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Lanai ~ ~ Hawaii’s most secluded island
Lanai is a little world of its own. This lesser known haven was only recently opened to visitors. For most of the last century, James Dole’s Lanai was a pineapple plantation, fenced by an ocean. Formerly, the Pineapple Island was the world leader in production of the golden fruit.
The crop of Hawaii’s most secluded island is tourism now, nurtured at two exclusive luxury hotels with designer golf courses, stables, tennis courts and croquet lawns.
Lodging are the 250-room Manele Bay Hotel nestled above the island’s best beach, the 102-room Lodge at Koele in the cool green uplands.
Its crystal waters and abundance of colorful fish have earned Lanai a place among the world’s top diving spots. Many people enjoy Lanai on snorkel/sail excursions from Maui, sailing over for a few hours.
On land, the island has an open, wild appeal, with only 33 miles of paved roads. Its fields are ribboned with dirt trails that beckon to the adventurer. Visitors can explore the off-road wilderness in search of beaches, abandoned settlements and historic sites, deer an other introduced game, rock formations and petroglyphs, by way of mountain bikes and four-wheel-drive rental vehicles available through the hotels and in the only village, Lanai City.
Lanai, in Maui’s rain and shadow, is desert-dry and warm around the shores. But an unlikely crown of Cook Island pines planted on the mountain snags passing clouds to keep the uplands cool and misty.
With access limited only by the number of resort rooms, the island remains magically secluded. The people of Lanai maintain a quiet plantation lifestyle that is reminiscent of old Hawaii.
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