Media mogul and billionaire Oprah Winfrey recently purchased about 870 acres of Kula agricultural land for nearly $6.6 million in recent months, adding to hundreds of acres of real estate she already owns in Kula and in Hāna.
Winfrey bought four parcels total, according to sales deeds obtained by Maui Now.
Two large parcels were sold Feb. 10 by ʻUlupalakua Ranch to Winfrey’s Los Angeles-based company, Harpo Inc. About 520 acres went for $3.89 million and 330 acres sold for $2.47 million.
ʻUlupalakua Ranch responded today to a Maui Now query, saying they have no comment at this time regarding a recent KITV4 report of the land sale.
Another two parcels of 10 acres each were sold Dec. 30, 2022, to Harpo Inc. for $100,000 apiece.
Winfrey has been filming Upcountry, Maui, hikes with her celebrity TV friend, Gayle King, in recent months. In a January social media post about her first Kauaʻi hike, she said she doesn’t usually hike on other islands.
“For the first ever, I moved to another island,” she told fans. “I never go off island. So we’re on another island looking for more hikes.”
Winfrey, who had two knee replacements, touted Hawaiʻi’s fresh air and scenery, saying that the Aloha State is a place to get healthy.
“We’re looking for improving our health in 2023, certainly I am with new knees,” she said. “We’re saying now, the State of Hawaiʻi is the state of health. We love that. We need to coin that: State of Hawaiʻi is the state of health.”
“Y’all should come here,” Winfrey added. “Hashtag Hawaii, state of health. That’s the aloha spirit.”
Winfrey has been a part-time Maui resident for many years.
Her early purchases include 1,000 acres of Haleakalā Ranch land, which included an 11-room bed-and-breakfast on 17 acres in Kula, in 2004, according to The Maui News. She also bought more than 200 acres of coastal land in Hāna between 2002 and 2005.
* Maui Now News Director Wendy Osher contributed to this report.
