Discover Lanai
WE'RE YOUR EXPERTS TO LANAI!
Aspire to do less. Sleep in. Take the time to fully appreciate brunch. Under-plan your day. On Lanai, indulging yourself can be a full-time job. At Lanai’s two opulent resorts, treat yourself to every blissful luxury. Linger over an exquisite dinner. Succumb to an hour and a half massage. Soak in the whirlpool until your toes prune. And if there’s time, perhaps you can make it to the beach. If not… oh well. Perhaps you can squeeze it in tomorrow.
Lanai is the sixth largest of Hawaii's islands and the smallest of the accessible islands. It has a population of around 3,000 people. Every Hawaiian island has a nickname; Lanai's used to be 'The Pineapple Isle' because 16,000 acres (more than 90 percent of its land) were used to grow pineapples. Recently, brochures and maps have begun to refer to the island as 'The Private Isle', because of its secluded, quiet nature.
Much of Lanai is like a blank slate. It isn't covered in black lava rock like the Big Island or covered in greenery like Kauai. It's an empty expanse of sparse brown grass, red earth and blue sky, crisscrossed with dirt roads and dotted with fields. The highway that leads to town is simply a windy two-lane road, while the harbor is the size of a lakeside harbor in any county park on the mainland.
Lanai Quick Facts:
- For nearly 70 years, Lanai dubbed the "Pineapple Island," was operated as a pineapple plantation by Dole Company.
- Today there are two exclusive, world-class hotels, the Lodge at Koele and the Manele Bay Hotel. In addition, the Experience at Koele and the Challenge at Manele provide visitors with award winning, world-class golf.
- Golf, tennis, diving, snorkeling, sailing, fishing, hunting, ocean-rafting, kayaking, horseback riding, hiking, mountain biking, and exploring by four-wheel-drive vehicle are among the outdoor activities residents and visitors enjoy on Lanai.
- In season, November to April, whale-watching abounds in the winter breeding and calving grounds of the giant humpback whales in the waters surrounding Lanai.
- This relatively undeveloped island features wide open spaces with only 30 miles of paved roads, one airport, and one plantation village boldly named Lanai City, where virtually the entire island population lives.
- The waters of Manele Bay and Hulopoe Bay are designated as marine preserves, and the snorkeling and diving spots are among the best in Hawaii.
Accommodations on Lanai:
On Lanai there are two exclusive, world-class hotels, the Lodge at Koele and the Manele Bay Hotel. Click here to browse accommodations available on Lanai.
Activities & Attractions:
MANELE BAY SMALL BOAT HARBOR
A port for yachts, fishing boats, the ferry to Maui, and departure for whale-watching, snorkel sailing, scuba diving, and ocean rafting along Lanai's southern shore.
HULOPO'E BAY
Boasts a jewel of a white-sand beach, picnic and camping facilities, shady palms, brilliantly-hued fish, and gentle waves for swimming. Beach park facilities include picnic tables and barbecue grills, showers and rest rooms.
PUU PEHE
Amid Manele and Hulopoe Bays, is the setting of a sad Hawaiian legend of a maiden so beautiful that her husband kept her in a sea cave lest others steal her away. They lived happily together; until one day while he was in the mountains fetching water, a storm surf surged into the cave and drowned the maiden. He buried her atop the virtually inaccessible rock island offshore, and then jumped to his own death. The island is called Puu Pehe after the beautiful maiden.
KAUMALAPAU HARBOR
A working port where pineapples were once loaded onto ships bound for Honolulu and the Dole Cannery. Today, almost all the island's supplies arrive on barges from Honolulu once a week on Thursday. The area has a scenic overlook and a reputation for good shore fishing.
LANA'I CITY
The 1920's era plantation village all island residents call home. Cool and quiet at 1,600 foot elevation the Cook pine trees tower over narrow streets lined with tin-roof cottages. Old style stores, two local style restaurants, banks, art gallery, a police station with a wooden jail in the yard look much like they did decades ago. Hotel Lanai, built in the 1920's is still open with 11 quaint and comfortable guest room. A new restaurant, Henry Clay's Rotisserie, has been added.
