Hawaii Plantation Museum

Aloha! Less than a ten minute walk from Koili Point is the Hawaiʻi Plantation Museum. It's one of those hidden gems that even many locals haven't fully explored, and we love recommending it to our guests.

The museum is largely a private collection that shows how the sugar industry helped develop a different lifestyle in Hawaiʻi. For more than 100 years, sugar cane was the lifeblood of this coastline — and as you walk the property here at Koili Point, you can still see the contours of the land shaped by that era.

The collection includes artifacts, photographs, and personal items that tell the story of the plantation workers — many of whom came from Japan, China, Korea, Portugal, and the Philippines — and how their cultures blended together to create the unique local identity of the Hamakua Coast.

It's a short and easy walk from us, making it a wonderful way to spend a morning before heading into Hilo. We encourage you to stop in and take a look. It won't take long but you'll leave with a much richer understanding of the land you're staying on.

Finally, let me leave you with a Hawaiian word of the day: 'Ko' — which translates to 'sugar cane' in English. It's a word deeply woven into the history of this entire coastline.

Aloha! Check availability for both houses at: https://www.airbnb.com/p/oceanfront-ac-pool

If there are topics you would like to know more about in future blogs, kindly let me know at koilipoint@gmail.com. Mahalo! Len