A 12ft-high bronze Buddha sits serenely in the courtyard at this Buddhist mission, looking across the Pacific toward its Japanese homeland. Cast in Kyoto, the Buddha is the largest of its kind outside Japan and was installed here in 1968 to celebrate the centennial of Japanese immigration to Hawaii. The grounds also hold a 90ft pagoda and a whopping 3.5-ton temple bell, which is rung 11 times each evening at 8pm. Inside the temple are priceless Buddhist paintings by Haijin Iwasaki.
Lahaina Jodo Mission
Lahaina
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
19.86 MILES
From break of day to twilight, this sparkling stretch of sand is a showstopper. Extending from south Kihei to Wailea’s Mokapu Beach, Keawakapu is set back…
8.13 MILES
For a long day on the beach, it’s hard to beat this crescent-shaped strip at the southwestern tip of Kapalua. Snorkel in the morning, grab lunch at the…
20.96 MILES
Sunbathe like a celebrity at this sparkling strand, which fronts the swish Grand Wailea and ever-posh Four Seasons resorts and offers a full menu of water…
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23.3 MILES
The crowning glory of Makena State Park, this untouched beach is arguably the finest on Maui. In Hawaiian it’s called Oneloa, literally ‘Long Sand.’ And…
28.77 MILES
This spot offers a scenic overview of the Kalaupapa Peninsula, formerly an isolation zone for sufferers of Hansen's disease (leprosy), from the edge of a…
9.15 MILES
If you’ve seen just one photograph of Maui's lush interior, odds are it was of the magnificently phallic 2250ft ʻIao Needle, the green pinnacle that…
2.49 MILES
Home to West Maui’s liveliest beach scene, this gorgeous stretch unfurls alongside Kaʻanapali’s resort hotels, linking the Hyatt Regency Maui with the…
16.61 MILES
The island's main beach is kept looking beautiful, with manicured lawns and clean restrooms, thanks to Pulama Lana‘i‘s legion of groundskeepers…
Nearby Lahaina attractions
0.1 MILES
A nice swath of sand just north of Lahaina's center proves there's no reason to stay in Kaanapali for beachy pleasures. Its reef-protected waves are…
0.34 MILES
Kamehameha III had this building erected in 1833 to give seamen and whalers a place to congregate away from the baleful stares of the missionaries in the…
0.61 MILES
This three-story temple, built in 1912 as a meeting hall for the benevolent Chee Kung Tong society, gave Chinese immigrants a place to preserve their…
0.77 MILES
The hard-to-miss Pioneer Mill smokestack is a local icon. Outdoor exhibits spotlight equipment and vehicles used on the company's sugar plantation, in…
0.87 MILES
Well, that doesn't look entirely comfortable. At the northern shoreline of the small plaza behind the Lahaina Public Library, look beneath the water’s…
0.88 MILES
Built in the 1830s, this coral block and stone building was used by ship captains as a club for hanging out between seafaring adventures. Restored in 1970…
0.9 MILES
Built in 1834–35, the Baldwin House is the oldest surviving Western-style building in Lahaina. It served as the home of Reverend Dwight Baldwin, a…
8. Lahaina Public Library Grounds
0.9 MILES
The gardens here were once a royal taro field, where Kamehameha II toiled in the mud to instill in his subjects the dignity of labor. Today they offer a…