000 Starpoints + $150.
Sheraton Kauai : This resort near Poipu on the sunny south coast has been undergoing a renovation of its public areas including the ocean front pool, and a new poolside bar and restaurant called Lavas. thailand travel RUM FIRE, the signature restaurant will be open by April. Overall, the resort covers 20 acres with 394 rooms including 11 suites. The rooms look like they've had a recent redecoration as well, with plenty of sand- and earth-toned upholstery, dark-wood four-poster beds, marble bathrooms, and other us