Part of our family's travel ritual is to stop and shop for postcards and take-home items. These are gifts for the in-laws’ kids and the girl who watches the cat, etc. Also, in a tropical place like Hawaii, we needed local duds such as aloha and t-shirts. We also go in for eating the local fare while there. Guava jelly and Hawaiian Sun brand canned guava juice are my particular delights.
Staying on the North Shore at Princeville, we found grocery shopping nearby, but we didn't find "deals" on the Hawaiiana goods. On a day trip to the south shore, we discovered the ideal place - Walmart in Lihue!
Now I don't claim to have discovered Walmart, but I do want you to know the Lihue Walmart has a very extensive department with Hawaiiana to take home at the best prices. This is where to buy your boxes of chocolate macadamia nuts and a hula-girl statue for the bar. The local items department is huge. Aloha shirts and T's are also very reasonable. I couldn’t get my wife and daughter to leave.
The ladies took a "ribbon lei" making class. We found supplies for making more at good old Walmart too.
You can go down the road a piece to Hilo Hattie's for your aloha gear and pay much more. Yeah, Hatties may have more designs and better quality, but are you really gonna wear that shirt on the mainland? Go see Hattie anyway and get your free mug.
Know that Walmart has a pantry department and not a full grocery. You can get milk, beer, and party supplies there, but not the groceries you'll need for a week.
Count on picking up those pineapple packs to take home at the airport – not at Walmart. Get 'em fresh.
The Lihue Walmart is on Highway 50-56 as it passes through Lihue on the Makai side (toward the ocean).
Mahalo!