Hawaii Merrie Monarch Festival starting tonight

The Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) is proud to support the broadcast of the 58th Annual Merrie Monarch Festival and Season 3 of the Pop-Up Makeke that will air during the festival. This is the 11th year that HTA has been a sponsor of the Merrie Monarch Festival. Hawaiian culture is one of HTA’s four pillars in its 2020-2025 Strategic Plan, which is also translated into Olelo Hawaii.

Due to restrictions because of COVID-19, this year’s Merrie Monarch Festival is not a public, in-person event. It will be aired on KFVE starting tonight and ending on Saturday, July 3. It will also be streamed worldwide from www.hawaiinewsnow.com beginning each night at 6:00 p.m. HST.

In addition, HTA is funding the digitization of past Merrie Monarch Festivals. The work is ongoing and expected to be completed by June 2022. 

HTA is also sponsoring the marketing and operational costs of the Pop-Up Makeke, which is organized by the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. It will feature many of the crafters and artisans who would normally sell their art in-person during the Merrie Monarch Festival. HTA helped to launch the first online Pop-Up Makeke last year. The online marketplace was established during the pandemic to support Hawaii’s small business owners, particularly the Native Hawaiian-owned businesses, that depend heavily on community events, gatherings, craft fairs, and farmers markets.

The live Pop-Up Makeke shows will air on KFVE and Hawaii News Now’s Facebook page starting at 5:00 p.m. HST nightly before the hula competition starts. Visit www.popupmakeke.com for more information.