From the unveiling of new hotel offerings, to great outdoor adventure activities and exciting festivals, fall is always one of the best times of the year to visit the Islands. Read on to check out some highlights of the autumn months ahead in Hawai'i.

NEW HOTEL DEVELOPMENTS 

Set to open in September, the nine-suite ESPACIO The Jewel of Waikiki will, according to its management company Aqua-Aston Hospitality, “redefine the luxury hotel experience in Waikīkī for guests who seek the ultra-exclusive with personalized service and privacy.” Each of the hotel's nine floors will be home to a single three-bedroom suite with a dedicated butler, Italian-marble bathrooms, dry sauna, lānai Jacuzzi, full kitchen and inclusive luxury rental car. Public spaces will include a restaurant, rooftop infinity pool and spa. www.espaciowaikiki.com

Slated to open this fall, Halepuna Waikiki by Halekulani is now taking reservations for stays from October 25 onward. Formerly the Waikiki Parc Hotel, the Halepuna Waikiki property is undergoing a multimillion-dollar transformation to offer 284 guest rooms and four suites with Pacific Ocean views. The luxury boutique hotel's design will be complemented by local artwork sourced in collaboration with the Honolulu Museum of Art. Halepuna Waikiki's opening will also mark the debut of Halekulani Bakery and Restaurant, a full-service, all-day casual dining concept featuring a variety of pastries, cakes and artisanal breads crafted by a baker from the Imperial Hotel Tokyo. www.halepuna.com

CULINARY

The Culinarium Team Building Experience at the University of Hawai'i Kapi'olani Community College Culinary Institute of the Pacific at Diamond Head's state-of-the-art kitchen is a hands-on cooking competition encouraging teams to come together to create meals while working as a group. Working under pressure, participants create dishes that are judged by the O'ahu institute's professional chef then shared and savored by the teams. According to the institute, the experience is “exciting, fun and focused on innovation, collaboration, communication and creativity.” The Culinarium experience welcomes O'ahu residents and visitors, as well as corporate outings and wedding events. https://continuinged.kapiolani.hawaii.edu/culinarium/

Lahaina-based Maui Ku'ia Estate Chocolate Inc., which is preparing to open its new chocolate factory later this year, recently celebrated the second harvest of cacao from its Maui Ku'ia Estate cacao commercial farm operation. With that recent harvest – and its first-ever harvest in spring 2018 – now under its belt, the company aims to scale up production of its Maui Ku'ia Estate cacao over the next 10 years. All chocolate made from cacao grown on the Maui Ku'ia Estate farm on Maui will be designated “Grown and Made in Maui” and sold as Maui Ku'ia Estate® chocolate. www.mauichocolate.com

ATTRACTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

Kaua'i Coffee Company's new farm tour escorts guests, via open-air truck, down the red-dirt roads of its plantation, home to more than 4 million coffee trees. During the two-hour tour, guests learn about the production of coffee from seed to cup, including how trees are planted, and how coffee is grown and manufactured. Guests on the tour are also offered an inside look at plantation operations and a chance to plant a coffee tree. The farm tour ends with a cup of coffee grown, harvested and roasted on the estate. www.kauaicoffee.com

Holo Holo Charters recently created an online pledge seeking to raise awareness among its guests about traveling responsibly by reducing use of plastics and avoiding purchase of reefdamaging and ocean-polluting toxic sunscreens. The locally-owned boat tour company, in business for more than two decades, says it “understands the impact destination travel can have on the environment both economically and experientially, which is why (we) are encouraging all passengers to complete the pledge before they set sail on their Kaua'i ocean adventure.” According to Holo Holo, “the pledge also brings awareness to live a lifestyle of stewardship anchored and inspired by the Hawaiian value of aloha.” www.holoholokauaiboattours.com

Hawaii Forest and Trail recently launched its new private, exclusive tours on O'ahu for up to 12 guests. Guests can choose to personalize their adventure and do a waterfall swim, beach walk or two great hikes – one of these also incorporating a mountain picnic – within a four-hour minimum tour. Transportation, snacks and beverages are included. Later this summer, look for Hawaii Forest and Trail to unveil its new tour of O'ahu's ridgeline Pālehua trail. www.hawaiiforest.com 

The Honolulu Museum of Art will present its second major exhibition of 2019, Contemporary Landscapes: Li Huayi, from August 24 through January 5, 2020. The museum calls Li Huayi “one of the leading innovators in Chinese ink painting at a time when this field is experiencing a remarkable transformation. His intricate landscapes are a joy to view, and immerse the viewer in breathtaking environments that present a bold new vision of contemporary aesthetics.” The main exhibition of Li's art will be accompanied by a focus exhibition in the O'ahu museum's Atsuhiko and Ina Tateuchi Thematic Gallery, juxtaposing the artist's contemporary interpretations of the Buddhist concept of the Pure Land with historic artworks from the museum's collection, including its renowned 14th century Taima Mandala. www.honolulumuseum.org

