Maui Fair

W/​an attendance nearing 100,000 people, the 93^rd annual Maui Fair is a big event in Maui that it brings the entire community together! Normally held for four days during the first weekend in October, the 2015 fair was held during the last weekend in Sept. at the War Memorial Sports Complex in Kahului.
This year’s theme «A Fair w/​Local Flair» highlighted the local foods & products of Maui. The fair’s offerings include:
* Events: baby of the year contest, robotics competition, lego competition, lip sync battle, home-​baked pie contest, chili cook-​off, fried rice challenge.
* Exhibits: huge orchid display, bonsai; fruits & vegetables; hobbies & crafts (clothing, fabric crafts, needlework, novelty, holiday); student art; photography; livestock; poultry; horticulture (pests, weeds, flower arranging, seed starting, gardening, mango grafting).
* Hot foods: corn on the cob, Hawaiian plate, loco moco, spaghetti, pastelle, shoyu chicken, BBQ pulled pork, crepes, orange chicken, Greek food, pork and peas, panko crusted fish, pork adobo, chicken hekka, chili, pansit, teri beef, sweet sour spare ribs, Korean plate, dry mein, roast pork, smoked meat, malassadas, & more. They even had balut (no, I didn’t get it; for those who don’t know what it is, it’s a partially developed chicken embryo that is eaten from the shell).
* Products & services: individual companies selling clothing, cosmetics, jewelry, home services, massage, & unique, innovative products.
* Community services: Maui governmental services such as police, parks & recreation; non-​profit organizations such as bone marrow donor registry, hospice, substance abuse.
* Entertainment: local professional Hawaiian groups, such as Anuhea, Willie K, Mark Yamanaka; & talented local community groups & organizations.
* Midway rides & games by EK Fernandez.
The fair starts off with a parade, which is Maui’s largest, down Kaahumanu Ave. on Thurs. late afternoon; this signifies the start of the fair.
Friday is designated a day when family, neighbors, & friends of those who have physical limitations & special needs can enjoy the fair which prevent them from attending during regular hours. Certain rides, games, entertainment, & a picnic lunch are provided at no charge.
There’s even a Park & Ride arrangement where a fairgoer may park their car at one of several designated areas w/​in the city & take a free shuttle bus ride to & from the fairgrounds. Not bad, considering that it costs $ 5 to park your car on the fairgrounds.
There’s an interesting Lost Keiki Tent, sponsored by the Girl Scouts of Hawaii, which prevents kids from getting lost instead of the usual being lost after-​the-​fact. Parents may register their child, w/​the child getting a wristband w/​a number on it in exchange for the parent’s cell phone number. If the child gets separated from its parents, the troop leaders can easily call the parents on their cell phones! What a novel idea!
The fair is somewhat pricy, as there is a $ 7 admission charge for adults ($ 3 for kids age 5 – 11 years) on top of the $ 5 parking fee. Now that’s just to get into the fair, & you’ll need more $$ for food, rides, games, & plants.
Despite the cost, it’s all for worthy causes, as the fair is a major fundraiser for many of the Maui civic & non-​profit organizations w/​proceeds used to defray their annual operating costs. For example, each of the food booths is sponsored by a specific organization which will pre-​sell tickets to the community weeks before the fair opens; & that organization will be cooking the food at the fairgrounds. People of all ages from the young to the very old came in droves w/​their pre-​sale tickets to pick up their food. Organizations such as the Kiwanis Club of Kahului makes malassadas (batter from Homemaid Bakery), Maui High School Band Boosters makes chili & rice, Future Chefs of Maui makes waffle cakes w/​ice cream & fruit toppings, Kahana Canoe Club makes a smoked meat plate, & the list goes on. Even nearby private landowners & businesses allowed non-​profit & civic groups to fundraise by charging a flat $ 5 fee for fairgoers to park on their properties; what was amazing was that this was coordinated so that it was $ 5 no matter where you parked your car. I was amazed as to the commitment of the organizations & the support of the community to assist the many groups for their causes!
And it’s not surprising to see the support of some of the major sponsors of the fair, such as Alaska Airlines, HMSA, Kaiser Permanente, Monsanto, Maui Hotel & Lodging Association, Queen Kaahumanu Center, & many others.
The Maui Fair is one of the biggest, & I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s THE biggest event of the year for the community. There is much pride in Maui to host this event, but more importantly, Maui’s non-​profit & civic organizations stand to gain, as this is their major fundraiser. I enjoyed the time spent there and would definitely return, especially since I know that my attendance will help in giving back to the comm

