Top 9 Gifts from Hawaii that Anyone Will Love
If you’re about to travel to Hawaii, read this post.
Hawaii is one of the most beautiful and exotic places in the entire world, so if you’re one of the lucky few that gets to visit, you should enjoy it. Nothing can quite encapsulate a trip to one of its incredible islands. Everyone you know; friends, family, coworkers, acquaintances, will all be jealous of you.
It’ll be hard not to rub it in when you get back. You’ll want to talk about the amazing experiences you had and whoever you’re telling will wish they could walk a day in your shoes. For their sake, you should bring them back a gift.
When you’re there, it’ll be hard to think of what to get since you’ll be so focused on having the time of your life. That’s why we’re here. In this post, we’re going to tell you the top 9 gifts from Hawaii that anyone and everyone will love.
They can’t come to Hawaii with you, but maybe you can bring a little piece of Hawaii back for them. Let’s get started.
The Best Gifts From Hawaii
What makes a good Hawaiian gift? It should represent the spirit of the islands, but it should also represent the time that you had there. There are a lot of stereotypical gifts that might come to mind, but you should avoid bringing back too many floral shirts.
You should consider who you’re buying for, as well. Try to inspire them to make their own trip to Hawaii one day.
1. Artwork
Hawaiian artwork has a very distinctive style that is hard to reproduce elsewhere. Get some prints or go to a local art fair and purchase a one-of-a-kind piece from an artisan. There are so many talented artists living in Hawaii, you won’t have a hard time finding something.
Reproductions of classic Hawaiian prints are available at many shops, so you can easily get an 8×10 and roll it up to take on the plane back home.
2. Maui Wine
In your travels, you might end up at an incredible winery called Maui Wine. They do tours and tastings, which makes for a wonderful island afternoon. While you’re there, you could pick up a bottle of their famous “Maui Splash” pineapple wine. It’s delicious and made with handpicked Maui gold pineapples.
You may want to grab more than one bottle in case the one you plan on gifting suddenly disappears. This would make a great gift for the parents.
3. Jewelry
Hawaii isn’t just known for their visual art. It’s home to many artisans of all trades and one of the things they’re famous for is their beautiful island jewelry. Island jewelry is usually inspired by nature or comes directly from nature.
The Tahitian Pearl has an interesting gray color and works well on a necklace, while the Opihi and Ni’ihau shells make for great earrings. Get your spouse or child a rare piece of jewelry that they could only possibly find in Hawaii.
4. Coffee
Did you know that Hawaii is the only state in America where coffee is both grown and harvested? Now you do. The most famous coffee company in Hawaii is Kona Coffee, grown in the (you guessed it) Kona district, on the big island.
If you’re more interested in supporting the little guy, then you’ll be happy to know that there are around 700 coffee farms in Hawaii growing award-winning specialty coffees. Luckily, you don’t have to travel to all of them to get a bag of beans. Many are readily available in grocery stores and specialty shops.
5. Hawaiian Sea Salt
Anytime you’re visiting a coastal region, you should try their local sea salts. Hawaii is no different, as they produce and sell loads of sea salt. You can get it in its original flavor, but they also experiment a lot by adding different peppers and spices to create unique flavors.
The Native Hawaiian population use “alaea”, which is a naturally occurring red sea salt to ceremonial bless places and events. If you can get your hands on some of this, it would make a great gift for someone interested in Hawaiian culture.
6. Koa Wood
Koa trees can only be found in Hawaii, which means that you can get some truly unique carvings made from the wood of the Koa. Anything carved from Koa wood makes for a perfect Hawaiian gift, as no two things will ever be the same.
You can basically get Koa carved everything. Go to a shop and you’ll see pens, plates and bowls, picture frames, vases, and furniture. Choose something small that will fit in your suitcase.
7. Ukulele
The ukulele was introduced to Hawaiians by way of the Portuguese immigrants in the early 20th century. Based on the guitar, it’s been used in countless recordings and has become recognized as an unofficial instrument of the Hawaiian islands.
While they aren’t particularly portable as a gift, you can make one of your kids very happy with this uniquely Hawaiian gift. If you bring one home, you can be soothed by the nylon-stringed sounds of the island all of the time. What better way to reminisce about your trip?
8. Chinese Seeds
Despite their name, Chinese seeds have a special place in Hawaiian culture. They were introduced in the 19th century when Chinese sugar plantation workers came over to Hawaii. They’re dried and salted seeds of different fruits that you can find in most grocery stores, but you’ll struggle to find them elsewhere in America.
They make for an easy-to-pack but thoughtful gift for someone interested in world cuisine. There are many to choose from, so head to a seed shop and ask a clerk to give you a hand.
9. Handmade Lei
One of the classic images that the mention of Hawaii conjures is of those beautiful handmade lei’s. We’re not talking about the fake ones that you get in mainland America, but lei’s that are made by hand with fresh Hawaiian flowers.
The beauty of the lei (besides literal beauty) is that there’s one for any occasion. If your daughter is graduating, there’s a lei for that. If your husband got a promotion, there’s a lei for that too. Choose from one of the many colors of fresh orchids, wait a week, and have the perfect Hawaiian gift to bring back for your loved ones.
Don’t Think Too Hard
You don’t have to overthink it. Choose one of these thoughtful and beautiful gifts from Hawaii and all the jealousy will fade away from your loved ones and turn into appreciation. Just make sure that you bring your family on your next Hawaiian vacation…
To order your custom, handmade lei, click here. We make specialty lei’s, flower arrangements, and gift baskets for any and every occasion. Bring a piece of Hawaii to someone’s life today.