Our Day at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Hawaii

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Two weeks ago, Steve and I embarked on our honeymoon to Hawaii– Oahu to be exact! We stayed in the North Shore (more on that later) and had a wonderful time exploring the area and trying different activities. One of my favorites was visiting the Polynesian Cultural Center on our final full day in Oahu. We loved learning about the different Polynesian cultures and having our first luau!

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The Polynesian Cultural Center is in Laie, Hawaii– about 15 minutes from Turtle Bay Resort, where we stayed in Oahu’s North Shore. It’s adjacent to the Hukilau Marketplace, which is  total throwback to 1950’s Hawaii… or what I would imagine it to be. The Center and Marketplace and both worth visiting on your next trip to Oahu! 

The PCC offers different ticket package options– we went with the Alli’i Luau Package which includes admission (self-guided), Luau dinner and the ‘Ha: Breath of Life’ show. They also have ticket packages that includes a private or small group guided tour. 

A Journey to Old Hawaii… & Farther! 

There are six Polynesian villages at the center that you can explore: Hawaii, Tahiti, Tonga, Samoa, Fiji and Aotearoa. Each village offers cultural presentations and hands-on activities throughout the day. It was really neat to explore the villages and learn about each of the cultures. Out of the presentations we watched, Samoa was my favorite– it was comical, entertaining and even included fire dancing! 

HUKI: A Canoe Celebration

In the middle of the afternoon, all activities and presentations cease for the canoe pageant, Huki. It was so fun to see the dancers on the canoes and tell the story of Laie– be sure to get there early to get a good seat! 

Luau Love

Our ticket included a luau dinner– it was our first luau! We received a lei upon entering and were ushered to our table, which we shared with two others. The buffet dinner included chicken, beef, fish,salad, Hawaiian fried rice, poke, poi, fruit, desserts and of course kalua pork. For the dinner show, they told the story of Queen Liliuokalani with song and dance. Although the food wasn’t amazing, we did appreciate how good the service was and how organized it was. 

After the luau, we went to a couple other village presentations then made our way to the Hukilau Marketplace for some shopping and to wait for the evening show, ‘Ha: Breath of Life.’

The show started out a little slow– it told the story of a boy growing into adulthood throughout the various island villages. I thought it was such a neat and thoughtful way to incorporate each of the island cultures into the show. It finally heated up, literally, as the fire dancers came out and put on an AMAZING performance, we left awestruck! 

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Overall we had such a fun day at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Again,  I highly recommend spending a day here if you’re in Oahu! For my Hawaii alums, have you ever visited the PCC, what did you think?