HAWAI`I'S BIG ISLAND FESTIVAL
A CELEBRATION OF DIVERSITY
The Big Island, Hawaii
Oct. 30 - Nov. 3, 2002
What It Is:
This thoughtful and exciting event is a lifestyle festival that showcases the island's cuisine, golf & sports, spa, culture, agricultural products, healing and music.
This fall a very special celebration unfolds - Hawaii's Big Island Festival. Authentic island wide Hawaiian experiences connect with ancient cultural and healing practices, sporting events, gastronomical pleasures, insightful seminars, spa treatments, tropical melodies and an abundance of activities to fire your imagination. Gain access to cutting-edge culinary trends at notable evening events along the stylish Kona-Kohala coast of paradise. More than mere wine and food pairings, Hawaii's Big Island Festival is A Celebration of Diversity.
Imagine a new festival that highlights cuisine, fine wines, Hawaiian culture, world class golf, spa treatments, unique farm tours and celebrity chefs in paradise. Experience all this and more at the ultimate lifestyle festival developed to showcase Hawaii's majestic Big Island. Hawaii's Big Island Festival, A Celebration of Diversity, premiers this fall from October 30 through November 3, 2002.
Hawaii's Big Island will host the five-day festival where guests are treated to a menu of culinary seminars, food and wine tastings, spa and healing offerings, sport activities, golf tournaments and clinics, a designer trunk show and Hawaiian cultural events each day. Events have been designed to share the Big Island's sense of place with visitors from around the world. The inaugural Festival is expected to attract over 2000 attendees in its first year.
"Individually, Big Island resorts are widely known for their epicurean events. The Big Island has set its sights on an annual festival, produced on a grand scale, that brands the entire island. Hawaii's Big Island Festival embraces the greater island community with its positioning as A Celebration of Diversity. We expect to set a new standard in Hawaii and beyond for events of this nature," said Robin Graf, Festival Chair and General Manager of the Outrigger Waikoloa Beach Hotel.
The theme of Hawaii's Big Island Festival 2002 will be the journey from mauka to makai (mountain to the sea) and each of the individual festival events will incorporate these special attributes that further the sense of place.
Celebrity Chefs
Hawaii's best chefs will join a contingent of Food & Wine magazine's invited chefs to present cooking demonstrations and culinary exhibitions. Special guest chef appearances will be included at each of the main evening events.Agriculture Events and Farm Tours
Red Slices. Yellow brandywine. Golden beefsteak. Green zebra. Merriman's Waimea Restaurant will hold its seventh annual Big Island Tomato Tasting in conjunction with Hawaii's Big Island Festival. Chef/owner Peter Merriman hosts this animated event that has become a favorite among food lovers. Local farmers submit their best production tomatoes and are judged on appearance, color, texture and flavor in large and small farm categories. The Big Island Tomato Tasting is the result of Chef Merriman's quest to link farmers and chefs in the agricultural chain.Along with the Big Island Tomato Tasting, festival-goers will be invited to explore several of the 600 Kona coffee farms that grace the Kona slopes. Coffee lovers will enjoy the Holualoa Art and Kona Coffee Stroll in historic Holualoa town where a sampling of fine estate-grown gourmet Kona coffees can be had while exploring the galleries of this art community.
Individual farms that produce Big Island chocolate, vanilla, tropical fruits, hearts of palm, and macadamia nuts will also participate in Hawaii's Big Island Festival with exhibitions and farm tours.
Spa Happenings
Travel & Leisure magazine will host spa events along the famed Kohala Coast where unique seminars, new spa products and treatments will be the focus. Participating spas include the Rainforest Spa at Outrigger Waikoloa Beach, the Kohala Spa at Hilton Waikoloa Village, Spa Without Walls at The Orchid at Mauna Lani and the new Mauna Lani Spa.
Wineries
Wine lovers will delight in the array of tastings offered at Hawaii's Big Island Festival. Wineries from around the world will gather at the Festival's evening events and at daily tastings held within the Grand Tasting Pavilion headquartered at Waikoloa Beach Resort.
Contact Information:
For ticket information call: 866-424-FEST
Festival Highlights:
Wednesday, October 30
A Traditional Hawaiian Evening at Kona Village Resort.Thursday, October 31
Avenue of Aloha at Waikoloa Beach Resort presented by Hilton Waikoloa Village, Outrigger Waikoloa Beach and the Kings' Shops.Friday, November 1
Beachboys Bash at The Orchid at Mauna LaniSaturday, November 2
Taste of Mauna Lani at Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & BungalowsSunday, November 3
The Bounty of Keauhou at Keauhou Resort
