Lanai Island Information

Hawaii's "Secluded Island." Formerly known as the "Pineapple Island," Almost the entire island was until recently a Dole Company pineapple plantation but is now phasing in tourism, and is home to two new world class resorts.

CLIMATE At Lanai City, the average temperature ranges from 66 (°F) to 73 (°F) and the average annual rainfall is 37 inches - a very arid island.

CULTURAL HISTORY Largely uninhabited until the 1500's, Lanai, as part of Maui County, is now a multi-cultural society with immigration from:

• Polynesia - 700 A.D.
  
• United States - 1820
  
• China - 1852
  
• Japan - 1868
  
• Portugal - 1878
  
• Puerto Rico - 1900
  
• Korea - 1903
  
• Philippines - 1906
  

ECONOMY Hawaii's cost of living is one of America's highest, its per capita personal income below average. In fact, Hawaii's cost of living for a family of four is estimated to be approximately 27% higher than the U.S. average for a comparable standard of living. In 1999, Hawaii's average per capita personal income of $27,544 was 3.5% below the U.S. average - the price of living in Paradise!

The State of Hawaii's major sources of annual income include:

• Tourism - $10.3 billion (1999)*
  
• Federal Defense Spending - $4.2 billion(1999)
  
• Sugar - $133.1 million (1998)
  
• Pineapple - $145.1 million (1998)
  

* Tourism annual income figures are deceptive, since a percentage of tourism dollars do not remain in the Islands, but are returned to overseas investors.

The 1990's has been the worst decade in Hawaii's economic history since World War II due, in large measure, to the decline in tourism from the East and the demise of the sugar and pineapple industries. To meet the challenges of the 21st Century, Hawaii is working to diversify its economy with a focus on industries such as science and technology, health and wellness tourism, diversified agriculture, ocean research and development, and film and television production.

Formerly known as the "Pineapple Isle", Lanai was once the largest single pineapple plantation in the world - now reduced to less than 100 acres. Today, over 98% of the land on Lanai is owned by the Lanai Company, Inc. (a development firm). Lanai's major source of annual income is tourism.

EDUCATION Lanai :

• K-12 students (1995): 606
  
• Public schools (1995): 1
  
• Private schools (1993): 0
  

GEOGRAPHY The Island of Lanai has an area of approximately 141 square miles with 47 miles of coastline. Lanai is 13 miles wide and 18 miles long, with only a few miles of paved road.

Lanai is:

• located in Polynesia
  
• near the center of the Pacific Ocean
  
• just below the Tropic of Cancer
  
• one of the most remote spots on Earth
  
• 2,326 miles west of California
  
• the sixth largest of the 8 main Hawaiian islands
  
• the only location in Hawaii from which 5 other Hawaiian islands can be viewed.
  

GEOLOGY Lanai (the fourth youngest island in the Hawaiian chain) was formed by a single shield volcano creating a volcanic land mass of rolling tablelands and steep, eroded gorges. Red lava cliffs and mesquite bushes give way to giant stands of towering Cook pines - and green mountains at higher elevations.

GOVERNMENT In Lanai, as throughout the State, there is no separate municipal government. As part of Maui County, it has an elected mayor with a four-year term (two-term limit) and a nine-member council with two-year terms.

OFFICIAL COLOR AND FLOWER The official color is yellow and the official flower is the kaunaoa.

POPULATION Lanai had a resident population of 2,989 in 1995.

TOURISM Lanai had approximately 95,000 visitors in 1999.

Data Source: DBEDT