Why pilgrims come
A sacred place worth the journey.
Kalaupapa preserves the landscape in which St. Damien of Molokaʻi and St. Marianne Cope served people exiled under Hawaiʻi’s former Hansen’s disease policy. St. Philomena Church anchors the Catholic story, but the settlement remains a living community whose residents and access rules come first.
TraditionCatholic
The pilgrim’s guide
What makes this visit meaningful
Approach Kalaupapa as a sacred landscape of service, suffering, resilience, and community—not merely as a remote saint attraction.
01
St. Philomena Church
See the church expanded and served by St. Damien within the settlement.
02
Two saints, one community
Understand Damien and Marianne through the people they accompanied—not apart from them.
Feasts, anniversaries & celebrations
Feast of St. Marianne CopeConnected to this place through Franciscan sister and caregiver at Kalaupapa.
Feast of St. Damien of MolokaʻiConnected to this place through pastor and servant at Kalaupapa.