During our trip to Oahu, Hawaii, we collected some fantastic
Hawaiian souvenirs. Before I go on, I should explain that our trip was in 2001 and this page was originally written on another website. By now, my little boys have grown up and left the house but this is still a solid and updated list of souvenir ideas for you whether you are travelling alone, as a couple or as a family unit. Because I am practical by nature, many of our choices were practical. However, I am also sentimental and some of the items will serve
as a reminder of our holiday in Hawaii forever.
I thought about arranging the items on this page in some sort of
order but found that too hard so here they are, arranged randomly, with the
exception of the fact that I've saved the best for last!
Many of these items are available before or after your trip.
Sometimes shopping before you leave home instead of shopping at your destination can save money plus
there is nothing quite like wearing a Hawaiian shirt while you are in Hawaii. It only makes sense, doesn't it? Buying yours in advance is not a bad thing at all and the internet makes doing so fairly easy.
Of course, if you've already
had your Hawaiian vacation and are now looking for a great souvenir, these
ideas are sure to help you find that piece that you remember from your vacation!
Who Are We?
We are a family of four including myself, my husband and two (then) boys. When we went to Hawaii my boys were nine and seven years of age.
They loved Hawaii and my eldest son shared his view of our adventures on the
page Hawaii For Kids
By A Kid. If you are curious about what we enjoyed doing in Oahu, you might want
to check out that page, too. You'll find a link to that post at the end of the page.
Our Top 10 Hawaiian Souvenir
Ideas
A Kukui Nut Lei
A lei is a garland or wreath of items put together as a
necklace. In Hawaii, that frequently means a wreath of flowers and you will
likely be given a lei or two while you are in Hawaii. They are commonly made
out of flowers like plumerias, lehua, orchids, pikake, and maile leaves, ferns,
and ti leaves and of course, some are plastic.
My boys, being boys, wore the flower ones the is more masculine, the Kukui Nut Lei.
These leis cost more. However, I
think they are a great choice and worth paying a bit more for because they are
a souvenir that is handsome and that will last forever.
For years, my sons kept theirs on
their bulletin boards. Now, they are safely packed away as a reminder of their trip to Hawaii.
They used their own savings to buy them and one son chose a lei
with all dark nuts, as shown here, and the other son chose a lei with a combination of dark and blonde nuts. You can order yours from Amazon
by clicking right here.
A Hawaiian Shirt
Of course, a Hawaiian shirt is the perfect souvenir of your
trip to Hawaii and great for parties at home, too. My husband has perhaps one too many
Hawaiian shirts. He wears them at slightly unexpected moments and people
love it when he does so!
My boys will tell you that real Hawaiian shirts receive a bit
of extra attention when they are made and can include little details like pockets that disappear because they
exactly match the print background; bamboo buttons; and fabric that includes
tropical and floral motifs as well as additional Hawaiian themes like
corvettes, planes, tropical drinks and pineapples.
Here's a fun Hawaiian shirt that will have you looking like
Magnum P.I. in no time at all...well maybe feeling like Magnum. You can buy
Magnum's Jungle Bird shirt on Amazon by clicking right here.
A Hawaiian Music CD
When in Hawaii, I loved the music and I
really wanted a CD to bring home. I have to admit that I was lucky. I picked a
CD pretty much randomly - The Best of The Brothers Cazimero as shown here and I love it.
Whenever I think about Hawaii, or when the weather
is warm in the summertime and the breeze is blowing, I put on my Brothers Cazimero CD. It ranks
as one of our most used souvenirs so I would definitely recommend this CD or,
at least, a Hawaiian CD as a souvenir.
The Brothers Cazimero are a standard in Hawaiian music. Their
style is part of Hawaiian history and they have contributed to Hawaiian
music and dance for both tourists and natives. This 17-track album is in both
Hawaiian and English and is a beautiful tribute to the islands of Hawaii.
Amazon says, "
Definitely add this album to your collection if you want a
taste of the magically and exotic Hawaiian Islands." I agree. You can order yours from Amazon
by clicking here.
A Hawaiian Cookbook
I'm not sure if our enjoyment of foods with a Hawaiian theme
started before or after our trip to Hawaii, but in any case, we do love
Hawaiian food, however authentic or inauthentic it might be.
I haven't created a complete Hawaiian menu yet, but I expect
that one day I will. Our favorites include Hawaiian
Potato Salad and Hawaiian Punch. You will find links to my recipes shown at the bottom of this page.
