Every August, the biggest showcase of Hawaiʻi-made goods under one roof takes over the Hawaiʻi Convention Center, and 2026 marks the 32nd time it has happened. The Made in Hawaiʻi Festival gathers hundreds of local makers, farmers, chefs, artists, and small brands into one weekend of shopping, tasting, and live entertainment. For a lot of us it is where the year’s Christmas gifts get bought early, where we discover a new hot sauce or soap or ceramic bowl to keep, and where we get to put money straight into the hands of the people who actually make the things. This year the festival runs Thursday, August 20 through Sunday, August 23, it is presented by Hawaiian Airlines, and organizers have made it bigger than ever with a new third floor and more than 800 vendor booths. Here is everything you need to plan your visit, from ticket prices to parking to what is genuinely worth buying.
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Quick reference
What: the 32nd annual Made in Hawaiʻi Festival, 800+ Hawaiʻi-made vendors, food, and entertainment.
When: Thursday, August 20 to Sunday, August 23, 2026.
Where: Hawaiʻi Convention Center, 1801 Kalākaua Avenue, Honolulu (the Waikīkī end of town).
Hours: Thu and Fri evenings 6:30 to 10 p.m., Sat 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sun 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Tickets: on sale now at madeinhawaiifestival.com. Thursday VIP $25, Friday preview $20, Saturday $9, Sunday $8. Kids 6 and under free with a registered ticket.
Parking: limited at the venue. Saturday and Sunday add off-site paid parking with a $6 round-trip shuttle.
What the Made in Hawaiʻi Festival is
The festival started back in 1995 as a way to help local businesses reach new buyers and test-market their products, and three decades later that mission still drives it. Nearly everything on the floor is grown, made, designed, or produced in the islands, which is the whole point: this is not a swap meet of imported goods, it is a room full of Hawaiʻi’s own makers. In a typical year the show draws tens of thousands of shoppers over the weekend, and vendors range from established island brands you already know to first-time entrepreneurs selling their very first batch of something.
For 2026 the event has grown again. Organizers have added a new third-floor experience with about 100 additional booths, art installations, a stage, and seating, pushing the total past 800 vendors. Beyond the shopping, the schedule is packed with live Hawaiian music and hula, chef demonstrations, fashion shows featuring local designers, and tastings, so it is easy to spend the better part of a day here without touching your wallet if you just want the atmosphere. It is a genuinely family-friendly event, and one of the rare times you can meet so many local makers face to face in a single afternoon.
2026 dates and hours
The festival splits its four days into two very different experiences. Thursday and Friday are evening shopping nights with a calmer, earlier-access feel, while Saturday and Sunday are full-day general admission and the busiest by far. Thursday, August 20 is a VIP Access Night available only to Huakaʻi by Hawaiian members, and Friday, August 21 is a preview night with presale tickets offered through Central Pacific Bank. Both evening sessions run from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Then the doors open wide for the weekend: Saturday, August 22 runs 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday, August 23 runs 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. If you want first pick of limited-run items before they sell out, an evening preview or an early Saturday arrival is the way to go.
Tickets and prices
Tickets go on sale now at madeinhawaiifestival.com, and prices are refreshingly reasonable for a full day of browsing. Thursday’s VIP night is $25, Friday’s preview night is $20, Saturday general admission is $9, and Sunday general admission is $8. Children 6 and under get in free with a registered ticket, which makes this an easy outing for families. Buying online ahead of time is smart, since the weekend days draw a crowd and the entry line moves faster when your ticket is already on your phone. If you are deciding which day to go, the two weekday evenings cost a little more but trade the crowds for elbow room, while Saturday and Sunday give you the full experience with all the demos, performances, and food in full swing.
Parking, the shuttle, and getting there
Parking is the one part of this festival that takes a little planning, because the Convention Center’s own garage fills quickly. For the busy weekend days, organizers add two off-site paid parking lots with a shuttle: Kaimukī High School charges $5 cash, and the Stan Sheriff Center charges $10 by card. From either lot, a $6 round-trip shuttle run by Roberts Hawaii brings you to the door, and buying a shuttle ticket comes with a Priority Pass that routes you through a dedicated entrance, which is a real time-saver on a packed Saturday. Shuttle tickets go on sale now alongside admission.
📍 Hawaiʻi Convention Center, 1801 Kalākaua Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96815. The center sits at the mauka edge of Waikīkī, right where the Ala Wai Canal meets Kalākaua Avenue. If you are staying in central Waikīkī, it is only about a mile (1.6 km) away, roughly a 20 minute walk, so skipping the car entirely is a real option. TheBus stops nearby along Kalākaua and Kapiʻolani, and a rideshare from most of Waikīkī is short and affordable. For visitors weighing where to base themselves for the trip, our guide to where to stay on Oʻahu breaks down the neighborhoods.
