Fanning Island

A couple of years ago my family wanted to take a Hawaiian cruise. I was torn between the cruise that just circled the Hawaiian island and one that went out to a place called Fanning Island. I knew nothing about Fanning Island, I had never even heard of it before and the cost was higher then just cruising the Hawaiin Islands. And being the budget traveler that I am priced played a big factor in choosing my cruise.

But then I came across a special for the cruise that included Fanning so I decide to take a leap of faith go for it. Only one cruiseline goes to this island and it was a 2 day sail to get there and the sea was no exactly calm but it was absolutely worth it. If you ever get a chance to go there do it.

It was the most beautiful place I ever saw. The water is literally emerald green. It was absolutely beautiful. There are no stores or hotels. It is an extremely remote island with no electricity or pluming. It was stunning! The temperature is about 80 degrees year round and is located about 400 sound of Hawaii.

The cruise line setup a really nice barbeque for us (and there were toilets we could use). They have a generator but no regular electricity. The native people are kind of a cross between Hawaiian and Polynesian and were very friendly. They sang and danced for us the whole time we were there.

They also had a little craft market setup and the prices were ridiculously cheap. You can use American money which was really nice. Of course there is nothing for the people to buy on the island. There’s no stores. The people live off the land. A supply ship comes every few months and the cruise ship brings some supplies. I purchased several handmade baskets, shells, pieces of coral, wooden carving at the craft market.

There is also a post office, sort of, its more like a metal shed, where you can buy stamps that you can only get on the island so if you’re a stamp collector its really neat. I kid you not, when I went into the post office there was a lady sitting at a card table with a brown grocery bag and when I asked for some stamps she reached into her bag and handed me the stamps. It was crazy.

You can also have your passport stamped at the customs office, which strongly resembles a kool-aid stand. You will need a passport to visit the island since it is owned by a foreign country.
There were lots of lounge chairs on the beach to sit in or you could sit under a giant shade tree, have something to eat and drink and stare out at the emerald green ocean and relax.

Here are a couple of pictures I took at the island, though they don't really do justice to its beauty.