Molokai Itinerary - Day 1 - Information On Molokai Hawaii

This is the first day of your Molokai, Hawaii vacation and it might be full of stress and some unpleasantness, or at least it might start off that way. The actual traveling portion of a vacation isn't fun at all, regardless of the destination.

You'll probably start your day off with plenty of stress. Did you pack everything you're going to need? Is your flight on time or delayed? Will you get to the airport on time? And then there is the dreaded TSA. A marvel of engineering that seems destined to rain on your parade while simultaneously crushing your dreams.

Get through it all and now you've got a long flight in a tiny, uncomfortable seat on a loud airplane that's likely full of rude passengers who all like to sneeze without covering their mouths. Even worse, there are no direct flights to Molokai from the mainland so you'll also have to deal with switching planes as well. Okay, maybe it won't be that bad but I'm probably not far off in most cases. No matter what, plane travel is stressful. Of course, if you're traveling to Molokai as part of a larger Hawaiian vacation and this is simply an island hop then it likely but won't nearly as bad but there's still a lot going on during this day of travel.

Slow down, this is Molokai! Image credit: Heather

The best thing about arriving in Molokai is that the Molokai Airport (MKK) is small and anything but stressful. Watch as your stress and worries quickly fade away into nothing on this sleepy island. Get your bags and your rental car figured out and head to your hotel, condo, or wherever you're staying. There is truly no point in rushing around so take your time and soak it all in. Get checked in and when you're ready we'll head back out.

Mail a coconut!

Depending on the time of day you flew into Molokai, you'll either have time to go do and see something or very little time. Assuming you have some time then this is a great opportunity to first head to the post office! That's right, you traveled all the way to Molokai to go to the post office, how exciting. This isn't any post office though, it's the Post A Nut at Hoolehua Post Office. Never heard of it? It's a post office where you can actually mail a coconut. I'm not talking about putting one in a box and mailing it either. You literally address and stamp the actual coconut itself. Kids will love this! You could also tender your resignation via coconut so you can live the Hawaii life (see Hawaii Living: Getting Started). Or maybe not.

Image credit Forest and Kim Starr

If we still have time before the sun goes down and before dinner, let's head out to a beach. You came all the way to Hawaii so we need to get your toes in the sand. The main town here is Kaunakakai so you'll want to find a beach close to this town if it's getting late, otherwise you can venture out a bit and find the perfect Molokai beach.

As dinner time approaches, start thinking about where you'll want to eat. Keep in mind that Molokai isn't exactly loaded with tons of restaurants like the other main islands. Click here to see a list of all Molokai restaurants.

Also know that Molokai isn't known for its nightlife so once dinner is over there really won't be much to do here. This is a good time to head back to your hotel (etc) and spend a little time unpacking and getting your stuff setup for the days ahead. Tomorrow is your big day with a trip to Kalaupapa National Historical Park so get a good night's sleep.