Oahu to Molokai - Kalaupapa Father Damien Tour
Very inspirational and unforgetable experience
Exceptional. We enjoyed our flight from Honolulu on a small Makani Kai airplane to Kalaupapa (a small peninsula on the east side of the island of Molokai). You step into a different world there that is quiet, isolated, peaceful & are 'on island time' (time slows down here - take a book to read while you wait for the tour to start and the return air flight etc.). We went to see the Kalaupapa National Historic Park & lighthouse there (we are National Park and lighthouse fanatics). We were driven around the peninsula in a school bus and our guide Norman was very knowledgeable abut the outstanding work that Father Damien & Mother Marianne did to help the people that were exiled here because they had the feared leprosy (Hansen's) disease. Some of the surviving patients and families have chosen to continue to live here. All are now cured, but still have the scars that leprosy leaves.
This was one of the highlights of our exploring trip to the 6 main islands in Hawaii. As a bonus, we got great views of the great Molokai sea cliffs. We are also glad that we took the airplane ride and chose not to take the mule ride or hike down the sea cliffs to Kalaupapa.
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| Attended as: | Couples | ||
| Posted on: | 2015/05/07 | ||
| See individual review | |||
Helpful
A great trip to the most unusual island in Hawaii
We wanted to explore all 6 of the main Hawaiian islands on our trip and so included a trip to Lanai. We signed up to take the ferry, shuttle, & Jeep rental package. We drove to Lahaina on Maui & rode the 9:15 AM ferry for the 45 minute ride to Manele Bay on Lanai. We then took the shuttle to the Dollar rental place in Lanai City (a small community in the center of the island with no traffic lights) and we were given an almost new air conditioned Jeep to drive around for the day. We were well aware of the landscape on Lanai - so it wasn't a surprise to see very little vegetation and no good beaches there. We took our time and drove east to Shipwreck Beach & then north to the Garden of The Gods (a truly unique moonscape like place). Then back into town for a casual lunch & finally out to the west coast to see the barge harbor (not much there). We turned in our Jeep (after filling up with $4.50 per gallon gasoline) & were taken back to the ferry dock & ferry ride back to Lahaina in the evening. A very full day and worth it - not something to do again, but worth it to say that we explored this very little visited island. We had no problems with the ferry, shuttle or Jeep reservation.
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| Packages: | 2 Door Jeep Rental | ||
| Attended as: | Couples | ||
| Posted on: | 2015/05/07 | ||
| Activity Date: | 2015/04/18 | ||
| See individual review | |||
Helpful
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Thanks, Jan and Cathy for your nice review. Your words brought back those special memories that are so hard to describe...the peacefulness and quiet of Kalaupapa, the feeling of somehow going back to Old Hawaii. I am truly pleased that you enjoyed the tour. It's not for everyone, but for those who understand and appreciate the role that Kalaupapa played in Hawaii's history, the tour is time well spent. Thanks for using Makani Kai. - P.J. O'Reilley