How did I never get around to reviewing the Maui Fair? I admit that I rarely go to the County or State Fairs in Cali but will always try to go the Maui Fair if it is while we’re on island. The main initial draw was originally the entertainment as they always have first rate Hawaiian musicians performing and this year, even in the audience. Always great seeing Uncle Richard! Makaha Sons, Keali‘i Reichel, and Ekolu are just a sample of the treat we were in for in the past. This year was no exception with the great Mark Yamanaka who braved the tropical storm on a flight from Hilo just to perform for Maui.
Usually it is during the last week (Th-​Su) of September or first week of October but this year it was a week earlier than normal giving me the chance to finally go on the last day when I would normally be leaving the islands. A parade kicks off this timeless tradition on Thursday afternoon followed by evening hours on Th and Fri and Sat and Sun allows attendees to see the fair while it is still light out. Rides, food booths that are fundraisers, contests, product and services tent, livestock, arts and crafts and first rate entertainment makes this a great local experience. I love how the community really comes together for this annual event.
Parking: There are free shuttles from a few satellite parking lots in Wailuku or Queen K Center but check the shuttle hours as they do not necessarily run until the end of the fair especially on Sundays. We normally park at Queen K but realized this year that they have on site parking for $ 5 close to the War Memorial.
Price: Pre-​sale tickets are $ 5, $ 7 at the door Th-​Sat. Discount Sunday = rides for about 3 tickets are less, $ 5 admission.
Food: Ono grindz for a good cause with poi mochi and Hawaiian plates my must have. Always long line for poi mochi so go during peak lunch/​dinner time when most ppl are buying other food.
This year they experimented with opening up the entertainment tent so those in the food area can see as well which is great. But would be great if they can cover the seating in the entertainment tent more in the future as only the first row was fully covered so was a challenge when it started raining hard.

Just got here. Thank goodness for the shuttle service. Heck if I would try and find parking and then try to leave. New floor plan. I think it looks better. Feels not so hectic and crowded. But today is Sunday. The last day.
The crowd was all at the end by the rides. Yikes, but it was okay.
Felt comfortable this year. As always prices are still the same… highly priced.

Maui county fair runs first week of October Thursday thru Sunday. Starts off with a parade at the college and runs to the fair grounds at 4:00 pm with the opening of the fair to follow. Thursday they will stay open to 11:00 pm. Friday is special fair day i like going to thus and seeing everyone there all smiles and being happy. They have awesome help during the day and great entertainment. You will need a pass you attend the special fair day. Then it week open again at 5:00 pm and stay open till midnight. Saturday in not sure what time it opens up again but will stay open to midnight. The fair will close in Sunday at 11:00 pm. Admission is 7.00 for an adult on Sunday they will charge you 5.00 but usually the first 2,000 people thru the doors get in free. Parking is usually 5.00 wherever you park. You may also catch a shuttle at a designated area. The shuttles runs every so often. If you have a handicap placard park in the stadium parking lot so you can park close to the entrance. The fair has so many choices of food you can choose from. My favorites are the chow fun, steak plate, pronto pop, cascaron.
They also have many rides and games too choose from. All rides for all ages.
Go and check out the food and product tent. The gym also has art work to check out. The fair only comes once a year so go and check it out for a fun filled event with your family.

Here for the Fab Fun Fair Night Run. Raining… Ugh. Parking was murderous. The rides was so close together that everyone was confused if they were in the right line. The food was so far, opposite ends of the whole area

Big midway — lots of rides and lots of con artist games to take your money while you try for a stuffed animal that you don’t really want. As Vince N says, they have a great selection of food stands. We tried four — all good.
The orchid exhibit was awesome. Other exhibits were pretty tame. Livestock was almost nonexistent, some chickens and rabbits, 4 – 5 beef cattle, 2 horses, all in a tent hidden at the back of the fair by a parking lot.
This year is their 90^th, so hopefully this review will be helpful to someone thinking about going in future years. It’s a good county fair, with limited judged competition, great food, and plenty of rides.

For four days (Thursday to Sunday) usually the last weekend of September or beginning of October, is Maui’s biggest community event.
It starts with a parade on Thursday around 4:30p (starts at the UHMC entrance on Ka’ahumanu and ends at the War Memorial Complex on Kanaloa,) then the fair opens around 6pm.
This is a foodie’s paradise! No fair in the state has better food than here, for real. If you can’t find something to satisfy your palette, something is wrong with YOU! There are 45 – 50 organizations selling everything from soft drinks, to apps, to entrees, to desserts. Way too many to name. Check out the website to get a feel. Meat lovers, vegetarians and sweet tooth folk rejoice! My personal favorites are pronto pup, flying saucer, Portuguese bean soup, chow fun, waffle cake, frosty POG, and malasadas.
There are carnival rides for young and old, tons of games, livestock, arts & crafts, orchid & flower show, school art, horticulture, numerous vendors selling all kinds of things from clothing to housewares, home to beauty products, way too many to name, and lots live entertainment.
On Sunday the entrance fee drops a bit and most rides are discounted about 50%, and some food vendors run out of food late in the day.
There are numerous parking areas, some close and with a fee, some a bit far but free and comes with a free shuttle ride.
It can get very dusty, so if you have allergies beware!