Alii Nui Sailing Charters recently launched its new, 2.5-hour nightly New Royal Sunset Sail, featuring a buffet dinner menu and open bar for enjoyment in the vessel's open-air cabin or topside at one of its deck tables. Guests onboard are encouraged to move about the vessel and enjoy the evening sail's Maui vistas and sunset. Complimentary transportation to the vessel is available in one of Alii Nui's new transit vans. www.aliinuimaui.com

Outlets of Maui recently launched new shopping shuttle service between Kā'anapali Beach Resort and Lahaina. The 27-seat passenger shuttle operates daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; service is cashless but accepts all major credit cards. One-way fare is $3 per passenger; children under age 12 ride for free. All passengers receive a complimentary Outlets of Maui VIP coupon book worth hundreds of dollars in savings at the outlet center. Schedules for the shopping shuttle are available at the center's management office or may be downloaded online. www.outletsofmaui.com

Described by the Fairmont Kea Lani resort's Willow Stream Spa team as “rooted in ancient Chinese medicine and renowned for its results-oriented techniques of gua sha,” the spa's new Vital Essence Facial is designed to improve complexion and overall skin wellness. The spa team describes the experience as combining “the detoxifying energy of sibin bian stones with multifunction organic products rich in adaptogenic nutrients to create visibly revitalized and renewed skin. A massage cleanse, paired masques and custom ANDA product blend are enhanced with specialized gua sha techniques and dynamic structured water elixir to leave you feeling empowered, vital and beautiful.” www.fairmont.com/kea-lani-maui

FESTIVALS AND EVENTS

The 60th annual Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament, set for July 29 through August 2, welcomes anglers from around the world to the waters off Kailua-Kona to compete in the venerable sport-fishing contest. Tournament teams partner with island of Hawaiʻi-based charter boats for five days of game fishing, racking up points based on fish species caught and the weight of their catch. www.hibtfishing.com

The fourth annual Hawaiʻi Island Festival of Birds is set for October 24 through 28, headquartered at the Sheraton Kona Resort and Spa at Keauhou Bay on the island of Hawai'i. The festival's 2019 theme, “Wanderers and Migrants – Hawai'i's Unique Avian Visitors,” highlights the migratory and accidental avian visitors arriving in the Islands each year. Festival events and activities include Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument educational sessions, a fest reception, a film festival, guided birding excursions on land and at sea, a bird fair and a festival gala. The festival's beneficiaries are the Hawaiʻi Wildlife Center and the Hawaiʻi Island Coast-to-Coast Birding Trail. www.birdfesthawaii.org

The annual Traditional Tattoo Festival, set this year for October 25 through 28 at the Kohala Institute on the island of Hawai'i, celebrates the ritualistic and ceremonial practice of traditional tattooing practiced by Pacific and Arctic cultures, including Hawaiian, Inuit, Filipino and other cultures. A cultural festival within the main tattoo festival on October 26 is free and open to the public, and features live music, food, dance, kapa (bark cloth) making, wood carving, and lau hala (pandanus leaf) weaving, and demonstrations of traditional tattooing. www.gohawaii.com/islands/events/traditional-tattoo-festival

The annual Kōloa Plantation Days Festival Opening and Sunset Ho'olaule'a happens July 20, kicking off at 5 p.m. at the Poipu Beach Athletic Club. The 10-day Kaua'i festival celebrates the multiple cultures that arrived in Hawai'i beginning in the mid-19th century for work on sugar and pineapple plantations, in doing so introducing their traditions, music, dance and cuisine to the rich melting pot of cultures that comprise the Islands today. Resorts and businesses in the Poʻipū and Kōloa area welcome visitors and residents to enjoy the festival's guided walks and talk-story sessions, outdoor sports, live entertainment and array of themed keiki (children's) activities. www.koloaplantationdays.com

A week later, at festival's end, head back to the district for the annual Historic Kōloa Plantation Days Parade and Park Celebration on July 27, kicking off at 10 a.m. The parade includes horseback units, floral floats, vintage cars, decorated vehicles and more, all making their way through Kōloa town from Kōloa School to Anne Knudsen Park. After the parade, stick around and enjoy a day of entertainment and 'ono (delicious) food from multiple vendors. Admission to the park celebration is $5 for adults; entry for keiki ages 12 years and under is free. www.koloaplantationdays.com

