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Celebrate the wonderful world of kites and National Kite Month at Lahaina’s Chinese Kite Festival

By Staff | Mar 29, 2018

Check out kites from around the world at Friday’s festival. PHOTO COURTESY OF LAHAINA RESTORATION FOUNDATION.

LAHAINA – The wonderful world of kites will be celebrated during Lahaina Restoration Foundation’s Chinese Kite Festival at the Wo Hing Museum and Cookhouse at 858 Front St. in Lahaina on Friday, April 6, and a Kite Flying Day at Lahaina Cannery Mall’s open space lawn on Saturday, April 7. Admission is free to both events.

April is National Kite Month, and to celebrate, the Wo Hing Museum will offer free admission to see its colorful kite displays beginning Monday, April 2. On Friday and Saturday, two days of family fun are planned that will feature kite-making crafts, kids’ smart games and Chinese foods along with music, free kite flying and acrobatic sport kite demonstrations.

Busaba Yip, Ph.D, Wo Hing cultural director for Lahaina Restoration Foundation, said, “I hope our kite festival will bring all kite lovers together with our community. The joy of kite flying is not only for the ones who fly kites but also for those who watch them. We invite the whole family to come out and have a good time!”

During the Wo Hing Museum festival on Friday, April 6, guests can see kites from around the world in traditional and modern styles. Kites will be available for purchase. Presentations will be made by Yip on Ancient Chinese Kites and by Kite Master Robert Loera on East Indian Kite Fighting at 2 p.m. and again at 6 p.m.

From 3 to 8 p.m., kids of all ages are invited to design, make and fly their own kite using mixed media. Maui Toy Works will offer trendsetting smart games for kids to play. Chinese food and desserts by Only ‘Ono BBQ will be available for sale in the garden, where festival-goers can relax and listen to traditional Chinese music.

On Saturday, April 7, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., bring the whole family to fly kites at the open space lawn adjacent to Lahaina Cannery Mall at the intersection of Honoapiilani Highway and Keawe Street, where there is plenty of free parking. In addition to flying their own kites, participants can design and make a kite, and watch Loera of the Hawaii Kitefliers Association demonstrate acrobatic sport kite flying. The sky’s the limit!

“I love showing my mastery of flying all kites, big or small, and seeing the smiles on people’s faces as they gaze up at colorful kites in the big blue sky,” Loera noted.

The festival is presented by Wo Hing Society and Lahaina Restoration Foundation. It is sponsored by Hawaii Tourism Authority and the County of Maui Office of Economic Development, and supported by Maui Toy Works and Lahaina Cannery Mall.

Wo Hing Museum will be open continuously from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday with free admission.

For more information, call the museum at 661-5553 or visit LahainaRestoration.org/events.