Four Seasons Resort Lanai
Four Seasons Resort Lanai is a Four Seasons resort hotel in Lanai City on the island of Lānai, the smallest and least inhabited of Hawaii's six major islands that once was recognized for its pineapple plantation. Lānai has two other hotels, Sensei Lanai, A Four Seasons Resort, and Hotel Lanai, a 3-star boutique hotel.
Originally opened as The Manele Bay Hotel in 1991, the hotel started operating under the Four Seasons brand in 2005. After it underwent a major renovation from 2012 to 2016, the Four Seasons Resort Lanai reopened in 2016. It has 168 rooms, 45 suites, and a golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus.
History
Manele Bay
The Mānele Bay Resort was built in 1991, the year of Lānai's last pineapple harvest, which began in the 1920s by James Dole, dubbed the King of Pineapple. Over the following decades, the island became a major supplier, and in some years it accounted for 75% of the world's production of pineapple. But a few years after it bought the Dole Corporation, Castle & Cooke announced its intention to transform the island into a luxury resort destination, and in 1985, after being acquired by David H. Murdock, Castle & Cooke started taking serious steps for the new development plan. Construction began a few years later and the Lodge at Koele was built and opened in 1990, followed by The Mānele Bay in the next year.Four Seasons Resort Lanai
The hotel came under the management of Four Seasons in 2005. When it reopened under the new brand, it reflected a combination of Polynesian and Hawaiian designs, along with many rooms that had large lanais and views of Hulopoe Beach, which offered snorkeling.In 2012, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison bought 98% of the island from Castle & Cooke for a reported $300 million, with the remaining 2% owned by the state. Ellison decided to transform the Manele Bay into a luxury resort at a cost of $450 million. It took years of work and a seven-month closure before it was completed in February 2016, with the hotel's lobby redesigned three times. It featured rooms designed by Todd-Avery Lenahan.
Property
Four Seasons Resort Lanai has 213 guest rooms, including 45 private suites. Other amenities include spa services, pools, and fitness facilities. It has three meeting rooms that have of space and hold up to 560 people. It includes a Nobu restaurant run by chef Nobu Matsuhisa; Ellison owns another Nobu restaurant in Malibu.The resort was constructed with a 7,039-yard, par-72 championship premier golf course designed by Jack Nicklaus.
Rating and awards
Four Seasons Resort Lanai is ranked by the AAA as a Five Diamond Resort, while ONE Forty Restaurant ranked it a Four Diamond Restaurant. It is also ranked as a 5-Star Resort by Forbes Travel Guide.It was named the #1 hotel in the United States by the U.S. News & World Report on its 2018 and 2020 lists. It was listed on Robb Report's Best of the Best 2016-Journeys. The golf course received Golf Digest's Editors’ Choice Award for Best in Travel 2018.