Many have been regarding the Hawaiian island of Molokai to be “the last Hawaiian place.”  This island is called “friendly isle” and has a population of about 7,000.  With unspoiled rural natural beauty, mountains, waterfalls and locals that are sticklers for keeping it that way, Molokai has become what seems to be the last authentic Hawaiian island.  The island has no traffic lights, and the tallest building is two stories.  Due to these features, Molokai attracts the fewest visitors of all Hawaiian islands, only 76,000 in 2006 compared to Maui’s 2.2 million annually.

 
 There are only two hotels on the island:  the Hotel Molokai, and the Lodge at Molokai Ranch.  The Polynesian-style, 54-room Hotel Molokai runs partly as a time share and offers some of the only night life of the island with hula Sunday nights and Hawaiian music Fridays and Saturdays.  The Lodge at Molokai Ranch is more upscale and houses 22 rooms and a seaside camp of 40 beachfront “tentalows” on the island’s west end.

 The Island’s goal is a 5-year plan that will increase jobs and small-business opportunities, but where it is acceptable to residents, meaning it will stay protective of natural resources and respectful to native Hawaiian Culture.  The pace is slow and peaceful here, and the residents want to keep it that way.  Many say that the locals of Molokai are not open to outsiders and tourists, but that’s not exactly true, they just prefer laid-back visitors that abandon that “me-first” attitude.  They are just looking for tourists who visit and walk away thinking that they wouldn’t want to change a thing.