Anyway, I would recommend picking up a Hawaiian cookbook as an
excellent and inexpensive souvenir. Mine, shown here, is called Hawaii's Best Tropical Food and Drinks. It is a thin booklet with a few recipes
from each food type as well as a few tropical drink recipes. We love the Kalua Pork and the
Soy Teriyaki Chicken. One day, we'll try the tropical drinks, too! Find this cookbook on Amazon
by clicking here.
A Hawaiian Photo Album
When you come home you are no doubt going to have some
fantastic pictures. Another great idea for a souvenir is a themed photo album.
My Hawaiian one is the second travel-themed album that I have chosen and
filled. It isn't really fancy but it is quite special because it is instantly
recognizable as our Hawaii album and because it is full of precious memories.
The album shown here has a rustic, outdoorsy feel and
features a large Hawaiian turtle. You can find it and some like it
here on eBay. I love the idea of a photo album that feels a little bit vintage. Hawaii does that to me.
A Hawaiian Children's Picture Book
There are many great picture books you could choose as your
souvenir of Hawaii. We chose Hide & Seek in Hawaii 2 a beautiful picture
book 'I Spy' style by Jane Hopkins and Ian Gillespie with photography by Ray
Wong. Each two page spread includes items to find with popular Hawaiian themes
like shave ice, kitsch, postcards, fruit, lei and so much more. This book
series is recommended for children aged 4 to 8 years old and the text and tasks
are fairly simple. However, I enjoy the pictures, too. Find it on Amazon
here. The pictures of Hawaii are beautiful!
An Original Painting
We chose a small watercolor painting of Diamond Head, the
extinct volcano which overlooks Waikiki. It allowed us to have a seemingly
unique item without much cost and we chose to frame it ourselves at home. Our
painting was sold matted and protected with plastic which helped ensure that it
arrived home safely. However, I am sharing hear a beautiful, bold blue vintage oil painting. It is available from the seller
by clicking right here. If this one is not quite to your liking or perhaps sold, you can see all of eBay's
vintage oil paintings of Hawaii by clicking here.
A Hawaiian T-Shirt
If your family is like mine, they love t-shirts. When we
went to Hawaii, my boys had the cutest little t-shirts with creatures
indigenous to the waters of Hawaii on them. They loved them and they wore them
for as long as they possibly could. I couldn't find the same shirts to feature here, but I did
find this fantastic one from the environmentally friendly company, The Mountain. You can find The Mountain's turtle-themed t-shirts on Amazon
by clicking right here.
A Hawaiian Teddy Bear or Doll
We searched high and low to find a Hawaiian themed teddy
bear for me and we did manage to find one. Mine isn't a Ty Hawaiian teddy bear, but
this one by Ty is cute and another great idea as a souvenir for a child, a young lady or a teddy bear collector in your family. Find
Ty's Hawaiian bear on eBay here.
A Professional Photo
This is the best souvenir of Hawaii and is still displayed in our family room many years later. We had the boys' pictures taken twice with parrots.
The first time was in the street not far from our hotel when
a young man stopped us and asked if we would like to take a picture of our boys
with his parrots. He asked for a small sum in return for the privilege and we
snapped a few pictures.
Later we were in the marketplace in Oahu where there is a
stall where you can have your picture taken with parrots against a lush
tropical background. It definitely cost more (sorry I don't remember how much)
but today as I look at the pictures they are absolutely, positively the BEST
souvenir of our trip to Hawaii so do not begrudge spending a bit more on something you will treasure forever. As far as I am
concerned, it is perfect and it will ensure that we never forget how much fun
we had with our boys in Hawaii in 2001. If you have a similar photo opportunity
while you are in Hawaii, I really highly recommend grabbing it.
A Great Travel Guide
Not exactly a souvenir but definitely a must have. When you
are spending all that money for the trip of a lifetime, make sure you
spend a little on a couple of excellent guidebooks. You may be pleasantly
surprised at how inexpensive they are. I always use Fodor's and Frommer's
guides. You can find
Fodor's Travel Essential Hawaii guide book here, on Amazon.
I hope that I have managed to give you some souvenir ideas and that you manage to pick up a few great items as memories of your time in Hawaii.
Happy travels to you!
Brenda
Treasures By Brenda
More Hawaiian Reading:
The Best-Ever Hawaiian Punch Recipe
Yes. We love it. Hawaii AND this Hawaiian punch recipe. You will, too.
