Mauna Lani's Holiday Season Runs Through the Cottage by the Fishponds
Eva Parker Woods Cottage sits among the Kalāhuipuaʻa fishponds, a set of six major ponds. The largest covers 5 acres. In the 1970s there was no Queen Kaʻahumanu Highway along this coast, only lava field, and dirt paths connected the mauka road to Puakō. In the evenings, a group of University of Hawaiʻi Hawaiian Studies students would gather on the cottage lanai to talk story, play ʻukulele and practice hula under the moon.
One of those students was Daniel "Kaniela" Kahikina Akaka, Jr., known around the resort as Uncle Danny. He has spent close to three decades turning those evenings into Twilight at Kalāhuipuaʻa. This holiday season, the free events Mauna Lani offers the wider community are arranged around Twilight's two Saturdays.
Twilight takes place on the Saturday closest to the full moon. That rule determines its dates, so it is not tied to the resort's holiday weekends. Ke Ola Magazine's history of the gathering dates the first full-moon evening to September 1997. Danny and Anna Akaka organized it, drawing on 1970s nights at Kalāhuipuaʻa with classmates and the Kihe family, especially Mama Kihe.
The resort's Twilight listing is unusually clear about who may attend. It says the event "is free and open to the public and hotel guests," that seating is first-come, first-served and that lawn space is available. The listing's two remaining 2026 dates are Saturday, Nov. 21, and Saturday, Dec. 19, both starting at 5 p.m.
The resort's account of the series quotes Uncle Danny on why it began.
"We wanted to share an experience we once had with our guests, an experience one cannot easily find. As Twilight grew, we brought our children because we wanted to share the magic of this place. And one day, perhaps they'd be storytellers, too."
The same account describes programs that range from "chicken skin stories" at Halloween to Santo & Johnny's "Sleepwalking" on steel guitar. Aunty Anna often adds hula to the live music. It also says visitors and neighbors gather around the cottage, "usually with a Tommy Bahama chair or two in tow." With the 2026 calendar fixed by the moon, the resort's other holiday programming is built around those two Saturdays.
November's Twilight is one night of a four-day event. Steel & Song, which the resort calls this year's Hawaiʻi Island Steel Guitar Experience, runs Thursday, Nov. 19, through Sunday, Nov. 22. Its base is Hale ʻIʻike, with performances, hands-on exhibits and kanikapila spread around the property. The listing calls it "this free celebration."
The Steel & Song schedule by day:
On Saturday the steel guitar weekend and the full-moon evening become one event. Twilight's regular mix of local musicians and storytellers falls on the third of the festival's four days, and both are free.
The Tuesday after, Nov. 24, Mauna Lani holds Grateful for Makahiki, with Hawaiian games and a talk-story session. The Makahiki listing shows four one-hour blocks: 8 to 9 a.m., 10 to 11 a.m., noon to 1 p.m. and 2 to 3 p.m.
Charity of Trees begins six days after the first Twilight. Local nonprofits decorate trees, guests and community members vote for their favorite at $1 a vote, and all proceeds go to the participating charities. The top three trees also win bonus prizes for creativity and holiday spirit.
The 2026 Charity of Trees listing gives these dates:
The participating nonprofits are announced at the lighting, so the Nov. 27 ceremony is when the community finds out whose trees are in the lobby. The voting runs for more than a month and stays open past the December Twilight, which leaves time to come back for another vote after seeing the full lineup.
Next door, Fairmont Orchid has its own holiday event aimed at island businesses. The kamaʻāina Holiday Social is listed for Saturday, Dec. 5. Tickets are $150 per person including taxes and service, and the event is 21 and over. The evening starts with a 6 p.m. reception, followed by a buffet at 6:30 and dancing until 10. The listed reservation deadline is Nov. 25.
Twilight's second 2026 date is also the day of the Mauna Lani Holiday Market. The market runs from 1 to 6 p.m. in the Lower Lobby and is presented with Mālama Hawaiʻi Makers Market. Mālama Hawaiʻi describes itself as a Hawaiʻi-based pop-up of curated local artists, makers, designers, collectors and food vendors. It started in 2019 and says it supports nearly 150 local businesses each month. At last year's Mauna Lani market, Big Island Now reported more than 30 makers and designers from Hawaiʻi Island and Oʻahu.
The timing matches November's. The market's final hour overlaps Twilight's 5 p.m. start, so one afternoon covers holiday shopping in the lobby followed by music and stories at the cottage. The Charity of Trees vote is still open that day, in the Upper Lobby.
The night before, Blue Ribbon Sushi opens a nightly oceanfront pop-up at Surf Shack. It runs Friday, Dec. 18, through Sunday, Jan. 3, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. On New Year's Eve, the resort's holiday calendar lists an Omakase Experience with Blue Ribbon Sushi at Surf Shack and a party on the Great Lawn with fireworks over the Kohala Coast.
The resort's restaurants publish fixed holiday menus with prices:
Fairmont Orchid's Hale Kai is still in transition. The resort's Hale Kai page describes a "completely reimagined Hale Kai on the horizon." In the meantime, Hale Kai lunch is served daily from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Brown's Beach House, and the resort says a new pop-up pool bar, the Kona Bar, will bring drinks and casual bites poolside. The page also lists a rotating series of pop-ups for the season, including an Italian Osteria, Spanish-style Tapas and a Taste of Southeast Asia.
If there is a Twilight evening you won't miss this season, or you're hosting family at Mauna Lani for the holidays and want a local's calendar for the coast, I'd love to hear about it. Let's connect at Deborah Thompson.
Deborah derives great satisfaction from fulfilling clients' aspirations by connecting them with their ideal homes. She endeavors consistently to cater to the requirements of both buyers and sellers.
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