It’s October! Here are the 8 Best Things to Do in Honolulu
October is basically one giant costume party, from a Batman documentary to a dinner theater gala to dozens of Halloween adventures.
FAIRS & EXPOS
Windward Ho‘olaule‘a
October 4
Photo: Courtesy of Ramon Vrielink
Grab 15,000 of your friends and head to the 14th annual festival of Hawaiian culture, entertainment, art, activities and ‘ono grinds on the Windward Side. But it is still a school, so expect to learn a few things. Like how to eat a crepe while standing in line to bid on a two-night stay at the Pagoda Hotel.
Free admission, 10 a.m.–8 p.m., Windward Community College, Great Lawn, windwardhoolaulea.com.
FAIRS & EXPOS
Great Guns Show
October 4 and 5
If you’re going to offer someone two tickets to the gun show, you might want to actually have them up your sleeves.
$6, Blaisdell Exhibition Hall, hawaiihistoricarms.com.
SPORTS
Ka Iwi Coast Run & Walk
October 5
Photo: Courtesy of Peter Tully Owen
This month, Kalaniana‘ole Highway will be shut down, not for more rusty railing repairs, but for a community trek from Sandy Beach Park to Maunalua Bay. Register during packet pickup at the Hui Nalu Canoe Club on Oct. 4 or, if space remains, on race day. Participants will receive cool commemorative glass fishing floats—plus gorgeous morning views of East O‘ahu.
$30–$40, 6:30 a.m., meet at Sandy Beach Park, kaiwicoastrun.org.
FUNDRAISER
Ambrosia: Iona’s 2014 Gala
October 11
Some of the tables’ themes this year: “Bacchus to the Future,” “Zeus on the Loose,” “Nice Minoan You,” “Alpha Beta’s Pi and Bake Shop,” “Toga or Not Toga?” (We all know the answer to that one.)
Tables start at $2,000, Sheraton Waikīkī Helumoa Pool, iona360.com.
FAIRS & EXPOS
BayFest
October 17–19
Photo: Courtesy of Smash Mouth
The music and fun festival is back after sequestration killed it last year. The military base will open its gates to the public with concerts by Smash Mouth and Uncle Kracker (Friday), Capital Cities (Saturday), and Rodney Atkins and Rose Falcon (Sunday). There will also be carnival rides, a fitness competition, military displays, food booths, boat rides, new-car displays and fireworks. Check the schedule online for details.
$5 general admission per day, $35–$40 concert admission per night, Friday, 5 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Saturday, noon to 1 a.m.; Sunday, noon to 10 p.m., Marine Corps Base Hawai‘i, Kāne‘ohe Bay, bayfesthawaii.com.
CHARITY
Heroes of Aloha
October 18
Photo: Courtesy of Brett Culp Films
Don your capes, crusaders, for a one-night-only screening of Legends of the Knight, a moving documentary about people who have been inspired by Batman. Proceeds will benefit local charities Hospice Hawai‘i, Joshua Neves Children’s Foundation, Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children, PATCH People Attentive to Children, and Visitor Aloha Society of Hawai‘i. Yes, there will be a superhero costume parade and, no, this is not just for kids.
$10–$30, 4:30–8 p.m., Waikīkī Shell, wearebatman.com/heroesofaloha.
MUSEUM
Nature’s Wonders
Through October 27
Bishop Museum is the leading natural history museum of the Pacific. Find out why with this collection of shiny beetles, colorful birds of paradise and nautilus shells that would make Fibonacci proud. Sorry, no dinosaurs this time.
Free with admission, Bishop Museum, bishopmuseum.org.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Halloween
You’re going to need more than one costume to hit up all the Halloween parties this year. Don’t miss the usual fright fests, such as Haunted Plantation or Halloween at the Hyatt, or the newer events, including a zombie run. Click here to stay up to date with a roundup of the best haunted attractions and parties occurring in October, which we will update throughout the month.
