There is something really special about Maui Island. Its magical beauty takes the breath away, and you cannot believe that everything around you is a reality.
Have you ever thought about what makes one place unique? Its beautiful picturesque landscapes, the blue, and clear sky and water, long sparkling sandy beaches, and rare species of diverse flora and fauna can attract your attention with its magical beauty. It’s the idyllic image of Maui Island, the second-largest island of the Hawaiian archipelago, located in the Central Pacific area.
Here you will be thrilled with striking sights of Haleakala volcano and the large Haleakala National Park, located on the island’s highest pick. Stunning pools and divine waterfalls scenes of spacious Ohio Gulch valley, located in Haleakala National Park is rich in verdant rain forest streams that complement perfectly to the entire pastoral Maui ambient.
All this is quite enough motivation for true travel lovers and adventurers with restless spirit for endless exploring and eternal discovering of this paradise on earth. Its fairy-tale sights, captivated by the timeless and eternal beauty, are a matter of good fortune which was more than benevolent and immensely generous to Maui people and its whole environment.
Maui’s natural wealth abundance represents a sincere and eternal blessing from God, which is a real incentive to quickly pack your bags and experience an unforgettable adventure you will incredibly enjoy!
There is an interesting connection between the magical beauty of this place, and Maui people’s happiness and good mood, with serenity and inner peace deep inside of them. Without their cheerful spirit, inexhaustible life energy, and optimism, all these idyllic landscapes certainly would lose their magical glow.
If you ever come to Maui Island, you should spend some time getting to know these incredible people, their rich tradition, culture, and customs they have cherished for centuries. This way, you can attach to this divine place and come to incredible discoveries and insights, which can be a very memorable experience and a pleasant surprise.
The perfect opportunity for this is to attend numerous picturesque festivals held during the entire year, where tourists can get acquainted with the impressive Maui cultural heritage. It’s the unique chance to discover the real face of Hawaii that you’ll love. Regardless of the centuries that have passed, they didn’t lose their authenticity and uniqueness. Whenever you decide to visit this special place, don’t hesitate to experience its beautiful festive atmosphere, full of scents, tastes, and colors.
1. East Maui Taro Festival
At the end of April, when the entire Maui’s landscape gets a special spring force, and liveliness and everything is associated with the new beginning, it’s time for the spring festivals on the Maui Island to start reviving the Maui rich centuries-old tradition. April is the time of the 26th annual East Maui Taro Festival celebration, which this year took place on April 21 at the Hana Ballpark under the Hospice of the Maui County Office of Economic Development.
This traditional Maui’s festival offers plenty of delicious taro dishes. Feel free to indulge yourselves with the exquisite sweets of Kulolo (delicious Hawaiian dessert, made primarily with baked or steamed grated taro corms), taro fluffy pancakes, and fresh poi (pounded taro root). At the market, you can take a look at different types of taro plants, from hula (shoots) to potted plants, which are on display for sale.
This picturesque festival is a place of exceptional entertainment and fun, where one can enjoy the traditional Hula dance and Hawaiian vintage music and completely forget about the time. Colorful and seductive Hula dance is the impressive artistic performance of Polynesian origin, filled with emotions and natural sensuality arising from the connectivity between Hawaiian people and harmonious relationship with nature.
Sensual movements of Hula dancers and their picturesque floral costumes reflect all the beauty of this dance, which is the tourist attraction and art at the same time, making Hawaii recognizable in the world.
Seductive body movements of female Hula dancers stand out with the emphasized tenderness and femininity while the male dancers are featured with clearly visible manhood and determination, which fit perfectly into Maui’s natural environment.
If you love old arts and crafts and adore something beautiful, sophisticated, and vintage, this is the chance to enjoy the beauty of handmade items and antiques, which might grow into an unforgettable purchasing adventure.
2. Olukai Hoolaulea Festival
When warm sun rays illuminate the pastoral landscapes of Maui Island, at its surrounding rustic villages, it is always cheerful and lively during the spring.
In mid -May it is the right time for the picturesque Olukai Hoolaulea festival to start celebrating the power of life energy, and love. Maui people are intensively preparing for this traditional celebration as an indispensable element of long-standing Maui tradition. During pleasantly warm spring days, they express strong gratitude to the Pacific Ocean, glorifying its enormous beauty and recourse potentials abundance.
