King Kamehameha Day 2026 · June 8–14
King Kamehameha Day
in Hawaiʻi.
The first state holiday signed into law in the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. June 11 honors Kamehameha I, who unified the islands in 1810. Today: lei draping at the statue downtown, the Floral Parade through Waikīkī, and hoʻolauleʻa from Hilo to Kauaʻi.
The three traditions
What King Kamehameha Day looks like
Thursday June 11
Lei Draping Ceremony
Hundreds of feet of lei are raised by crane and draped on the gold-leafed statue of Kamehameha I in front of Aliʻiōlani Hale downtown. Hawaiian chant, hula, and pule. Free, open to the public.
Saturday June 13
Floral Parade
Pāʻū riders, marching bands, and floral floats from ʻIolani Palace through Waikīkī to Kapiʻolani Park. Each island represented by a pāʻū princess on horseback in her island's color and flower. Hawaiʻi's longest-running parade.
Saturday June 13
Hoʻolauleʻa at Kapiʻolani Park
Parade ends, party begins. Live Hawaiian music, hula hālau, lāʻau lapaʻau demonstrations, ʻono local kine food. Pack a mat — it runs into the evening.
Featured this week
On the calendar
60 events this week
Tuesday, June 9
12 events
Wednesday, June 10
9 events
Thursday, June 11
State Holiday13 events
Friday, June 12
19 events
Saturday, June 13
Parade Day4 events
The history
Why this one matters.
King Kamehameha Day was proclaimed by Kamehameha V on December 22, 1871 — the first national holiday of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. It survived the overthrow, survived annexation, survived statehood. It is one of only two state holidays in the United States that honors a monarch, and the only one not connected to a colonial power.
On the Big Island, Kamehameha's birthplace, the original statue stands in Kapaʻau, North Kohala. The downtown Honolulu statue is the most famous, but it is actually the second cast — the first was lost at sea and later recovered. Three statues exist today: Kohala, Honolulu, and one in the U.S. Capitol.
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