Kathleen Lee

Review of Polynesian Cultural Center

I chose the island tour from 7:30 AM -10:30 PM . ...

I chose the island tour from 7:30 AM -10:30 PM . It was a small bus with 14 riders through the islands major sites including Diamondhead, Hanauma Bay, Turtle Beach, the Dole Pinapple Plantation and more. I will give that part of the tour 5 stars because it s a good way to just see everything so you know what you re missing if you haven t rented a car. Our bus driver, Eneli, is a true character with an old-school, gracious Hawaiian spirit. At the Polynesian Cultural Center, we unfortunately got rained on several times and we were herded through different island presentations, some of which were hysterically funny, some of which I learned something interesting and some of which I could ve done without. The cultural center is a bit like a Disneyland Experience with a guide that had obviously been encouraged to be a character, yelling a lot and repeatedly, teaching each new Islands term for hello and encouraging loud participation. I was hoping it would be more like an authentic island experience with learned, sage -like guide more similar to a Ranger guided hike through Yosemite in the 60 s. Don t get me wrong, it was interesting and some of it was fun but it wasn t my cup of tea. Food at the luau was mediocre- I would ve liked a glass of wine or a tropical cocktail. The grand finale of the Ha- Breath of life show was really vibrant and amazing, I would give it a five star rating. If I ever do it again, I would just go to the Center, mosey around on my own, eat at their steakhouse and then go to the show. Aloha!