Living in Kilauea, Kauai

Kilauea is a charming little town on the North Shore of Kaua’i. In the early nineteen hundreds, it was selected for purchase as a sugar plantation. The expansive flat land and the wet weather were an excellent combination, and the plantation was very successful until its closure in 1971. Due to the town’s historic nature, you will find that many buildings and a handful of homes are nearly a hundred years old and built with fieldstone. Roughly half of the commercial buildings in the town date back to plantation era, giving the town a sense of rich nostalgia. Kilauea is also renowned for its historic lighthouse - which was built in 1913 and placed on the National Register for Historical Places in 1979 – as well as the National Wildlife Refuge, which was established in 1995.

Just off the road to the Kilauea Lighthouse is Seacliff Plantation, a gated community of homes with land size ranging from three to ten acres. Seacliff Plantation borders the National Wildlife Refuge, and every home site enjoys ocean, mountain, and river views. It is a quiet, relaxing, and private community of newly built custom homes and open lots. Next to Seacliff Plantation, you will find Kilauea Farms, which is a mixture of private estates, family and commercial farms, and horse pastures. The central area of Kilauea is dominated by homes built in the late 1970s and 1980s after the plantation closed and the land was sold. Many have recently been remodeled, and there are also some new builds and a few open lots spotting the landscape.

The town of Kilauea is very community-based, which could be a reflection of the fact that many of its residents have been there since plantation days. It is an ideal community for those seeking a quiet, relaxed, or active lifestyle on the north shore. There are a handful of boutique shops and restaurants conveniently located with more coming soon at the new Kilauea Lighthouse Village.