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Consolidated "Molokai - Where to stay, what to do, where to eat, activities" thread

Consolidated "Molokai - Where to stay, what to do, where to eat, activities" thread

Old Dec 7, 2005, 1:01 am
  #16  
 
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Consolidated "Molokai - Where to stay, what to do, where to eat, activities" thread

My wife and I just got ourselves our Christmas vacation.

I had a friend of mine offere me a free oceanview condo on the west side of Molokai yesterday.

Before thinking too long I went and found without any trouble Delta Skysaver seats from PDX-HNL for Dec 14-Dec 27. We will take islandair to get to Molokai.

We are excited but don't know anything about Molokai.
As far as I understand it's pretty, i.e. very relaxed island with 7000 natives there. They have no traffic lights on the whole island.

Has anyone every been there? Can you recommend on what to do and how to entertain ourselves for 12 days of being there? Or should we tak a ferry to Maui everymorning and stay there the whole day?

Any info and advise would be appreciated in adavance.
Thanks so much
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Old Dec 7, 2005, 2:39 am
  #17  
 
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Smile Molokai is laid back

Originally Posted by [email protected]
My wife and I just got ourselves our Christmas vacation.

I had a friend of mine offere me a free oceanview condo on the west side of Molokai yesterday.
First, Molokai is quite beautiful. My stay there was a few years ago, but I'm sure nothing has changed. While I loved Molokai and would go again, I want to caution you....

Have you ever sat in the dentist chair with novocaine in your jaw, just waiting for the dentist to come back. You wait and you wait and then after a while you just start to doze off... THAT is what might happen to you on Molokai. :-)

I tell people that Molokai is the island to go to when you want to write the "Great American Novel" and not be inturrupted. I'm not saying this to scare you or change your mind. Imagine a deserted island. Since few visitors actually go to Molokai, you may find yourself invited to someone's house for Christmas.

I found everyone I met very friendly and liked the island, but thought that after a few days I might have gone stir crazy. Then again, I have to have things going on. Your mileage may differ.

I have some photos here: http://myhawaiiansite.com/molokai.htm

I see no specific events listed at http://gohawaii.com

Here is a linkwhere you might call t osee what might be happening while you are there http://molokai-hawaii.com/
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Old Dec 7, 2005, 7:46 am
  #18  
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Seeing as you're staying for 12 days, you may want to go to Maui for a bit, but don't go there every day. There's plenty to do on Molokai, including simply relax.

Here's a trip report I did two years ago:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=181847

A whale watch trip may be an option toward the latter portion of your stay. You're going right when whales typically start to arrive.

Be sure to go to Kalaupapa, the leper colony.
There are also a lot of good hikes on the island. If you like hiking, pick up a guidebook. I picked up one at the pharmacy/five-and-dime in town.

Here's another thread that might be helpful:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showt...hlight=Molokai
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Old Dec 7, 2005, 2:49 pm
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Thank you all for the posts. Seems like we got ourselves a very relaxed vacation.

We are both 25 so we hope we can survive through 12 days of Molokai rest .

Do you know of a ferry that takes people to Maui? Can we put a rental car on a ferry? We thought it would be cool to go to Maui but take our rental car with us...

Is there snorkling and scuba on Molokai? Any places in particular you would recommend?
Timeshare presentations to attend ?

We went to Maui for our honeymoon last year and we loved it. But it's great to come back to Hawaii again!

Thanks
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Old Dec 7, 2005, 7:15 pm
  #20  
 
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Originally Posted by [email protected]
Thank you all for the posts. Seems like we got ourselves a very relaxed vacation.

We are both 25 so we hope we can survive through 12 days of Molokai rest .

Do you know of a ferry that takes people to Maui? Can we put a rental car on a ferry? We thought it would be cool to go to Maui but take our rental car with us...

Is there snorkling and scuba on Molokai? Any places in particular you would recommend?
Timeshare presentations to attend ?

We went to Maui for our honeymoon last year and we loved it. But it's great to come back to Hawaii again!

Thanks
Try this websitefor the ferry http://www.molokaiferry.com/. You might want to stock up on food for any holiday that you may be on Molokai. There are'nt many restaurants, and they tend to close very early and on holidays. When you grocery shop, check the expiration dates on the food, not too much volume in the stores. Try the Molokai sweet bread at the bakery in town, it's something that people bring back from Molokai for gifts. There used to be horseback riding at Molokai Ranch, but I don't know if you need to be staying in the cottages to use their facilities. Have fun, Molokai is a very unique place!!!!
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Old Dec 8, 2005, 9:59 am
  #21  
 
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I returned from a trip to Maui last week. My friend and I took a one day Molokai package from the Molokai ferry group. It's listed as "Cruise/Car Molokai Package"

I'll address some of the OP's questions:

-You can't bring a car on the ferry. It's a small boat that has no room for cars.

