Aloha from Hawaii: A Visit to Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden: Connect with Nature, Connect with yourself

Nestled beneath the majestic Ko’olau mountains lies picturesque, lush, verdant 400-acre rainforest garden and flood-control facility that is home to many plants from tropical regions across the globe.

Jon Hennington, public information officer for the Department of Parks and Recreation said, “You can walk around the world in a couple of miles. Ho'omaluhia is a place to connect with nature, with the beauty of the place, and it's also a place where you can connect with yourself."

"Ho'omaluhia" means "to create peace and tranquility". The garden is only 2 miles from Kaneohe and provide a place to relax, away from freeway noises and mundane routine of day to day city life. It provides many facilities like guided nature walks, camping, hiking trails, botanical drawing and painting, art exhibits, fishing and a keiki fishing derby and a preschool nature hour.

The garden has many plants that are native to Hawaii and is not found anywhere else on the island of Oahu and also from other tropical areas of world like Africa, Sri Lanka, India, Philippines, Malaysia, Melanesia, and Polynesia amounting to 2,683 types of plants.

Each plant has an interesting story about how it found a place in the garden. Some are native to the island, some are donated or exchanged and others arrived in a canoe with the early Polynesian settlers.

Buy Hawaiian plants here

loko waimaluhia

Wild life at the lake.

Connect with Nature

There is also a 32-acre freshwater, flood-control lake named "loko waimaluhia," which means "peaceful freshwater" and is home to many of Hawaii’s endangered wildlife Hawaiian coot, ducks, egrets, turtles, bullfrogs, dragonflies, mongoose and a variety of fish.

Kapani Wai: A dam for flood control

Information about vanishing freshwater wildlife

The garden and the lake was built in 1981 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect people of Kaneohe from floods that destroyed their home, property and lives in 1965 and 1969. Construction began in 1976 and was completed in 1980.

The lake collects water from many small streams which pour down the Ko’olau mountians, mainly Kamo’oahli’i stream and prevent sudden flooding of Kaneohe area. During rains, the excess water can be diverted to other side of lake so that the level is maintained at 152 feet.

The garden gets about 165,000 visitors a year varying from few 100 on weekdays to 1000 on weekends. It is also famous for group activities it offers and people come in groups from churches, schools, community groups, boy scouts, girl scouts and the YMCA.

It is also the youngest but largest of five botanical garden on the island of O’ahu. The others are Foster Botanical Garden, Lili'uokalani Botanical Garden, Koko Crater Botanical Garden and Wahi'awa Botanical Garden.

Hours

Open daily from 9:00 am - 4:00 pm except Christmas Day (December 25) and Closed New Years Day (January 1).

Location

45-680 Luluku Rd. Kāneʻohe, Hawaiʻi 96744

Group Activities at the Garden:

Several group activities are offered at the park to increase environmental awareness and create a love for nature.

Fishing

Saturdays & Sundays 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

This catch-and-release program is fun for the whole family. The garden provides bamboo poles with barbless hooks and you bring the bait -fresh white bread works great! You may also bring your own poles with barbless hooks. Fish commonly seen: tilapia and midas cichlid.

Please check in at the Visitor Center. It is a 20-minute walk to the fishing area.
Bamboo poles may be borrowed from 9:30 am until 1:00 pm, on a first come, first served basis.
No casting allowed
Recommended: walking shoes, insect repellent, rain gear
Please call 808-233-7323 for more information

Drawing & Painting

Wednesdays: 9:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

You can paint and draw the wonderful plant life and scenery of our largest botanical garden with others in this self-directed opportunity! Plants, flowers and seeds are provided from this rainforest garden. Bring your supplies; watercolors, pencils, and paper. Some art experience is helpful.

No fee required. Call 808-233-7323 for more information.

Camping

9:00 am Friday through 4:00 pm Monday

Camping within the garden is a wonderful natural experience for families, individuals and groups.

Find and Reserve a Campsite

Nature Hike
A two-hour nature hike is offered only on Saturdays, courtesy of the City and County of Honolulu.

Some beautiful pictures of the Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden.

Tranquil and peaceful

Let's eat

shades of green

The chocolate tree

Hawaii is famous for authentic, gourmet chocolates and truffles made for locally sourced Cacao trees. You can Buy authentic Gourmet Hawaiian Chocolate here