Public input sought to choose when to close the botanical garden on Tuesdays or Thursdays
Rainbow over Loko (Lake) Waimaluhia at Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden in Windward O‘ahu.
For decades Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden has served as “a peaceful refuge” to millions of visitors and locals alike. Spanning 400 acres at the base of the lush Ko‘olau Mountains, the City’s most popular botanical garden offers scenic beauty and a biodiverse collection of plant life. All of which is offered with free entry 363-days a year, and supported by no-cost or affordable activities such as camping and fishing. Now, this picturesque location needs your help to get some rest of its own after years of record-breaking attendance.
The Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) is requesting public input on which day of the week to close Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden.
An online poll is now available, asking participants to choose whether Ho‘omaluhia should be closed on Tuesdays or Thursdays. You can access that poll by visiting: bit.ly/HoomaluhiaSurvey
The poll will be open to the public until Wednesday, October 8, 2025 at 5 p.m. (HST). Once the survey is closed, DPR will utilize the information to determine which day of the week to close Ho‘omaluhia, with the closure effective 2026.
“It’s time to show Ho‘omaluhia some love as it has graciously given us decades of priceless memories and breathtaking displays,” said Honolulu Botanical Gardens Director, Joshlyn Sand. “We are on track for another record-breaking year of attendance, and more and more we are continuing to see the strain this is having on the natural allure and recreational offerings of this wahi pana (storied place). Instituting a regular schedule of rest and rehabilitation is a trend we are seeing locally, nationally, and internationally; giving staff and wildlife a chance to recuperate. Ultimately, it will also help to preserve this amazing location and all it has to offer for generations to come.”
Over the past decade, Ho‘omaluhia has seen a near steady increase in attendance, particularly over the last several years during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. This continuous increase has recently culminated with 723,495 visits tallied at the botanical garden from July 2024 through June 2025.
Bar graph showing Ho‘omaluhia Botanical Garden’s annual attendance rising from 193,996 in 2015 to 650,882 in 2024.
Hoʻomaluhia was created in conjunction with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1978, with a previously developed 1974 Master Plan estimating a carrying capacity of 600,000 visitors each year. Annual attendance has surpassed that number, along with the number of visits to the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve, which saw 400,776 visits in 2024.
Hanauma Bay is closed to the public two days a week (after experiencing one-day-a-week closures prior to the pandemic). Now DPR is hoping to extend a similar type of rest for the garden, its natural resources, facilities, and staff.
This one-day-a-week closure will not only provide rest for the garden’s natural environment, but also give the dedicated staff an opportunity to conduct much-needed maintenance and recreational programming improvements without disruption. Those maintenance needs, particularly in high-traffic areas, include: roadside & pathway landscaping, paving improvements, tree pruning, interior cleaning of buildings (education center, bathrooms, pavilions, etc.), exterior power washing, and much more. Recreationally, staff will be given the opportunity to more proactively offer activities to the public, along with improving existing programs, such as: camping, catch-and-release fishing, and seasonal classes.
Garden staff have determined Tuesdays and Thursdays to be the best choices for weekly closures as there are no regular garden programs scheduled those days, with attendance data indicating similar visitor rates amongst those two days.
We appreciate the public’s understanding of the need to give Ho‘omaluhia a day of rest, and thank you in advance for participating in the public survey.
If you need an auxiliary aid/service, other accommodations due to a disability, or an interpreter for a language other than English in reference to this announcement, please contact the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation, Botanical Gardens at (808) 768-7135 on weekdays from 7:45 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. or email hbg@honolulu.gov at least three business days before the scheduled event. Without sufficient advanced notice, it may not be possible to fulfill requests.
—PAU—
Follow the Honolulu Botanical Gardens online and on social media:
Instagram: @honolulubotanicalgardens Facebook: facebook.com/HoomaluhiaBotanicalGarden
Website: honolulubotanicalgardens.com
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