What to buy: the Hawaiʻi-made goods to look for
With more than 800 booths, the smart move is to walk in with a loose plan for what you actually want, then leave room to be surprised. The food and pantry aisles are where a lot of us do the most damage: island honey and lilikoʻi butter, small-batch jams, locally grown and roasted Kona and Kaʻū coffee, macadamia nuts in every form, chocolate from Hawaiʻi cacao growers, cookies and crack seed, furikake and local seasonings, and hot sauces made a few miles from the booth. These travel well and make the easiest gifts, so if you are shopping for people back home, start here. Our roundup of the best Hawaiian food on Oʻahu and our favorite Oʻahu coffee shops will give you a feel for the flavors before you go.
Beyond the pantry, the festival is a strong place to shop apparel and accessories from island designers, including the aloha shirts and locally printed dresses that never really go out of style; if you want the backstory on that garment before you buy, we wrote about the history of the aloha shirt. You will also find bath and body makers turning out soaps, salves, and reef-safe skincare, plus a deep bench of art and home goods: koa wood bowls and boards, lauhala weaving, ceramics, prints, and photography of the places you have been visiting all week. Jewelry runs from delicate Niʻihau shell work to koa and freshwater pearls, and you will almost always hear an ʻukulele or two being tested nearby. The festival posts its full vendor list on its website closer to the dates, so if there is a specific maker you love, check the lineup before you go.
One honest note on gifts and souvenirs: buying direct from the maker at a booth is about the best way to be sure the money stays with a local family rather than an importer, and it usually means a better story to go with whatever you carry home. If you are shopping ahead for the holidays, this weekend can knock out most of your list in one trip, something we get into more in our guide to Christmas in Hawaiʻi.
Tips for doing the festival right
A few things make the day smoother. Go early or hit a preview night if you want first pick, because popular items and limited runs do sell out over the weekend. Bring a reusable tote or two, since your hands fill up fast, and carry both cash and a card because not every small vendor takes plastic. Wear comfortable shoes, because 800 booths across multiple floors adds up to real mileage. Come hungry and graze the food vendors rather than eating one big meal, and build your schedule around a chef demo, a fashion show, or a hula set so you get a rest and a show at the same time. If you are bringing the family, remember kids 6 and under are free, and the wide aisles and stage areas give little ones room to move. Pace yourself, drink water, and do not try to see all 800 booths in one lap; pick your aisles and enjoy them.
Come for the food and the entertainment
Even if your bags are already full, the festival earns the ticket on food and the stage alone. The tasting and food vendors turn the floor into a running plate lunch and dessert crawl, with everything from fresh poke and kālua pig to shave ice, malasadas, and mochi, so arrive hungry and graze your way through. Across the day the main stage rotates through live Hawaiian music, hula hālau, and local bands, chefs run cooking demonstrations you can actually learn from, and island designers send aloha shirts and island fashion down the runway. The new third-floor stage and seating this year add more places to sit, watch, and rest your feet between laps of the booths. The whole thing feels closer to a county fair for Hawaiʻi’s makers than a straight shopping trip.
Make a weekend of it
Because the festival lands on a full weekend in late August, it slots neatly into a larger Oʻahu itinerary. The Convention Center’s Waikīkī location means you can shop in the cool of the morning and then be on the sand or watching the sky by evening; our roundup of the best sunset spots on Oʻahu has options only a few minutes away. Save a morning for the North Shore or a walk out to Kaʻena Point, and you have balanced a day of browsing with a day outdoors. The festival also shares the calendar with plenty of other happenings, from Duke’s OceanFest to summer bon dances, which we gather in our guide to things to do on Oʻahu in August 2026. Building the whole trip from scratch? Our 7 day Oʻahu itinerary shows how a weekend like this fits into a full week.
Good to know before you go
A few logistics smooth out the day. The Convention Center is fully accessible, with elevators and escalators between floors and wide aisles that strollers and wheelchairs move through easily. ATMs are typically available on site for the cash-only booths, though bringing some cash from the start saves you a hunt. Any bag rules or re-entry policies are posted on the festival website, so check there if you plan to come and go. And if big crowds are not your thing, remember the Thursday and Friday evening sessions are the calmer way in, with more room to talk story with the makers.
Why it is worth your time
Plenty of markets sell Hawaiʻi themed products. What makes this one different is that the people behind the tables are, overwhelmingly, the ones who grew, baked, sewed, carved, or designed what they are selling. Spending an afternoon here is a low-key way to support hundreds of island families at once, and to travel with aloha by putting your money where it actually helps. Whether you come to knock out gift shopping, taste your way down a food aisle, or just soak up the music and the energy, the Made in Hawaiʻi Festival is one of the most rewarding weekends on the August calendar. Pair it with the rest of what is happening around the island in our guide to things to do on Oʻahu in August 2026, and you have got a full weekend sorted.
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