I am constantly amazed at how organizations and businesses in Hawaii have pivoted and found such creative ways to be there for charities, small businesses, families, and each other while making everyone’s health and safety a top priority. Such is the case with Show Aloha Land, a spectacular light show sponsored by First Hawaiian Bank.

What is Show Aloha Land?

Show Aloha Land is a contactless, drive-through light show at the Aloha Stadium parking lot. From 6:30 PM – 11:30 PM, 7-miles of lights dance in synchronous harmony to Christmas music on FM Radio 88.5.

Ever since we moved back to Hawaii, my family has always carved out a day (or more) to soak in the Honolulu lights. We hop on the holiday trolley ride and enjoy the kiddie rides and beautiful Christmas tree displays at Honolulu Hale. Trying to work off all the holiday sweets, we participate in Make a Wish’s Jingle Bell Run. We check out whatever offering Ward provides, from its light illumination walkthrough to ice skating.

With those activities either gone this year due to Covid-19 or deemed (by me) as being too risky for my family, Show Aloha Land was a savior in the holiday season. To get further information about how the light show was built and put together, check out this Hawaii News Now article.

The Money

Show Aloha Land costs $50 per car. However, for light-show goers who do not mind experiencing the show after January 2nd, First Hawaiian Bank is offering a discount. Use the code FHBHOLIDAY for a discount on shows after 9:30 PM. The above discount code will give you 10% off on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and 20% off on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

While the $50 tickets are by car, not by # of people, the rules state that you cannot have more than 5 people in your car. I’m not a rule breaker so even if my group was bigger than that, I probably would have stuck to the “5 people max” rule. However, I do know that friends that showed up with more than 5 people in their car were let through.

Dates and Times of Show Aloha Land

Show Aloha Land started at the end of November and will take place through January 9th. All you need to do is pick a date and time and buy tickets here.

The light show begins at 6:30 PM and goes until midnight with tickets being showed at every half-hour increment. My family went with the 6:30 PM time slot so the kids could get to bed near their bedtime. However, some friends of mine opted for the last show of the night and said they had the entire place to themselves. I was a little nervous as we headed to Aloha Stadium. We were commuting to the stadium around 6 PM. At the time the sun was still lighting up the sky. However, if you check out my video below you’ll see that while the sky was still lighted as we entered Show Aloha Land, the sun had definitely set by the time we were weaving our way through the lanes of lights.

Supporting a Local Charity

This is all for charity! All the proceeds from Show Aloha Land will be going to a charity called Aging in Place. The purpose of Aging in Place is to assist in altering the homes of seniors (via the installation of handrails, grab bars, etc.) so that our kupuna can live out their days in the comfort of their own home.

Da Grindz

One thing I didn’t realize when purchasing our tickets is that Show Aloha Land only offers food (other than dippin’ dots and kettle corn) on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We went on a Tuesday. If you know me, you know my love of food trucks. So believe me, I was bummed! However, my dad (who went on a Saturday) had nothing but rave reviews about the food options. In my mind, I was horrified as I initially read about the food trucks in attendance at Show Aloha Land. I imagined long lines and a huge crowd gathering. However, in reality, the food offerings are all part of the contactless setup. Food is ordered, paid for, and received all while light show-goers remain in their car on the way to the mega tree.

Final thoughts

This light show is amazing. I knew my 6-year-old would love it. I didn’t know that she would declare it the “best light show ever”. When it came to my toddler, in all honesty, I toyed with the idea of leaving him with my mom. I figured he wouldn’t appreciate the show and he often fusses when he has to go on long car rides at night. In the end, I only brought him along because it was a Christmas family bonding event. I was shocked to hear his nonstop squeals of delight for the entire 30-minute show. While the terrible twos tantrum I was worried about did eventually rear its ugly head, it was because we forced him to leave the mega tree so we could get the kids home to bed.

A sneak peak at Show Aloha Land

Here’s the video footage I took while watching Show Aloha Land. Honestly, it was so good we are going back at the end of December.

If you liked this post, maybe you would like these posts from Hawaii Girl Travels:

Waimanalo Country Farms’ Drive Thru Sunflower Event

Visiting Disney’s Aulani during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Brave New (Pandemic) World: A Trip to the Honolulu Zoo Post-Shelter-in-Place

Funtastic KidZone: A Kid’s Wonderland in the Middle of a Huge Shopping Mall

Visiting Wet ‘n’ Wild Hawaii during the Coronavirus Pandemic

Socially Christmas’d – A Drive Through and Drive-in Experience