Lawai, HI

Lawai is a Kauai County CDP on south Kauai, strung along Kaumualii Highway, also called Route 50, between Kalaheo and Omao. The valley folds inland from the coast, and the highway ties homes, farms, churches, and small businesses to the wider west-side network. Lihue lies northeast and Hanapepe west, so Lawai is often understood through the roads and neighboring communities that frame it. Its small population fits a place with a valley identity and a long cultural memory.

Lawai International Center gives the valley its most distinctive landmark. On 32 acres, the center preserves an outdoor pilgrimage path with 88 shrines modeled on the 88-temple pilgrimage on Japan's Shikoku Island; Japanese immigrants began building the shrines in 1904. The property also carries older Hawaiian and Asian religious history, with references to a heiau and later Taoist, Shinto, and Buddhist sites. Volunteer caring days keep the grounds active. Lawai's local shape comes through the valley road, the cultural center, and the close handoff between south Kauai communities.