Get your tickets now for 40th annual Hawaiʻi Kūpuna Hula Festival
Kūpuna hula performers will mark a milestone four decades in the making when they take center stage for this year’s annual Hawai‘i Kūpuna Hula Festival, celebrating the festival’s 40th anniversary.
The 2026 festival is slated for Sept. 9-10 at Outrigger Kona Resort & Spa, located at located at 78-128 ʻEhukai St., in Keauhou.
Doors open at 4 p.m. and the program begins at 5 p.m. both days.
There are 12 hālau and 300 dancers performing in group and individual categories during this year’s festival, delighting spectators and judges alike, weaving the 2026 theme of “He Lei Poina‘ole Ko Hawai‘i” (“Cherished Moment of Hawai‘i Woven Into a Lei”) into their mele and performances.
And it’s just $20 per night to attend.
Tickets can be purchased at the Hawai‘i County Parks and Recreation Elderly Activities Division office, located at 127 Kamana St., in Hilo and West Hawai‘i Civic Center, located at 74-5044 Ane Keohokālole Highway Building B, in Kailua-Kona.
They also will be sold at the door, if and while tickets remain available.
Adding to the fun and another highlight of the event is the Hawai‘i Kūpuna Hula Festival Craft Fair, which is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days of the festival.
Local vendors will have a wide variety of items for sale — such as clothing, jewelry, snacks, fresh flowers, lei, accessories and more — at the Convention Foyer and Keauhou Meeting Rooms III and IV just outside the hula venue at the resort.
Tickets are not required to peruse and enjoy the craft fair.
So come help the festival commemorate 40 years of kūpuna hula on Keauhou Bay while you cherish a moment of Hawai‘i woven into a lei — and time.
Hawai‘i Kūpuna Hula Festival is presented by Hawai‘i County Parks and Recreation Elderly Activities Division. Call 808-323-4340 or 808-961-8710 for additional information.
