Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
students from islands throughout the Pacific. Some students work as guides at the
Polynesian Cultural Center (PCC), a tourist mega complex that draws nearly a million
visitors each year.
Laʻie is thought to have been the site of an ancient Hawaiian
puʻuhonua
- a place
where
kapu
(taboo) breakers could escape being put to death. It later became a refuge for
Hawaii's Mormon missionaries, after their attempt to establish a ʻCity of Joseph' on the
island of Lanaʻi failed amid an 1860s land scandal. Today, Laʻie is the center of the Mor-
mon community in Hawaii. Built in 1919, its dazzling white hillside temple (open only to
church members) is the Windward Coast's most incongruous sight.
Beaches
Laʻie Beach Park
BEACH
MAP
(Kamehameha Hwy [Hwy 83])
A half-mile south of the PCC's main entrance, this is an ex-
cellent bodysurfing beach, but the shorebreak can be brutal, thus its nickname Pounders
Beach. Summer swimming is generally good, but watch out for strong winter currents.
The area around the old landing is usually the calmest.
Hukilau Beach
BEACH
(Kamehameha Hwy [Hwy 83])
Just over a half-mile north of Laʻie Shopping Center, this
tucked-away pocket of white sand is a leisurely place for swimming in summer when
waters are calm. In winter, beware of strong currents and stay out of the water any time
the surf's up. The beach is named for a traditional Hawaiian method of communal fish-
ing with dragnets.
Sights & Activities
Polynesian Cultural Center
THEME PARK
MAP
(PCC; 800-367-7060;
www.polynesia.com
; 55-370 Kamehameha Hwy; adult/child 5-11yr from
$50/36; noon-5pm Mon-Sat, closed 4th Thu of Nov & Dec 25;
) Showcasing the cultures
of Polynesia, this theme park operated by the Mormon church is one of Oʻahu's biggest
attractions, second only to the USS
Arizona
Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Continually over-
run by tour-bus crowds, the nonprofit theme park revolves around eight Polynesian-
