Things to do / Travel Guide
January
Songs of the Ancestors is a music concert held each January featuring traditional Hawaiian instruments like the slack-key guitar and the ukulele. This event serves to commemorate the music of Kauai's ancestors and proceeds go to support a local charity.
Also in January is the Ernie Watts Jazz Festival, where Ernie Watts, a Grammy-winning jazz musician, invites locals and tourists alike to enjoy the art of making jazz music. The one-day event is held at the Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center.
February
Every year in early February the well-known Irish acoustic group Lunasa comes to perform at the Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center.
March
Every year in mid-March, hundreds of orchids are put on display for purchase at the Garden Island Orchid Show, which is held at the local Hanapepe United Church of Christ. The show includes gardening lectures and demonstrations run by local experts.
April
Kauai's Style and the Tour of Island Homes event takes participants on guided tours each April to view privately-owned properties around the island and to meet local pillars of the Kauai community.
Also held in April is the Garden Isle Artisan Fair. This free event brings together over 40 different local artists and artisans to showcase their art and music at Poipu Beach.
May
Every year on May 1st, the Kauai Museum hosts a May Day Lei Contest. Here, people are encouraged to learn about the art of lei-making and to join in a lighthearted contest to see who can create the most beautiful lei. This free event also features food, drinks, a craft fair, and performances from local talent.
In mid-May at the CJM County Stables in Poipu, the Kauai All Girls Festival Rodeo is held. At this free event, young girls and women can learn breakaway roping, pole bending, barrel racing, and how to tie cattle.
June
The “Ultimate Sunday Brunch” is held each June at the Rotary Club and Tropical Gardens restaurant of Kapaa. At this event, most of the restaurants and cafés of Kauai come together to “sample their wares” to the public. Live entertainment and wine is also included.
The Annual King Kamehameha Celebration Floral Parade and Hoolaulea (celebration) happens each June down Rice Street in Lihue. At the end of the parade, a celebration is held on the lawn of the Historic County Building in central Lihue.
August
For three days in August, some of the best singers and songwriters in the US come to Kauai to take part in the Kauai Music Festival. At this event, participants can sometimes meet one-on-one with musicians, songwriters, Grammy-award-winning record producers, as well as other well-to-do individuals in the American music industry. Held every year at the Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center, the cost per participant to the festival is about $400.
September
The annual Kauai Mokihana Festival, held each September throughout the island, features a wide array of local productions, ethnic demonstrations, and live music concerts, as well as the Kauai Composers Contest and a hula dance competition.
October
The annual Pow Wow takes place each October at Kapaa Beach Park, featuring Native American arts and crafts, food, dancing, and a silent auction fundraiser.
November and December
In addition to a local Thanksgiving Day Parade, which officially kicks off the holiday season, there is, in Waimea, an annual Lighted Christmas Parade. While the parade floats are decorated with electric lights, the local shops go out of their way to elaborately decorate the downtown area. This free event a few days before Christmas is utterly spectacular!
|
|
|