Take part in the family-friendly festive atmosphere, where relatives and friends come together, enjoying many activities like canoe sailing and surfing, and ancient Hawaiian games. For those who want to try good surfing luck and experience the freedom and beauty of the blue ocean waves, there is the legendary 8-mile Maliko downwind run organized on Maui’s north shore, stimulating the competitive spirit among participants.
Bring your paddle with you if you are the ocean wild beauty addict and share your smile and joy with others. The traditional Hawaiian feast called luau followed by traditional hula dance, and live music represents the main festival’s highlight. You’ll be enchanted with the authentic sounds of the conch, the beating of the drums, and the echoes of the Hawaiian chant, as an essential part of the rich Hawaiian centuries-long cultural inheritance.
For admirers of a good bite, plenty of Hawaiian gastronomic achievements are waiting for you. Be ready to enjoy delicious Hawaiian traditional dishes that will knock you down with their pleasant scents, flavors, and colors. Don’t miss to try typical traditional dishes of this Hawaiian region like spoi, Kalua pig, poke, lomi salmon opihi, and haupia dishes with the few pints of beer which can make your day.
Here, on the spot, you can be a witness to Maui people’s incorrigible hedonism and enjoyment. They are very famous for their hospitality, natural talent for music, rhythm, and dance, and also very gifted to prepare divine culinary delights.
3. Maui County Agricultural Festival
Maui’s residents are proud of their fertile land, which gives them so much. On many plantations across the island diversity of plants are grown with a lot of love and dedication, thanks to the Pacific Ocean proximity and exceptional tropical climate conditions.
There are also vast fields planted with sunflowers and a diversity of tropical flowers, which bring a calming and relaxing effect on observers. These magnificent pastoral sights one can find in surrounding Maui villages built in the rustic architectural style.
An abundance of high-quality vegetables and fruits grown in the Maui area are the main ingredients of healthy and tasty Hawaiian food dishes. That’s the reason why many agricultural and food festivals are organized throughout the island. These colorful events celebrate the strong connection between Maui’s people and its land, offering a reach crop during the entire year.
The first week of April is a time for organizing the Maui County Agricultural Festival, a unique manifestation that brings together farmers, ranchers, and experienced agriculture connoisseurs to improve and develop the agricultural potentials of Maui Island.
This year it was organized on April 7 and celebrated its 11th anniversary under the Hauspie of Maui County Farm Bureau. With 11 years of its tradition, the event aims to put on display the enormous agricultural importance on the economy, ecology, and environmental protection as well as to point at its immense impact on Maui’s people’s everyday lives. The Maui County Agricultural Festival is a unique opportunity for visitors to get acquainted with Maui’s great food wealth and to experience its divine flavors, scents, and colors. Over 800 farms, which cultivate different kinds of fruits and vegetables on the whole Maui Island significantly, contribute to the entire Hawaiian economic development, as well as the healthier life of its population. Therefore the healthy food production is a priceless wealth worth any effort.
4.Maui Onion Festival
For passionate food admirers who can’t resist the temptation of the dazzling Hawaiian dishes, picturesque culinary festivals are a great chance to get some new cooking ideas and tips. These vivid culinary events cherish the rich tradition of food preparation and have enormous potential in developing gastronomic tourism.
Onion is one of the ingredients which makes traditional authentic Hawaiian cuisine more aromatic and tasteful. The picturesque Whaler’s Village, located in West Maui’s Kaanapali area, hosts the Maui Onion Festival every May. With a tradition dating back to 1990, it represents a special ceremony organized in honor of the exceptional Kula onion crops, which grow under special conditions in Maui’s Kula region. Thanks to the low Sulphur content in Kula’s soil and cold nights, Kula onions feature with a deliciously sweet taste. It can be eaten in the raw form or in addition to the American fresh cheese sandwich. In both cases, an exceptional gastronomic experience is guaranteed. Attending the Maui Onion Festival allows trying amazing Hawaiian onion dishes, exchange recipes, and make a significant enhancement to your culinary skills. Introducing some new ideas in daily food preparation will help you to experience a new Rhapsody of tastes and make your life more beautiful. Here on the spot, you can learn something new about the art of cooking, whether you are a culinary professional or consider yourself a passionate food fan.
If you aren’t afraid of challenges and consider yourself a competitive spirit person who wants to try everything in your life, don’t hesitate to sign up for the unique onion eating contest. It represents the festival’s main highlight and will bring you great fun and entertainment. A bunch of people in one place chewing raw onion is something you can’t see every day and, for many, represents the scenes for a lifetime.
