Hawaii’s Best-Kept Secret
For your next adventure, travel to the lesser-known Hawaiian island of Lanai, at Four Seasons Lanai. This opulent resort offers guests world-class accommodations, dining, and flawless service with a superb concierge service that caters to every detail of your stay. For the adventurous, Lanai is offers much for those who love to veer off the beaten path. Rent a Jeep and explore the island’s rugged backroads, hike, or horseback ride the island’s twining trails. Play golf on Lana’i’s world-renowned golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus, which overlooks Hulopoe Bay and panoramic views of the Pacific. The Manele course ranks among the best resort golf courses in the world. Enjoy a round of sporting clays or archery at Lana’i Pines Sporting Clays, at the northern part of the island where the glorious, landlocked Lodge at Koele is located amongst lush greenery and mountain forests.
If, however, you are looking for peace and relaxation, look no further. The spa at Four Seasons’ Sensei Lanai embodies the essence of serenity. “At Sensei, we help you fuel your passions and connect with your intentions to become well by offering enriching classes, new adventures, relaxing treatments, private wellness consultations and nutritious foods. Working with our co-founder and author Dr David Angus, our Sensei Way philosophy focuses on three paths – move, nourish, and rest – that help you familiarize and maintain a conversation with your body and mind. Movement is how we interact with our environment, nourishment is what fuels us, and rest is how we recover and grow.”
Choose from a daily selection of fitness and well-being sessions or book a private class in tai chi, yoga flow, anaerobic conditioning, advanced vinyasa, mediation, aerial yoga. Afterwards, find your inner peace and relaxation within your private spa, a thatched roof hale with steam shower, infrared sauna, Japanese ofuro bathtubs, climate-controlled plunge pools, and outdoor shower.
End the day, dine at Nobu Lana’i, one of the 60 Nobu Japanese restaurants worldwide. My husband and I enjoyed mesmerizing views of the Pacific Ocean from our table as we indulged in the “teppanyaki experience” (teppan, a metal plate and yaki- cooking with an iron griddle) as we watched Chef Hung Nguyen prepare an elevated 15-course menu before us accompanied by white wine and saki. The dinner started with sushi and poke, then intensified to a delectable sampling of seafood with shrimp, crab, and white fish, followed by a main course of chicken, venison, and wagyu. A delicious matcha crepe with adzuki bean ended the meal with a lovely soft balance.
On Lana’i you can find romance, serenity, privacy, luxurious accommodations, and fine dining. What more could anyone ask for?
By Kimberli Scott-Still