LANAI ALMANAC

Once the home of the world’s largest pineapple plantations, the island of Lana‘i has reinvented itself as an idyllic resort hideaway. One thing that hasn’t changed, however, is the island’s sheer natural beauty.

Changing Times. It wasn’t that long ago that Lana‘i was known as Hawaii’s "Pineapple Island." But gone are the thousands of acres of this juicy, tangy fruit. Lana‘i is now a resort island offering visitors everything from world-class golf and snorkeling to hunting and clay shooting. The island’s resident population barely tops 3,100. (By comparison, the membership of the Hawaii State Bar Association more than doubles that number.) Almost everyone on the island lives in ambitiously named Lana‘i City.

Around the Island. Hulopo‘e Bay marine preserve is considered one of the finest diving spots in the world, and is the best place on the island to see spinner dolphins, who frequent the sandy-bottom bay. Heading north, Shipwreck beach is a beachcomber’s paradise, while the Garden of the Gods (Keahikawelo) offers a dramatic lunar-like landscape that erosion has made art. East of Lana‘i City is the misty rain forest of 3,366-foot Lana‘ihale, the island’s highest elevation point.

History. In ancient times, Lanai was thought to be controlled by evil spirits. The island was largely uninhabited until the 1500s. Entrepreneur James Dole purchased the island in 1922 and converted parcels of land into pineapple fields. At its peak, Lana‘i was exporting 75 percent of the world’s pineapple. As the industry dried up, the Castle & Cooke Company (which owns 98 percent of the island) shifted its emphasis from pineapple to tourism, and in the early 1990s built two upscale resorts and a pair of championship golf courses. Today, less than 100 acres of pineapple remain for local consumption.

Fast Facts: Lana‘i is the smallest of the six major Hawaiian islands, encompassing 141 square miles and only 47 miles of coastline. Lanai’s official color is orange. Its official flower, the light-orange kaunaoa, is really more of a vine. It is braided and twisted to form an open-ended lei.

Did You Know? Lana‘i may be small in size and population, but it’s absolutely huge when it comes to physical fitness. The Lana‘i High physical fitness team is a 25-time state champion and has even won several national competitions….Microsoft’s Bill Gates must love Lana‘i. On January 1, 1994, America’s wealthiest man basically "rented" the entire island for his wedding to Melinda French….Lana‘i is the island in the state where you can see five other Hawaiian islands.

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