Heiva I Kaua'i Iorana Tahiti is a two-day Tahitian cultural festival featuring competitions in solo Tahitian dancing, as well as group competition in traditional and contemporary Tahitian dancing and drumming, for children and adults ages four to 50-plus. Other festival events include a Tahitian dance audience-participation segment and coconut-husking contests. This year's 18th annual Heiva I Kaua'i happens August 3 and 4, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., at Kapa'a Beach Park. Entry is $7 per person, per day, with entry for children ages 12 and under free. Tickets are available at the gate on event days. www.heivaikauai.com

The 11th annual Kaua'i Marathon and Half Marathon, set for September 1, will send participants on a scenic coastline course taking them past hula dancers and taiko drum troupes as it traces the landscape of the island's south shore. Along the way, participants will take in views of the area's picturesque beaches and tropical rainforests. The marathon will also host a Keiki Run on August 31 at the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort and Spa with age-specific grass courses for children ages 2 to 12. Every Kaua'i Marathon, Half-Marathon and Keiki Run finisher will receive a commemorative medal and T-shirt. www.thekauaimarathon.com

The inaugural Kauai Folk Festival is set for September 28 and 29 at Grove Farm Museum, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. The goal of the festival's organizers is to “reestablish the bond between traditional music of the U.S. continent and Hawai'i by bringing the best performers in blues, bluegrass, old-time and country music who will perform alongside the musical legends of Hawaiʻi.” The festival will also feature live entertainment, craft workshops, group dances, outdoor activities, food and more. www.kauaifolkfestival.com 

The third annual Hammers N' Ales fundraiser is set for October 12, from 2 to 6 p.m., at the Poipu Beach Athletic Club, featuring food from Kaua'i restaurants, beer from Hawai'i and U.S. continental craft brewers, live music and family fun. Participating restaurants will include Merriman's Fish House, Keoki's Paradise, Plantation Gardens Restaurant and Bar, Ruth's Chris Steak House, The Kitchen at Papaya's, The Right Slice and Lava Lava Beach Club. Tickets are $75 presale and $85 on the day of the event. All event proceeds will benefit Kaua'i Habitat for Humanity. www.kauaihabitat.org/hammersnales

The beauty of the Kōke'e area's mountain forests is celebrated in hula, Hawaiian music and chant at the annual Eō e Emalani i Alaka'i festival, happening October 12, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Kōke'e State Park. The Kaua'i festival, which celebrates Queen Emma's 1871 visit to Kōke'e, includes a reenactment of her entourage's arrival on horseback. Free and open to the public, Eō e Emalani i Alaka'i also features exhibits, crafts, a silent auction and food for sale. www.kokee.org/index.php?festivals-emalani

The annual Kaua'i Chocolate and Coffee Festival is set for October 18 and 19 in historic Hanapēpē town. The public is invited to celebrate all things chocolate and coffee on Kaua'i with samplings, educational displays and workshops, entertainment and exhibitor booths featuring an array of chocolate and coffee products. The street festival will also include farm tours, informational classes, workshops and demonstrations, live entertainment, a chocolate and coffee pampering station, a silent auction, children's activities and more. Tickets are $15 presale and $20 on the day of the event. www.kauaichocolateandcoffeefestival.com

The second annual Hawaii Beer Fest is set for July 13 on the Great Lawn of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. Presented by Kurious Productions and Ohana Broadcast Co., the event offers guests an opportunity to sample more than 120 craft and draft beers from select international, continental U.S. and Hawai'i breweries. The O'ahu festival will also include food and retail booths, adult party games, and new winter releases from local and continental breweries. A portion of the festival's proceeds benefit the Rotary Club of Honolulu. www.hawaiibeerfest.com

The 42nd annual Prince Lot Hula Festival, is set for July 20 and 21, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the grounds of historic 'Iolani Palace. The non-competitive O'ahu hula event will feature performances from award-winning Hawai'i hālau hula (hula groups) in celebration of the Hawaiian dance art and its continued perpetuation. The festival honors Hawaiian monarch King Kamehameha V, born Lot Kapuāiwa, who helped reprise hula in the 1850s. www.moanaluagardensfoundation.org/2019-prince-lot-hula-festival

30

About HVCB 
The Hawai'i Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB), is contracted by the Hawai'i Tourism Authority (HTA) for marketing management services in the continental U.S. The HTA, the state of Hawai'i's tourism agency, was established in 1998 to ensure a successful visitor industry well into the future. Its mission is to strategically manage Hawai'i tourism in a sustainable manner consistent with the state of Hawai'i's economic goals, cultural values, preservation of natural resources, community desires and visitor industry needs. For more information about the Hawaiian Islands, visit https://www.gohawaii.com/ca

Media Contact: 
Shahfreen Elavia
Senior Public Relations Manager, Hawaii Tourism Canada 
shahfreen@voxinternational.com