Event Info

Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week incorporates nightly performances Monday through Friday with the Waikīkī Steel Guitar Festival's Saturday ho‘olaule‘a. The event is presented each year by the Royal Hawaiian Center and produced by HIMELE™ (Hawai‘i Institute for Music Enrichment and Learning Experiences). This week-long celebration of the Hawaiian steel guitar brings together legendary steel guitarists and keiki NextGen steel guitarists in nightly presentations at the Royal Grove Stage and culminates in a festival ho‘olaule‘a pageant on Saturday. This annual event is presented to heighten awareness of the Hawaiian Steel Guitar and its importance in Hawaiian music and culture.

Alan Akaka, renowned Hawaiian steel guitarist, music teacher and Chairman of the Board of HIMELE, says, "It's an honor and joy for all of us in the steel guitar community to participate in the Festival and we hope that both visitors and kama‘aina will join us."

Now located at the Royal Grove entertainment venue in the heart of the Royal Hawaiian Center, Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week honors what was once the playground of Hawaiian royalty by offering a program of Hawaiian music and dance that is easily accessed by Waikīkī pedestrian traffic and center visitors.

All Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week events are free and open to the public. These include nightly hour-long programs from Monday through Friday, and morning and afternoon programs on Saturday featuring multiple steel guitar masters. Vintage steel guitars are exhibited in Helumoa Hale, with steel guitar experts on hand to answer questions. Parking is available at the Royal Hawaiian Center parking garage. Standard parking rates apply. Validated parking is available with $10 purchase from any center merchant. The Saturday program will be livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube.

The Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week is one of a series of annual Hawaiian Steel Guitar festivals and other events produced by the Hawaii Institute for Music Enrichment and Learning Experiences (HIMELE) and its partners.

• The Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festivals are community-based festivals produced by HIMELE on O‘ahu.
  • The Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival at Ka Makana Ali‘i at Ka Makaha Ali‘i Shopping Center in February-March
  • The Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival at Windward Mall at Windward Mall Shopping Center in June
  • The Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival Keiki Kine at Kahala Mall at Kahala Mall Shopping Center in August
• The Kona Steel Guitar Festival at Outrigger Kona Resort and Spa, Keauhou, Hawai‘i, preceding the Aloha Music Camp in April
• The Kaua‘i Steel Guitar Festival at Sheraton Kaua‘i Coconut Beach Resort and Kukui Grove Center in May
• The Japan-Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival at Royal Grove Stage, Royal Hawaiian Center in July
• The Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week (incorporating the Japan-Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival and the Waikīkī Steel Guitar Festival) at Royal Grove Stage, Royal Hawaiian Center in July
• The Maui Steel Guitar Festival at The Shops at Wailea and Queen Ka‘ahumanu Center on Maui in October.
• The Hawai‘i Island Steel Guitar Experience at Mauna Lani (incorporating the Hawai‘i Island Steel Guitar Festival) at Mauna Lani Auberge Resorts Collection on Hawai‘i Island in November-December
• The Hawaiian Steel Guitar Showcase - monthly livestreamed Hawaiian steel guitar presentations (including livestreamed festival ho‘olaule‘a concerts) on the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Showcase Facebook Page and YouTube Channel

All festivals are presented to increase awareness and foster interest in the Hawaiian Steel Guitar, an instrument important to Hawaiian music and culture. All these festivals are free and open to the public and made possible through grant awards and donations from Hawai‘i State agencies, corporate sponsors and private individuals, supplemented by in-kind contributions and volunteer resources. Please visit HIMELE's website to see how you can help support our festivals.

The 2023 Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week

The 2023 Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week will once again feature nightly one-hour performances on Monday through Thursday, July 10-13, 2023, beginning at 5:30 P.M. Each night will feature performances by a different steel guitar master or steel guitar ensemble including the NextGen steel guitarists and musicians from Ke Kula Mele Hawai‘i School of Hawaiian Music.

Ke Kula Mele Hawai‘i NextGen steel guitarists including Isabella Bertelmann, Makamae Lyu-Napoleon, Pono Fernandez, Joey Misailidis, Tai Misailidis, and Mālie Lyman, will be featured, accompanied by Alan Akaka on guitar.

The 2^nd annual Japan-Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival will occur on Friday, July 14, 2023, beginning at 4:00 P.M. and featuring steel guitarists from Japan.

The 5^th Annual Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week will culminate in the 13^th Annual Waikīkī Steel Guitar Festival on Saturday, July 15, 2023, with morning and afternoon programs. The program will include popular Hawaiian steel guitarists troughout the week and on Saturday. Saturday's festival performances will be livestreamed on Facebook and YouTube.

Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week is free and open to the public. Parking will be available at the Royal Hawaiian Center parking garage. Standard parking rates apply with validated parking available with $10 purchase from any center merchant.

Festival Information From Previous Festivals and Events

• The 2022 Festival - Event Info
• The 2021 Festival - Event Info
• The 2020 Festival - Event Info – Event canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic
• The 2019 Festival - Event Info
• The 2018 Festival - Event Info
• The 2017 Festival - Event Info
• The 2016 Festival - Festival Info
• The 2015 Festival - Festival Info
• The 2014 Festival - Festival Info
• The 2013 Festival - Festival Info