iolani palace night tour

MAHALO FOR SUPPORTING THE 2023 QUEEN KAPIʻOLANI EVENING TOURS

On December 27, 28 and 29, kamaʻāina and visitors enjoyed ʻIolani Palace by moonlight during the Queen Kapiʻolani Evening Tours. On these three nights, guests took a trip back in time and experience the Palace as it was during a 19th-century soiree hosted by the Hawaiian monarchs.

This event was made possible by the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Abigail K.K. Kawānanakoa Foundation.

Kalākaua Legacy Tour

This tour showcases life and legacy of our last ruling King, who was known as the “Merrie Monarch” and was instrumental in the revitalization of Hawaiian culture during his reign in the late 1800s. The tour will feature historical accounts and personal items belonging to King Kalākaua to help guests better understand not only what Kalākaua achieved locally and globally, but how his tangible vision of ʻIolani Palace, continues to contribute to the Hawaiian way of life and his preservation of hula, history, and tradition.

View King Kalākaua's Coronation Suit and Masonic Apron

Reproductions of the suit King Kalākaua wore at his coronation on February 12, 1883, and his masonic apron debuted at ʻIolani Palace on the king’s 185th birthday, Tuesday, November 16, 2021. Created by historic dress designer Iris Viacrusis, the Coronation Suit stands majestically in the Throne Room, while the Masonic Apron is on display in King’s Library on the second floor.

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Welcome to ʻIolani Palace

ʻIolani Palace is a living restoration of a proud Hawaiian national identity and is recognized as the spiritual and physical multicultural epicenter of Hawaiʻi. Built in 1882 by King Kalākaua, ʻIolani Palace was the home of Hawaiʻi’s last reigning monarchs and served as the official royal residence and the residence of the Kingdom’s political and social life until the overthrow of the monarchy in 1893.

Registered as a National Historic Landmark since 1962 and the only official royal residence in the United States, the Palace is one of the most recognizable buildings in Hawaiʻi. Meticulously restored to its former grandeur, ʻIolani Palace tells of a time when their Majesties, King Kalākaua and his sister and successor, Queen Liliʻuokalani walked the grand halls.

The Royal Palace

Palace Grounds

ʻIolani Palace is open Tuesday-Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The ticket office, located in Hale Koa (ʻIolani Barracks), is open from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. To make reservations, call 808-522-0832, or book online now .

Become a member of The Friends of ʻIolani Palace and support our mission to restore, preserve, and protect this unique treasure.

Your gift is vital in supporting the ongoing work of The Friends of ‘Iolani Palace.

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Iolani Palace

Located in downtown Honolulu, the Iolani Palace is a national historic landmark and was once the royal residence of the rulers of Hawaii. The Iolani Palace was the official residence of King Kalakaua and his sister, Queen Liliuokalani the last reigning queen on the Hawaiian Monarchy. Experience Hawaiian royalty with a trip by yourself or an Iolani Palace tour .

Built in 1882, Iolani palace was heavily influenced by European architectural styles, and was the first royal residence in Hawaii to have electric lights, indoor plumbing, and telephones. Later when Hawaii was made the 50th state, it was used as the capitol building.

Today the Iolani Palace is open to the public. Both professional guided tours and self-guided audio tours are available to the palace Tuesdays through Saturdays. About half of the original furnishings have been restored to the Iolani Palace to give it the authentic look of its royal heyday.

The Iolani Palace is also available as a venue for private events like weddings and special occasions.

Other nearby landmarks in Honolulu include the King Kamehameha Statue, Hawaii State Art Museum, Kawaiahao Church, Punchbowl Crater, Honolulu Chinatown, and Honolulu Academy of Arts.

Tips for Going to the Iolani Palace

• Self-guided audio tours of the first and second floors take about 45 minutes and are available in English, French, Spanish, German, Hawaiian, Mandarin, Japanese, and Korean.
• A shorter tour alternative of Basement Gallery Exhibit is available and lasts around 30 minutes.
• Selfie sticks, tripods, flash photography, and video cameras are not allowed inside the Iolani Palace.
• Make a day of your trip and combine your Iolani Palace tour with a trip to Honolulu Chinatown or the Honolulu Academy of Arts.