-You'll definately want to take the ferry to Maui as there is a ton of stuff to see in Maui. You can hit the main sites on Molokai in a day. As others have said, the island is more about relaxation. Staying there for 12 days will give you time to hike the trails and just relax.

-I just saw that in a later post, you said you had already been to Maui. I'm guess, then, that you've seen most, if not all the sites. If you haven't, then you should go check out the places you missed on your first trip. If you have seen everything, then you still might want to go to Maui if you start to get bored in Molokai.

-You could take the ferry to Maui every day, but keep in mind that it will cost you $80 a person round trip every day if you wanted to do that.

-There is a ferry between Maui & Lanai if you want to check out Lanai at some point.

Last edited by rhwbullhead; Dec 8, 2005 at 10:12 am
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Old Dec 8, 2005, 6:03 pm
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In 12 days you should be able to see all of Molokai a few times over PLSU check out Maui and take an overnight trip to the Big Island. The inter-island flights are pretty reasonable, and if you've never been to Hawaii, the Big Island, in my opinion is the grandest of them all.
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Old Jul 19, 2008, 12:42 pm
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Molokai for a month!

Well we (husband and myself) already reserved the lodging on Molokai for the whole month of March. I'm feeling like this may have not been a good thing to do meaining staying on one island for a full month. We have been to Maui, BI, and Kauai in past years for a week-3 week stay, but never longer then one week on a single island during each vacation.

We realize its laid back and probally wont be much to do except appreciate the beauty and solitude of the Island.

Please post any personal experiences,suggestions good or bad if you have been to Molokai in the past or if your planning to go during that time period. Maybe we can meet. ~ Thank you!

Last edited by freespirit; Jul 19, 2008 at 2:59 pm
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Old Jul 19, 2008, 4:47 pm
  #24  
 
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What is the name of your lodging?
Just curious since the Molokai Ranch is shut down.

If you can get access to Kalapapa it is the most beautiful place in Hawaii.
I was told it will be a National Park when the last resident passes.

A month is a long time on Molokai.
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Old Jul 19, 2008, 5:27 pm
  #25  
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You can have a great time on Moloka`i for a month -- if you go with some different presuppositions than what folks often have in mind when they think of "Hawai`i vacation."

First of all, tensions are running high on Moloka`i right now. Google "lau point molokai" or "molokai master plan" and read some news stories. I don't pretend to know what the answer is, but the ante has been upped significantly with the closing of Moloka`i Ranch -- which employed a large percentage of island folks. So there's a certain grimness in the air on Moloka`i. This can occasionally translate into resentment of tourists who clearly have all the money in the world (or they're perceived that way).

Second, over the last few years, speculators and part-time mainlander folks have basically significantly damaged the east Moloka`i community. There are some details in my trip report here (and you might find it of interest in general).

Third, my admittedly brief experience on Moloka`i is that it is the tourists who come for the "unspoiled real Hawai`i" experience and then complain because every grocery/convenience store on the island closes by 8:30 p.m., etc., etc., who are given the most stink-eye. There are also no gourmet restaurants on Moloka`i, but there are some good, decent "local-kine" places.

Fourth, the very best way, in my opinion to experience the "real Moloka`i" is to go (if you're into this sort of thing), one of the local churches for Sunday worship.

Moloka`i is different: it's only got about 7000 residents. It's a "working class" place with very strong and long family traditions. It's kind of a hard-scrabble place and my impression is that it doesn't get the share of Maui county monies that could help some of its infrastructure problems (facilities at parks, e.g.) It's also the only island (other than Ni`ihau, of course) that is majority ethnic Hawai`ian.

Hope those ruminations help. For me: I'd go back in a minute and gladly stay a month.
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Old Jul 19, 2008, 6:12 pm
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I'm from Maui and I go holo holo to Moloka'i on a regular basis. From what I've learned from my friends over there, CBLAISD's points above are spot-on. There definitely is some strong anti-developer sentiment on Moloka'i, but it doesn't directly translate into anti-tourist sentiment as long as YOUR attitude is properly adjusted.

The majority of Moloka'ians have made a decision, as a group, that they will willingly give up a degree of economic prosperity in return for not becoming "another Maui". They are horrified by things like:

1. Maui Upcountry residents who no longer have unfettered use of their own roads and emergency services due to the ubiquitous lawlessness, trespassing, and "screw-everyone" attitude of the universally-hated downhill bike tour companies.

