Aloha Festival in Hawaii?

[LovinLifeinFL]

I am trying to plan a trip to Hawaii in September. It seems the Aloha Festival will be happening then. I really want to avoid crowds and I'm having a lot of trouble finding info on the specific dates of events and how crowded the islands are during that time. I know there are several members here that live in Hawaii and I was hoping for some of their wisdom.

The plan is to spend a few days on the Big Island then fly to Maui. I was planning for 9/17-9/25 but I can go anytime from 9/17 to 10/22.

Thanks!

 

[GregLee]

Sorry that I can't help. I have lived here since 1971, but I never heard of this. I just asked my wife, and she said she had heard of it, but didn't know anything further. I did a google search, but I'm sure you've done that, too. Hopefully some other Hawaii folks here can be more informative.

 

[clifp]

Sorry that I can't help. I have lived here since 1971, but I never heard of this. I just asked my wife, and she said she had heard of it, but didn't know anything further. I did a google search, but I'm sure you've done that, too. Hopefully some other Hawaii folks here can be more informative.

Bra how come you no know Aloha festival? Choke floats, bands, wahine, da kind.

Just kidding Greg never heard of it before either. The first year I lived here I did a lot of the tourist stuff since I lived on Kalakaua Ave.

So LovinLife best we can tell based on Google is it a tourist activity, doesn't mean it is bad, just that it isn't a big deal as far as crowd or a major attraction.

 

[LovinLifeinFL]

Thanks! It makes me feel better that neither of you have even heard of it. There was very unspecific info online so I guess it's not a big deal. The planning continues...

 

[casky]

Here are the dates:
2011 Dates are 9/17/11 for the Waikiki Hoolaulea and 9/24/11 for the Floral Parade

Here is the website

Aloha Festivals

 

[casky]

Thousands of volunteers labor together each year to stage the events, which are attended statewide by nearly a million people 

 

[LovinLifeinFL]

Here are the dates:
2011 Dates are 9/17/11 for the Waikiki Hoolaulea and 9/24/11 for the Floral Parade

Here is the website

Aloha Festivals

Thank you for your reply. Those events and that website seem specific to Oahu. I am going to the Big Island and Maui. I found a little info that suggested the festival takes place over several weeks and all the major Hawaiian islands take turns having events (ie: one week in Oahu, then Maui, then the Big Island, an so on) but I couldn't find any specifics aside from the events on Oahu.

Do you know about the Aloha Festival as it pertains to the Big Island and Maui?

Thanks again.

 

[gindie]

Regarding the Big Island...

I'm making a guess here, but I would believe the largest event would be the Ironman Triathlon in Kailua-Kona on Saturday October 8 this year. Many streets are closed in town for most/all of the day. That would be a good day to be on the Hilo/Volcano side to avoid the crowds.

That being said, however, we "lucked" into staying in Kona on that day during our honeymoon in '88 (had no idea about the event when we booked the room) and found it to be quite inspiring. So much so that we made sure we were there on Ironman day during our next visit.

 

[W2R]

On Oahu, I was working at Kaiser Hospital between Waikiki and Ala Moana in 1973-1974 to pay for grad school. During Aloha Week, there was a parade that would go right by the hospital! We were allowed to go watch it while still "on the clock", which was so cool and that is why I remember it. It only took less than an hour to pass, though, as I recall.

This must have been the beginnings of the Aloha Festival parade. I loved it because it seemed like Honolulu was becoming really "big time" like big cities on the Mainland. Still, the parade was small compared with mainland parades.

 

[Nords]

Thanks! It makes me feel better that neither of you have even heard of it. There was very unspecific info online so I guess it's not a big deal. The planning continues...

Never heard of it either, but I think it's like asking someone in NYC whether there'll be a parade that day. There are so many festivals and events that I don't pay any attention anymore unless the newspapers make a point of publicizing street closures. Keep in mind that most of us on this board make it a point to stay away from public places on weekends, so we're already out of those social loops.

I think the places you're visiting will have enough room to accommodate whatever you want to do as well as the Aloha activities.

Two suggestions:
1. Subscribe to HawaiiThreads.com and post your question there. Someone on that board (other than GregLee) may actually be involved in the activities and could offer more details.
2. As you make all your trip arrangements, ask the places you're staying for their Aloha Festival info. They'll tell you when traffic or crowds could be a problem.