After Pearl Harbor the Polynesian Cultural Center (built in 1963) is Hawaii's second largest attraction. Despite high admission charges and its considerable distance from Honolulu (33 miles/53km), its various productions are attended by more than one million people a year. The Polynesian Cultural Center was founded almost three decades ago by Laie's Mormon community in grounds of about 14 hectares.
Its purpose is to portray as authentically as possible, through music and dance, the culture and daily life of the Polynesian islanders in Hawaii, Tahiti, Marquesas, Tonga, Samoa and Fiji as well as that of the Maoris in New Zealand. The center is set out in the style of a village with each group of islands represented by several houses in which the respective island inhabitants practice traditional handwork and other daily activities. Two performances, the "Festival Production of the Long Canoes" by day and the evening show called "This is Polynesia", are dance displays in the style of an exotic musical with the most modern lighting and sound effects.
As not only the performers in the two shows but also the people at work in the houses come from the islands which they represent, a certain amount of authenticity is guaranteed. The actors are almost all students chosen by the Mormons to study in Laie at the offshoot of the Brigham Young University of Salt Lake City. They earn their fees by taking part in the different productions.
Thus, for example, in Tonga Village - Tonga is by the way the only independent kingdom in the South Seas - women can be seen making materials from tree bark (the Hawaiians call it tapa while in Tahiti it is called ngatau). Photographs of past kings and current rulers, beautiful floor coverings and much more are also on show. In the neighboring Tahiti Village, women can be observed making leis from shells as well as grass skirts, which really originate from the Gilbert Islands. There is also much keen singing and playing of musical instruments. The Marquesas Islands, on which only about 6000 people live, are represented by one house for the chief and a second for the women and children. In Hawaii Village there is to be found inside a chief's house a bed with a cover made of feathers surrounded by kahilis, the feathered poles which are symbols of the ali'i. Visitors can also see here how poi, the Hawaiian national dish, is made from the roots of the giant taro plant. The four-roomed chief's house in Fiji Village is also worth seeing as all its rooms are covered in mulberry tree tapas. The Samoans portray themselves by practical demonstrations - here visitors can learn the expert way of opening a coconut. In Maori House, a more than 39ft/12m-long canoe with room for 40 people can be seen. The Maoris, who no longer call their part of the world New Zealand but Aotearoa, can be watched performing their stick dance, often wearing full war paint.
Admission charges are staggered. The lowest price allows access to the "Festival Production of the Long Canoes" (performed several times a day) and the opportunity to stay for as long as desired in the native villages. The price rises to include food and admission to the evening show. These are without doubt the highest admission charges for an attraction in Hawaii but it alone offers visitors the opportunity to enjoy seeing the culture and lifestyle of some of the South Sea peoples.
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Lake in Polynesian Cultural Center on Oahu.
Waterfall in Polynesian Cultural Center, Laie.
