Visiting Oahu and Hawaii in October
Visiting Oahu and Hawaii in October
Temperature: 73-88°F • Average Rainfall: 11 days/month • Average Sunshine: 9 hours/day • Sea Temperature: 81°F
October is shoulder season in Hawaii. Not that you’d know it, what with the veritable smorgasbord of fun festivals taking place throughout the month, from foodie spectaculars to film fests and, of course, Halloween. Prices are, on the whole, lower than more popular peak summer dates, meaning there are bargains to be had. But do be aware that hotel prices can spike during the most popular events (looking at you, Ironman World Championship).
The weather in October ain’t half bad either: we’re talking balmy summer days with only the occasional pre-rainy season shower, but rarely anything prolonged enough to dampen your spirits. Our advice? Pack a pocket poncho with the shades and sunscreen just in case you’re caught out on a hike.
Tourist numbers are also down in October, so it’s a fine time to enjoy all those fine Oahu attractions – Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head and traditional Polynesian luaus – with relatively few fellow sightseers. You can also save on admission to dozens of Hawaii bucket-listers with the Oahu pass from Go City®, which can reduce regular admission prices by up to half. Click to find out more and choose your pass.
October Festivals in Oahu and Hawaii
October Festivals in Oahu and Hawaii
Hawaii hosts more festivals and events in October than you can shake your hula at. Here is just a small selection of our faves…
Honolulu Pride Parade
October is Hawaii’s LGBTQ+ History Month, when the already colorful streets of Honolulu get the full rainbow treatment, with flags flying from Magic Island all the way down Kalakaua Avenue through Waikiki and into Kapiolani Park. Pick a spot along the route to catch the eye-popping Pride Parade, featuring flamboyant floats, loud loud music and plenty of balloons and streamers, and nab tickets for the festival that follows, with drag acts, musicians, dancers and more taking to the stage at Waikiki Shell. More here.
Hawaii Island Festival of Birds
The Big Island’s annual festival of all things avian is a must for full-feathered birdwatchers and fledgling twitchers alike. Expect tours, talks, games and bird-themed crafts, meaning that, if you fail to spot that elusive Hawaiian honeycreeper, you can probably still buy a picture of one. Stick your beak in for further details here.
Hawaii Food and Wine Festival
This epicurean extravaganza takes place over three weekends in October (and sometimes into early November), taking in a trio of islands – Oahu, Maui and the Big Island – and serving up countless culinary delights from the Pacific Islands and beyond. Take an empty stomach and an open mind for maximum enjoyment. Details of this year’s festival can be found here.
Ironman World Championship
Ironman World Championship
You’ll feel like you’re working off some of that fine Hawaiian cuisine just by *spectating* this annual triathlon on the Big Island, in which hardcore athletes from around the world compete for the title of Ironman (and Ironwoman). The course includes an open-water sea swim in Kailua-Kona Bay, a bike race across 122 miles of lava-scarred desert, and a windswept coastal marathon, all in frequently sweltering conditions. Not, in other words, a contest for the faint-hearted.
Hawaii International Film Festival
Popcorn at the ready: held across the four main Hawaiian Islands, this annual cinema showcase highlights movies from Asia, the Pacific region and North America. Here’s your chance to catch exclusive screenings, plus workshops, director Q&As, star-studded awards ceremonies and – who knows – perhaps even the odd celebrity selfie opportunity. Check the HIFF website for event details.
Emalani Festival
Featuring traditional food, music and crafts, this one honors Queen Emma’s valuable contribution to Hawaii’s rich cultural heritage. A celebration of her legendary horsemanship forms the centerpiece of the event. And if that’s whet your appetite for all things Queen Emma, your Oahu pass also covers entry to her summer palace: a 19th-century New England-style house just outside Honolulu in the lush Nuuanu Valley.
Spooktacular Halloween Fun!
Spooktacular Halloween Fun!
In many ways, Hawaii’s no different to the other 49 US states. That’s especially true at Halloween, when the trick or treaters are out in force and carved pumpkins wearing all manner of hideous expressions line the streets. You can even pick and carve your own at one of the pumpkin farms on Oahu and the Big Island.
Join a Honolulu ghost tour to discover Polynesian connections to the spiritual world, complete with spooky myths and legends and even ceremonies for communing with long-dead relatives. Or take a walk through the Haunted Plantation… if you dare. This super-scary immersive sugar-plantation nightmare unfolds in what is considered to be one of the world’s most haunted villages. Gulp.
Bit too creepy for comfort? Opt for marginally more cuddly Halloween experiences at themed pop-up bars, local cinemas and the Waikiki Aquarium instead.
October in Oahu and Hawaii: Best of the Rest
October in Oahu and Hawaii: Best of the Rest
There’s plenty more you can do in Oahu and Hawaii in October (when not birdwatching, taking part in a triathlon or running away screaming from disembodied heads, that is). The reduced shoulder-season crowds makes October prime time, for example, to tick off some of those essential cultural Oahu attractions. We’re talking the moving memorials and monuments of Pearl Harbor, the ostentatious confection that is regal Iolani Palace, and that most essential of Hawaii experiences: the traditional luau, a sensory extravaganza of Polynesian food, traditional music, hula, fire-dancing and more. You can check out our pick of Oahu's top 10 attractions here, and read our comparison of two of Oahu’s top luau shows here.
Pimp up your skill set with something a little out of your comfort zone. Hawaiians pride themselves on their colorful traditions and want to share them with you. And, after all, it’s not every day you get the chance to craft a delicate floral garland or learn hula and fire-dancing from the experts.
That’s not all either. You can still spot nesting sea turtles by the dozen in October on beaches like Lanikai on Oahu (there’s a reason they call it Turtle Beach, doncha know), as well as at Kahaluʻu Beach Park on the Big Island.
Looking for more October activities in Oahu and Hawaii? Hit the buttons below to find out how you could save with the Oahu pass and to choose yours…
Stu caught the travel bug at an early age, thanks to childhood road trips to the south of France squeezed into the back of a Ford Cortina with two brothers and a Sony Walkman. Now a freelance writer living on the Norfolk coast, Stu has produced content for travel giants including Frommer’s, British Airways, Expedia, Mr & Mrs Smith, and now Go City. His most memorable travel experiences include drinking kava with the locals in Fiji and pranging a taxi driver’s car in the Honduran capital.
