Ukulele shops within walking distance of Hawaiian ports

quiltingshirley

quiltingshirley

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Does anyone know of ukulele shops or interesting stuff that would be within walking distance of Hilo, Aloha Tower, Kauai port, Lahaina? I've been to Hilo Guitars and Ukuleles and the uke shop in the shopping area of the Aloha tower but I was thinking there must be other "out of the way" places. Thanks.
 
Hawaiian Ukulele Company is at the Aloha Tower Marketplace right where the cruise ships dock in Honolulu. Wait, you just said you've been there already. The KoAloha factory is a short cab ride away.

Island Guitars is also pretty close by (cab distance) at the Ward Warehouse.
 
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Oahu has one of the best public transportation systems in the world IMO. everything is really close if you have 6 or so hours.
 
Hawaiian Ukulele Company is probably your best bet for Oahu. I don't know about on the Big Island.
 
Lahaina Music sells a mix of Hawaiian and import ukes. There's a little music store in Nawiliwili (Kauai's port), but it only sells imports.
 
Aloha Quiltingshirley,
All I can say is, not to mention names but stay out of the Waikiki and touristy spots because the mark ups are outragous...if you have deep pockets or just want to try out the selection, I guess it's okay..
Easy Music Center, Dan's Guitar, Island Guitar are good ones in Honolulu..and town....Have a nice Vacation and enjoy it here.....let us know if you get a nice one...visit the Kamaka, Kanilea, and KoAloha
factory tours....and ask if they have extra ukes for sale...while KoAloha doesn't sell new ukes at the factory, they have seconds with just blemishes wall of ukes for a discount..call them and visit..I hope
it helps and have a nice time here...Good Luck and happy strummings..MM Stan....
 
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Kamaka is relatively closer to Aloha Tower, located on 550 South St in the Kakaako Industrial Area. Much closer than KoAloha which is located in the Kalihi-Palama Industrial Area.
 
No, we'll be on the Golden Princess. The Kamaka factory on 2nd St sounds like an easy walk. Plan to walk to Liolani(sp) Palace earlier in the day. We're there from 7 am till 11 pm so we can easily get some waking in. Is Lahaina Music in town in some marketplace area that also sells plate lunches? Don't know the names but know where I've seen ukuleles before -- before I got into the uke bug. Thanks for all the help.
 
quiltingshirley said:
The Kamaka factory on 2nd St sounds like an easy walk.
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Kamaka is on South Street (550 South Street, 808-531-3165) and definitely doable as a walk. I think they do tours at 10:30am, but I'd recommend calling to confirm this. Keep in mind, though, that while you can order a ukulele there, you can't actually buy one on the spot.
 
Kanaka916 said:
Kamaka is relatively closer to Aloha Tower, located on 550 South St in the Kakaako Industrial Area. Much closer than KoAloha which is located in the Kalihi-Palama Industrial Area.
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You're right of course. Kamaka is about a mile away while KoAloha is 2.5 miles. Makes sense to hit Kamaka as it's in the samegeneral direction from the Aloha Tower as Iolani Palace.
 
quiltingshirley said:
No, we'll be on the Golden Princess. The Kamaka factory on 2nd St sounds like an easy walk. Plan to walk to Liolani(sp) Palace earlier in the day. We're there from 7 am till 11 pm so we can easily get some waking in. Is Lahaina Music in town in some marketplace area that also sells plate lunches? Don't know the names but know where I've seen ukuleles before -- before I got into the uke bug. Thanks for all the help.
Click to expand...

You can also check the Ukulele Stores List . . .
 
quiltingshirley said:
Does anyone know of ukulele shops or interesting stuff that would be within walking distance of Hilo, Aloha Tower, Kauai port, Lahaina? I've been to Hilo Guitars and Ukuleles and the uke shop in the shopping area of the Aloha tower but I was thinking there must be other "out of the way" places. Thanks.
Click to expand...

Somebody must be going on a cruise. :-)
 
What size are you looking for & price. I just got back from Kawaii, Big Island & Oahu for a month there. Went to ALOT of uke shops, may be able to steer you in several places if you could narrow it down
perep@aol.com
 
Hi, you will have a wonderful time -- I'm actually onboard the Golden Princess right now (we leave Ensenada to return to LA tonight). Be sure to take the onboard ukulele lessons and tell Dave from Elua (the instructor in the husband/wife duo) that Staci said hi!

In Lahaina you can walk to a uke store just beyond Hilo Hattie -- it is Lahaina Music. In Honolulu, you dock right at Aloha Tower Marketplace and they have the Hawaiian Ukulele Company, but you are super close to the Kamaka factory and if you have time for the tour I highly recommend it. There are a lot of uke shops in Waikiki but they are expensive -- you could take a bus to them from the pier though. Check out the uke store thread for ideas.

In Hilo, there is Hilo Guitars. It isn't really walkable from the ship but if you take a shuttle to town it is quite walkable and they have a nice selection. In Kauai the only walkable shop is not good, but if you can get a car, Larry's in Kapaa is great, as is the uke store in Koloa, and I think they have been having big sales at Scotty's in Kalaheo.

You will have a great time, enjoy!
 
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Thanks for all the information. You guys are great. This will be fun. I plan on taking the ukulele lessons on the Golden. Hubby took them last year and bought a Kala tenor from Hilo Guitars and Ukes that he loves. Now, I want to learn. I bought a Makala last month online that I hated, and a Leolani pineapple from Hawaiian Music Supply a couple of weeks ago that I love. I am a very beginner -- very, very. I've been doing Uncle Rod's Boot Camp. I phoned Kamaka and will do their tour on Tues. No way are either of us ready for one of their ukuleles but we'd love to see some. I've never even heard of all these companies but I will.
 
Mele Ukulele and Bounty are near Kahului (the commercial port and downtown area), which is tens of miles from Lahaina (the historic whaling port and major tourist trap) in Maui. Lahaina Music is in a strip mall on the highway across the street from Kaiser Permanente. Don't recall a plate lunch place. There is a Subways in the mall.

If you're thinking of going to the Kamaka factory, I would go to the Iolani Palace first, head east on South King past the Kamehameha statue, turn right on Punchbowl, left on Queen, and then right on South. At Queen and South, you're a block and a half away from Kamaka. One more block south and you're at Restaurant Row.
 
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I'm back from the cruise. I tried out a 1920's Kamaka pineapple in Hilo that had been traded for a larger uke. Wow! I can't play and it had a sound that was wonderful -- so was the price, way up there. While we were in Honolulu we went on the Kamaka factory tour. It was great. One of the sons, I think it was Fred loved to "talk story" and it was well over an hour and never boring. Seemed like we saw everything. All that Koa wood in the wood pile. They had a few cancelled orders in the store and I tried a new pineapple since we got there early. It sounded great too. There's a shopping & eating area nearby so we went there until it was closer to tour time. (and I could think about how expensive a new uke would be) I said I wouldn't do it. And I'm a very, very beginner, but I am now the owner of a Curly wood Koa pineapple ukelele. Went back on the ship and found it was much easier to play than the other one I have. (The lessons onboard have helped) The only thing I've found hard is fine tuning the thing. It has compresion tuners, not the friction ones the other had. Fred had suggested I might want to use a screwdriver. I think he's right. It seems to stay in tune and just need that tiny bit of a fine tune. I'm happy. Can you tell? (I even went on stage last night and performed in the show with the Ukelele Masters and Hula dancers)
 
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