2. Zillionaires who buy $5 million condos in Wailea which they use two weeks a year, who then spend 90% of the time between when they step off their chartered Gulfstreams to when they fly back out screaming at the local plumber "what do you mean you can't fix my toilet for five weeks????" or screaming at the local mechanic "what do you mean it'll take six weeks to get a new headlight for my Mercedes ????"

3. Local surfers and boaters who are losing unfettered access to their local spots due to abuse by unregulated, poorly regulated, or just plain uncooperative commercial kayak / surf / diving businesses.

Anybody who shows up on Moloka'i exhibiting anything remotely along those lines will have a hard time.

Read CBLAISD's post carefully, and you will have a magnificent time on Moloka'i. It's the last great "secret spot" in the Hawai'ian Islands, so shhhhhhhhhhhh - don't tell anyone.
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Old Jul 20, 2008, 7:05 am
  #27  
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While I agree with everything that cblaisd and TheMightySkunk wrote (very informative - thank you), I can pretty much tell you that unless you have a *really* mellow island disposition, a month on Moloka'i is too long.

I spent a week there, and while it was longish, it was just right. At the end of the week, I was ready to leave. (Though I would go back...)


P.S. It's one of the places where I've come real close to drowning, so I do have a healthy respect for it in a weird way too...
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Old Jul 20, 2008, 9:18 am
  #28  
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My report is a bit old, but some things don't change ...like that there should be plenty of whales around in March. Also lots of good hiking and empty beaches to enjoy.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showt...847&highlight= (posts 2, 7 and 10 have the most info specific to Molokai - the Molokai Ranch post is obviously no longer relevant.)

Also, a bit of an overview from this month's Conde Nast:
http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/articles/12583

Last edited by l etoile; Jul 20, 2008 at 9:52 am
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Old Jul 20, 2008, 1:58 pm
  #29  
 
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Smile Thank you all for the information.

Thanks for all the responses.

We will be staying at the Wavecrest Resort. We picked that resort as we wanted to be direct oceanfront, the condo is in building "A" second story. We are going during Whale season and hopefully we can see them from our Lanai. The owner seems real nice and he worked out a REAL good deal for a month stay. Recently remodeled condo and is set up with DSL and an office area with printer for our laptops, which we will have to utilize (as unfortunately we will have to work during the day as normal while we are there) BUT the positive side of that our work hours will be from 4-5AM -Noon M-F. because of the time difference. Therefore we will not loose any work days or income while we are on vacation and will still have plenty of time to enjoy Molokai.

Yes, I have heard the ranch has shut down and have regularly googled Molokai before we even made our decision to stay there. I understand that there is termoil on the island now due to La'au point and the ranch wanting to develope etc. It is very sad and I sincerely feel for the locals on the island that this has happened and that there is controversy between them. Wish the ranch would have stayed open, I just feel for all the people that losts there jobs.

I think we will adapt fine to the surroundings of Molokai as we come from a small North Idaho resort type town of less then 300 residence. The closest bank, gas station, large grocery store etc. is about 45 miles RT for us to drive to even our small convience store in town is only open from 9-6 PM daily and it seems as if our small town rolls the sidewalks up by dark. In the summer all the vacationers come to our area for summer fun and vacations etc. So population of 300 goes to about 2,000 easly in the summer months, but only for about 3 months and then it is back to us locals to enjoy the mountains, lake and area. Where we live MAYBE a dozen vehilces drive by our place on a daily basis and thats only because there is a working horse ranch past our place about 3 miles away. Our closest neighbor is about 1/4 mile away.

We are a very laid back couple and get along with people easily, so I think we will be fine we will not be going with a "attitude" that the locals would find offensive. We picked Molokai for the very reasons it is noted for the quietness and slow pace. We felt the other islands were to busy for us when we did visit them. But we do love all the islands that we have visited so far.

My husband loves music and loves to play music any chance he can get, we probally will be frequently going to the jam sessions they have in Kaunakakai to listen to music and maybe my husband can sit in with them and play. Thats IF I can talk him into bringing one of his instruments like his guitar or fiddle.

Thanks for all the responses so far - it has made me feel better about a month stay.

Maholo,

Last edited by freespirit; Jul 20, 2008 at 3:09 pm
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Old Jul 20, 2008, 4:18 pm
  #30  
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freespirit: I had noticed your location and figured you would have no trouble adjusting. If you ever do find yourself in need of "the big city", it's just a short hop to get to one of the other islands for the day. Your husband may even decide he needs to get a ukulele made. Last time I was there a seasonal resident was flying to Kauai to pick his custom-made ukulele up so he could participate in those Friday night jams.
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