Moanalua Gardens, Park in Honolulu, Hawaii, US
Moanalua Gardens is a privately owned park in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, featuring open lawns, large shade trees, a koi pond, and a small historic cottage on the grounds. The park covers around 24 acres (about 10 hectares) and is managed by the Moanalua Gardens Foundation, which keeps it open to visitors daily.
The land was once part of the estate of the Kamehameha royal family, and Prince Lot Kapuaiwa, who later ruled as King Kamehameha V, used the grounds as a retreat. The cottage still standing on the property dates from that era and is one of the few surviving traces of that chapter in Hawaiian history.
The most visited spot in the park is a large monkeypod tree with a wide, umbrella-shaped canopy, known locally as the Hitachi Tree. The Japanese electronics company Hitachi has used its image in advertising for decades and pays an annual fee for the right to do so.
The park sits near the Tripler side of the Moanalua Freeway, and the entrance can be tricky to find, so it helps to check directions carefully before heading over. Mosquitoes can be present among the trees, so it is worth bringing repellent, especially in the shadier parts of the grounds.
Every July, the grounds host the Prince Lot Hula Festival, the largest non-competitive hula event in Hawaii, where groups perform traditional Hawaiian dance without being judged or ranked. The absence of competition gives the event a tone that sets it apart from most other hula gatherings across the islands.
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