THE CAVINDISH GOLF COURSE
A public nine-hole, par 36 course in the pines on the edge of town is free to residents; visitors are asked to leave a free will donation to help with upkeep.
THE EXPERIENCE AT KOELE
A spectacular 18-hole championship course designed by Greg Norman and Ted Robinson spreads over a high plateau and the rolling hills below, with a 200-foot drop in between.
THE CHALLENGE AT MANELE
Designed by legendary golf professional Jack Nicklaus, is a target style championship course with breath-taking vistas perched on cliffs at the water's edge designed around protected and preserved archaeological sites.
KAIOLOHIA
Also known as Shipwreck Beach, Kaiolohia is at the road's northern end, about eight miles beyond Koele. The beach lines the shore for miles, a wild and windswept strand, and a wrecked cargo ship rests on a reef in the channel between Lanai and Maui. Some inland rocks bear petroglyphs. Beachcombers might find glass fishing floats or driftwood, and hardy hikers can continue eight miles north to Polihua Beach.
Adventures off the beaten (or paved) path...
THE MUNRO TRAIL
Winds up from Koele through mountain grasslands, where rain forests of ohia lehua, pine, ironwood and eucalyptus line the mountain's backbone ridge to the summit of Lana'ihale. Accessible on foot, mountain bike, or four-wheel-drive, this scenic seven-mile long road follows the tip of the mountain, affording breathtaking views of plunging canyons and on a clear day, six islands--Lanai, Maui, Molokai, Kahoolawe, the Big Island and Oahu. George Munro, ranch manager at the turn of the century with great foresight, planted the ridge and the highlands with Cook Island pine trees to draw moisture from the passing clouds and provide an adequate watershed for the island.
KANEPU'U
Where the Garden of the Gods is located, is an eerily beautiful windswept landscape sculpted by the raging forces of nature. Here, rocks scorched by ancient eruptions have been bared and carved by erosion into irregular pinnacles and buttes. At sunset, the brick-red earth is washed with a spectrum of desert colors. A reverential visitor during the 1930s was inspired to give the area its English name because he thought the giant stones evoked "god-like" images.
The Native Hawaiian Dry land Forest at Kanepu'u is an area of rare plant life now under the stewardship of the Nature Conservancy. Some 48 native species can be found here, including the endangered Lanai sandalwood, rare Hawaiian gardenia, and local relatives of the olive and persimmon.
KAUNOLU
Kaunolu is at one end of an ahupua'a (traditional land unit), located on the southwest shore of Lanai. This particular area is the location of a deserted pre-contact Hawaiian village, which was once a vigorous fishing community. Kaunolu is also the site of a Heiau (place of worship) and a place of refuge called Halulu which was still in use between 1778 and 1810.
LUAHIWA
Luahiwa is located at the other end of the ahupua'a of Kealia Kapu which also borders the pre-contact village site and modern interpretive park of Kaunolu. Here, in a cluster of large stones, is located the Luahiwa rain heiau. Many boulders are adorned with petroglyphs and others were believed to possess the mana (spiritual power) of the rain gods Ku and Hina.
KEOMOKU VILLAGE
Once a thriving sugar settlement, Keomoku Village has been a ghost town since the turn of the century. The area, southeast of Shipwreck Beach, includes Kahe'a heiau. Local lore blames Keomoku's demise on the disruption of the heiau stones by railroad builders. The old town site has a picturesque weathered wooden church. Several islanders have volunteered to shore up the little church for preservation purposes.
LOPA BEACH
A remote beach beyond Keomoku toward the end of the trail. Some residents fish at Lopa with throw net and spear, as their ancestors did.
LANAIHALE
From this 3,370-foot vantage point, all of Hawaii's islands except Kauai and Niihau can be seen on a clear day.
LUAHIWA PETROGLYPHS
En route to Palawai Basin, site of an old Mormon Colony, these petroglyphs are among the best preserved in Hawaii.
NAHA TRAIL
Paved by Hawaiians more than a century ago, this trail is now a jeep road leading to an old village site.
PUU NENE
At 2,755-feet, this is the second highest point of elevation on the island. The surrounding area supports many game animals, including axis deer.
