While visiting Oahu, there are a few places that offer some unique items to bring home, for yourself or for friends and family.
I don’t usually shop a lot when I am on vacation, but I like to bring home a souvenir or two to remind me of places I have been. Over the years, I’ve accumulated quite a collection from Australian boomerangs to Latin American indigenous pottery.
Where to shop for souvenirs in Oahu, Hawaii
ABC Stores
These chain convienience stores are located in almost every corner of Waikiki. You can find just about anything here: a cold beverage, pre-packaged lunch, t-shirts, coffee, chocolate, macadamias and other types of souvenirs. I even found fried cricket! Yes, that is something you can buy at an ABC store. Go figure!
If you don’t have a lot of time and want to bring something back home, this may be the easiest place to shop.
Dole Plantation Store
On a previous post I mentioned how surprised I was to find so many products at the Dole Plantation store. It’s where I found most of my souvenirs- Hawaiian quilting fabric for my mother-in-law and a leather bracelet for my niece with her name written in Hawaiian. They also carry jewelry and many, many food products. You can also have them ship you some pineapples and believe me, after trying their pineapple in the store, you will want to!
Kualoa Farm
The family that owns Kualoa Farm also rents land to local makers to sell their products. If you are driving up to the North Shore or to Kualoa Farm for a tour, stop by and try different types of macadamia, coffee and chocolate. We brought back several flavors of each. This is a good place to support the local farmers.
Aloha Market
If you love browsing a market for hours, then you need to visit the Aloha Market in Oahu. It’s also called a Swap Meet and it’s a mix of an outdoor market and an yard sale. It’s huge and it takes place outside a stadium. In it, you will find a huge range of products, from food to household products. You can also find swimwear, ukuleles and handmade wood carved products at the Aloha Market.
What I liked the best about this market was to find fresh fruit and fresh coconut water at a very reasonable price. However, I don’t think it was worth the drive, because I couldn’t find a unique gift that I liked, but if you need to buy in bulk- for the whole family, this is the place for it.
If you plan on going to the Aloha Market, arrive early to avoid crowds and the hot sun.
Here is some info about the market:
Hours: 6:30am- 3:00pm on Sundays
Location: Aloha Stadium
Entrance Fee: U$1
Website: www.alohastadiumswapmeet.net
Happy Xploring!
Jana
Love this! I’m always bringing stuff back to family & friends… So many great ideas here. Now, I just have to get back to Hawaii! LOL @ the guy with the coconuts… 🙂
G.
Author
Thanks G! He was a character!
These are some really cool stuff to take home as souvenirs. I really like those hand made guitars that you posted! I’m getting ready to go to Hawaii next week and I probably won’t be back there for a long time. This is my first time so I want to plan everything perfect, even what souvenirs to bring back home. Thanks for posting this article, gave me some really good ideas.
Author
Really glad to hear it! The ukeleles are always a big hit!