5.Kapalua Wine and Food Festival
For the real travel admirer who wants to feel the real magic of summer and experience the Maui Island in its full glory, it is recommended to visit some of the summer culinary festivals that will restore your life energy, optimism and help you stay in a good mood.
The Kapalua Wine and food festival, known for exceptional cooking facilitates, a friendly and pleasant environment, is one of the most visited Maui events, where one can discover the real Maui Island. For those who are eager to try some completely different flavors and also to learn novelties in food preparation, a visit to the Kapalua Wine and food festival will be a big hit. Maui’s dazzling food dishes ask for more with their heavenly pleasant scent and taste. So, it could happen to anyone to lose control and fail to resist this beautiful temptation. The authentic Hawaiian cuisine is enriched with quality wines this region is known for and which are produced thanks to the warm sun, the Pacific Ocean, a pleasant tropical climate, commitment, and great love of Maui locals. In a word, if you know how to enjoy life to the fullest, this festival is the right place for you.
6. Exotic Tropical Tasting Tours
Around vivid Maui villages, there are also many vast plantations where a diversity of plants are grown. They are ideal places for sincere nature enthusiasts to enjoy the abundance of tropical products cultivated with love and dedication. Have you ever seen rich pineapple and mango plantations under golden sun rays? These beautiful landscapes are something you should not miss if you decide to come to this island. A natural beauty that awaits you here will enchant you and leave you breathless.
These memorable scenes which rouse a sense of amazement, it’s really worth visiting at least once in your lifetime. During the unbearably warm days of July, tourists who take pleasure in the magical Maui’s summer can quench with the abundance of these delicious exotic fruits. In July, pineapples and mangos get their full ripeness and sweetness with the taste which few can resist. Try freshly squeezed pineapple or mango juice that will cool and refresh you and help to enjoy the warm summer days. For Hawaiians, pineapple represents a golden treasure, a sign of welcome, hospitality, and friendly intentions towards all people who visit this magnificent island of the Hawaiian archipelago. Whatever you choose, you won’t be disappointed.
The best way to gratify your curiosity is to sign up for the Exotic Tropical Tasting Tours, organized on plantations of surrounding picturesque Maui villages. Attending these special gastronomy events are an ideal place for adventurers to take pleasure in exotic sights of rich mango, banana, coconut, avocado crops, as well as to experience a prime tasting celebration. Knowledgeable local guides will provide you with necessary information about exotic fruits cultivation, climatic cultivation conditions, annual yield, and their nutritional values.
Maui Island also represents one of the most famous cocoa and coffee growing regions in Hawaii. Many can’t imagine life without their irresistible scent and flavor, which makes them lively, restore energy, and brighten the day. During especially visited Maui Chocolate and Coffee sightseeing and tasting tours, visitors who can’t resist a hot chocolate taste or have a strong coffee addiction are welcome to meet their needs and fulfill some of their small desires. Take a sip of sweet-scented hot chocolate or help yourself to the warm Hawaiian coffee that will give you enough energy for further excitements and explorations.
7. Kapalua Art Festival
If you want to know about the rich cultural heritage of this Hawaii region, warm summer days will provide it, bringing numerous cultural festivals to Maui Island. These colorful cultural events celebrate a rich cultural heritage of ethnic communities who have inhabited the area for more than 200 years and left visible traces through various forms of artistic expression.
A significant contribution to the enrichment of Maui cultural heritage brings the Kapalua art festival, which celebrates the 26th anniversary this year. It is known as the iconic art celebration displaying traditional Hawaiian music, Hula dance, historical movies, beautiful paintings, handmade vintage arts, and crafts used in Maui people’s everyday life. Maui antique jewelry, which features its authenticity and vintage beauty, attracts visitors’ attention the most.
The Kapalua Art festival is an exceptional event for all music lovers to enjoy the beautiful sounds of traditional ukulele and for those who are brave and determined enough to try to play this instrument, showing their hidden musical talents. It gathers passionate art collectors and art lovers who have sophisticated taste and a feel for authentic, beautiful, and old and who respect the tradition and culture of other nations.
8. Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Festival
One of the most visited festivals, which gives a special charm to Maui’s warm summer days, is the Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Festival. With a tradition dating back to 1982, it represents a lovely musical event that glorifies the beautiful guitar sounds, romance, and beautiful feelings evoked by this autochthonous Hawaiian instrument. This year it took place on August 11, bringing together the best virtuosos in the art of guitar playing. One believes that in early 1800, Mexicans brought the Slack Key Guitar to Hawaii, ending the exhausting day by performing beautiful serenades. Its long-standing tradition of existence represents the crucial and indispensable part of Hawaii’s rich cultural heritage, to admire and respect.
Playing on the Slack Key Guitar is a special musical performance, cherished with dedication and love for almost 220 years. Attending the Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Festival, passionate music admirers who keep up with tradition can get acquainted with the authentic Hawaiian music, vintage Hawaiian dishes, ancient arts, and crafts, which contribute to the vibrant festive atmosphere. For everyone who loves music and enjoys the sound of a guitar, this cultural event provides enjoyment and an unforgettable time.
9. Chinese Moon Festival
When autumn conquers Maui Island, its cultural scene becomes quite alive and dynamic, hosting many cultural festivals. They represent vivid events that cherish and display the rich Maui cultural inheritance of many ethnic communities, which chose this gorgeous place for living.
The beautiful city of Lahaina, located on the western part of Maui Island, is famous for many cultural events, which contribute significantly to the promotion of multicultural diversity and enriches the Maui cultural heritage wealth.
According to the Chinese lunar calendar, late September or early October is time for the Chinese ethnic community to celebrate the traditional Chinese Moon Festival at Lahaina Wan Hing Museum. It’s a lively harvest festival, held when the moon is the biggest and the fullest.
For Chinese, this is the most significant celebration after the Chinese New Year. It’s a family-oriented celebration that brings families together and gives praise to family values, harmony, and unity.
The Chinese believe that the full moon is a symbol of happiness and a harmonious relationship between people. For Maui’s Chinese community Chinese Moon Festival is a very significant cultural event, which cherishes century-old customs of rich Chinese tradition. The main festival highlights include traditional Chinese tea and Mooncake consuming, echo performance, a fan dance, and community lantern dance. During the festival, one can attend many different workshops, which include calligraphy art, knot tying, and lantern making. If you’re a Chinese cuisine fan, enjoy its delicious culinary specialties distinguished by particular flavor and scent that will increase your appetite and fulfill all your gastronomy desires and expectations.
10. Lahaina Plantation Days Celebration
Mid-October is the time when residents of Lahaina intensively make preparations for a Lahaina plantation days’ celebration. This holiday nostalgically evokes memories of long past times when the natives from around the world came to Hawaii seeking better living conditions. They spent their days working hard on the sugar and pineapple plantations. For those who are interested in history, the authentic depictions of the hard life of the first immigrants especially attract visitors’ attention. At Lahaina plantation days celebration, locals cherish the cultural diversity and inter-ethnic tolerance, introducing the audience to Hawaiian rich cultural inheritance.
During the 19th century, many people like the Chinese, Koreans, Japanese, Filipinos, Portuguese, Spaniards, and Polynesians settled here, looking for a much happier and better life. For a curious person eager to get acquainted with the Hawaiian tradition, feel free to enjoy the rich Hawaiian artistic treasure, authentic music, and dance. First of all, don’t miss prime- quality dishes that are remarkable examples of superior culinary achievements that are the mixture of different influences of many people who came here over the past two centuries. Gifted culinary magicians, real artists of their craft, will impress you with their culinary skills. Walk over to the Beer & Wine Garden and check what’s on offer here. You won’t be disappointed by their wide selection of drinks, which you will certainly like.
The traditional Japanese kimono clothing with beautiful designs made of quality materials leaves a great impression on visitors. Anyone interested can also attend kimono donning lessons. In the festival’s addition, enjoy the Spanish flamenco art performance, try to learn flamenco dance steps, and feel free to surrender to passionate flamenco music sounds and rhythms.
For curious multicultural fans, there is also a great occasion to attend a Chinese calligraphy class and to learn more about Portuguese ethnic community customs. While attending picturesque Maui Festivals known for the warm and pleasant atmosphere, one can feel the real soul of Hawaiians.
Thanks to centuries-long coexistence between its people, a cultural heritage diversity of many ethnic communities established Maui Island as a remarkable place to live. Regardless of their different origins and ethnic particularities, they breathe as one. It’s up to you to check all this and to experience Maui Island from your angle what will wake adventurous spirit and desire for further investigations.