Local News

Photos: Waʻa ceremony welcomes delegates to kick off FestPAC in Hawaiʻi

Hawaiʻi Public Radio | By Krista Rados

Published June 5, 2024 at 3:30 PM HST

A waʻa arrives at Kualoa Beach for FestPAC on June 5, 2024. — A waʻa arrives at Kualoa Beach on June 5, 2024.

The Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture, the largest gathering of Pacific Islanders, is anticipated to draw more than 100,000 people and over 2,100 delegates from 25 Pacific nations and territories over the next two weeks.

A private waʻa, or canoe, ceremony kicked off festival events Wednesday morning at Kualoa Beach Park on Oʻahu.

The ceremony symbolized the coming together of Pacific nations by carrying representatives ashore via traditional canoes.

Take a closer look at the event:

Two volunteers from Hawaiʻi stand on the shore to help delegates as they arrive on various waʻa. The waʻa left Mōkapu near the U.S. Marine Corps Base early Wednesday morning carrying delegates from the different Pacific countries, nations or territories to Kualoa Beach.

FestPAC attendees in Kāneʻohe on June 5, 2024. — About 150 delegates from Rapa Nui will attend FestPAC this year. Delegates told media that this is the largest number of attendees they have been able to bring to an event like this.

Community members, ranging in age, helped welcome delegates arriving on waʻa at Kualoa Beach on June 5, 2024. The theme of this year's FestPAC is “Ho‘oulu Lāhui: Regenerating Oceania," honoring existing traditions while perpetuating existence for the future.

Attendees brought tents and chairs to watch the waʻa ceremony at Kualoa Beach on June 5, 2024. The ceremony was closed to the public, allowing for opportunities to converse among delegates and their families.

Volunteers, many from community waʻa clubs, help carry canoes as they arrive at Kualoa Beach for FestPAC on June 5, 2024. — Volunteers, many from community waʻa clubs, helped carry in and redirect canoes as they arrived at Kualoa Beach on June 5, 2024. The smaller waʻa were later docked to be admired by ceremony attendees on the shore.

Community members had the opportunity to connect with Pacific Island delegates as they arrived to Kualoa Beach on June 5, 2024. For many, this was the first time people from Pacific countries, nations or territories had the opportunity to meet or reconnect with each other.

A volunteer stands on the shore awaiting the waʻa to help arriving FestPAC delegates on June 5, 2024. — A volunteer stands on the shore awaiting the waʻa to help bring delegates in on June 5, 2024.

The official FestPAC wehena, or opening, ceremony, will take place Thursday evening at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. The festival will conclude June 16.

Throughout the 10-day event, delegates will display their culture through performances and art at the main festival hub at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center.

A public Waʻa Festival on Saturday invites attendees to engage in various waʻa activities, including waʻa tours, line handling, star compass activities and more. Participants can also tour traditional double-hulled canoes from Hawaiʻi and other Pacific nations, such as Aotearoa, Saipan, Rarotonga and Tahiti.

Other primary FestPAC venues are the Bishop Museum, which will have carvers and tattoo demonstrations, and Capitol Modern, which will have a large exhibit showcasing Pacific artistry.

<i>Click here to learn more</i> about the schedule of events.

See below for coverage leading up to FestPAC:

Stay tuned to ongoing coverage of FestPAC from HPR reporters over the next 10 days.