Why Choose IMI Tours

Our quality starts with the intent to be a completely non-invasive tour company dedicated to revealing the real truths and history of the land and people of our home, Hawai’i. We use smaller vehicles for all of our Hawaii tours to provide a more intimate, relaxing, and safer travel experience. Our passionate, local employees welcome you to our beautiful state of Hawaii and take you back in time to experience the Kingdom Hawai’i once was. Safety and dependability is developed through continuous training and are the cornerstones of our tour service.

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Iolani Palace offers special evening tours

HONOLULU — Walk through the historic halls of Iolani Palace and lose yourself in time within the nation’s only royal palace built in 1882 by King David Kalākaua. In honor of Queen Kapi‘olani’s birthday — Dec. 31, 1834 — the palace will open its doors to visitors for moonlit tours and live entertainment, 5:30-9 p.m. Dec. 28 through 30.

What You Need To Know

Reservations are required and tickets are limited to two per adult tours begin every 15 minutes starting at 5:30 p.m. with the last tour starting at 9 p.m. dec. 28-30, iolani palace will close at 3 p.m. with last tickets sold at 2 p.m. to prepare for the evening tours.

Hear stories of Queen Kapi‘olani’s life and legacy as you walk in the footsteps of Hawaii’s royalty surrounded by 19th century grandeur and music.

“The Queen’s Evening Tours provide our guests with a rare opportunity to visit Iolani Palace at night,” said Paul Akana, executive director of the Friends of Iolani Palace, in a news release. “The magical evening, full of music and dance, allows you a sneak peek into how our King and his Queen entertained visitors from near and far.”

Reservations are required, and tickets are limited to two per adult. Tours begin every 15 minutes starting at 5:30 p.m. with the last tour starting at 9 p.m. Tickets are $45 for adults, $25 for children ages 6-12 and free for children 5 and under. Visit the Iolani Palace website to reserve your spot.

On Dec. 28-30, Iolani Palace will close at 3 p.m. with last tickets sold at 2 p.m. to prepare for the evening tours.

In November, the official portrait of Queen Kapi‘olani was professionally removed from the Blue Room at Iolani Palace and shipped to Washington, D.C. where it will be displayed in an exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute’s National Portrait Gallery. “1898: Visual Culture and U.S. Imperialism in the Caribbean and the Pacific” is scheduled to open April 24, 2023.

Sarah Yamanaka covers events, environmental and community news for Spectrum News Hawaii. She can be reached at [email protected].

LATEST NEWS

Evening tours of Iolani Palace return to mark Queen Kapiolani’s birthday

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Evening tours at Iolani Palace have returned (briefly) as part of celebrations of Queen Kapiolani’s 187th birthday.

The evening tours are the only chance for people to visit Iolani Palace at night.

Queen Kapiolani’s birthday is on New Year’s Eve.

And this year, evening tours were offered Sunday and will be available Monday.

Iolani Palace Executive Director Paula Akana said in previous years about 800 people a night would attend.

However, because of capacity limits they had 200 slots per night.

“This is one of the first years the event is free because the Office of Hawaiian Affairs is sponsoring the event, so I think that also added to it,” Akana said. “But we were not expecting it to sell out in 35 minutes.”

“Visitors got to explore the palace, move room to room and hear stories of the Queen’s life and legacy.”

At Iolani Palace, masks are required and visitors must show a vaccination card or a negative test taken within 72 hours.

Akana said they began planning for the evening tours six months ago.

“It was really about three weeks ago that we made the decision, if we have to cancel the last minute, we will, but let’s go ahead and start putting things into place,” Akana said.

“So we contacted all of our docents and guardians, musicians and so forth to start bringing it all together.”

Likeke Miller attended Sunday’s evening tour and said it was beautiful. “I’ve been to the Iolani Palace about 30 to 40 years ago and boy, I wanted to see what they did to it and they did a fantastic job,” Miller said.

Before COVID, visitors during the evening tours wouldn’t have a full walkthrough with a docent. Instead, docents would be stationed in every room.

All evening tours are sold out, but day tours are available Tuesdays to Saturdays.

Tickets are available online .

Copyright 2021 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.

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Iolani Palace

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‘Iolani Palace is a magnificent mansion that preserves an important part of Hawaiian history.  The Palace is well worth visiting when in  Honolulu , and is one of the main structures to see on the Honolulu Historic District Walk. 

‘Iolani Palace was the official residence of the reigning Hawaiian sovereign, King Kamehameha, and the only royal palace in the United States.   The cornerstone was laid on December 31, 1879.  The Hawaiian government at the time had appropriated funds to build the Palace as a way to mark Hawaii’s status as a modern nation.  The building was complete by August 1882, and that original palace was known as Hale Ali’I (House of the Chief), however that was demolished in 1874 to make way for the palace that stands today, which was renamed ‘Iolani Palace.  ‘Iolani means ‘Royal Hawk’ in the Hawaiian language.  

Top image by:  Allen.G (Shutterstock).

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Two monarchs governed from the Palace: King Kalakaua and Queen Lili’uokalani, and Kamehameha III, IV and V utilized the palace as their main residence.  The monarchy was overthrown by the U.S. in 1893, was then used as a capitol building, and was finally restored and opened as a public museum in 1978.  Apparently the area was once the site of an ancient heiau (Hawaiian Temple) that was destroyed.

King Kamehameha statue, which is found across the street

In 1825, a white-washed coral block was constructed as a royal tomb for the remains of Kamehameha II and his wife, Queen Kamamalu.  In subsequent years, many kings of Hawaii were buried at the site, but in 1865 eighteen coffins were removed and transferred to a Royal Mausoleum in Nuuanu Valley.  Today, the royal tomb area is located in the southeast quadrant of the grounds.  With respect for Hawaiian chiefs who may still be buried there, it is marked by a fenced area with ‘kapu’ signs indicating it is a forbidden area.

Also on the Palace Grounds is Iolani Barracks, which looks like a medieval castle, was completed in 1871 and is also a coral block structure that contains an open courtyard which is surrounded by rooms that once housed the royal palace and royal tomb guards, before the overthrow of the Hawaiian Monarchy.  The Barracks were originally located on the grounds that the Hawaii State Capitol Building sits and was moved block by block and reconstructed in 1965 to be where it is now on the Iolani Palace grounds, where it houses the ticket office and the Palace Gift Shop (open Tues-Sat 8.30am-4.30pm).

The first and second floors of 'Iolani Palace have been meticulously restored and house the stunning Throne Room, Grand Hall, The State Dining Room, the Blue Room, as well as the private suites of the King and Queen.  Portraits of Hawaiian Royalty line the walls.  Lush crimson and gold décor fill the Throne Room and beautifully carved doors featuring Hawaiian woods abound.

COVID HEALTH NOTICE

Effective September 13, 2021, proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test result will be required to visit Iolani Palace in accordance with the City & County of Honolulu Safe Access Oahu program.

Tour options vary based on the day of the week and the time.

Tour Options & Schedule

There is currently a choice of two tour options at ‘Iolani Palace, located in Downtown Honolulu: either a Guided Tour ($30.00) or a Self-Led Audio Tour ($25.00).  Approximately 90 minutes is required for either tour, and both options include a tour of the first and second floors of Iolani Palace followed by a self-guided exploration of the basement gallery exhibits.

The ticket office is located in the ‘Iolani Barracks on the Palace grounds and can be contacted at 808-522-0832. You will need to  book online .

Ticket sales are online only. No walk-ups. The ticket window in Hale Koa (the Barracks building adjacent to Iolani Palace) will open for ticket distribution at 8:30 a.m. Groups are limited to 15 guests per entry time.

Docent-Led Tours are available on  Wednesdays from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.  and  Thursdays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Self-Led Audio Tours are available on the following days and times: 

• Tuesdays | 9:00 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Wednesdays | 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.
• Fridays | 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Saturdays | 9 a.m. to 4 p.m  

For a step back in time and to learn all about the Hawaiian Monarch, ‘Iolani Palace is really worth visiting.

King Kalakaua lived from 1836 until 1891

Iolani Palace Reviews

Guidereview:, iolani palace photo gallery.

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