Our team once again hit the ground running this October with a string of large events starting with the 2018 Global Tourism Summit from October 1 – 3, 2018. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn about the latest global tourism trends and as always, it was a pleasure to reconnect with our industry partners.
We also welcomed the 2018 American Dental Association (ADA) – America’s Dental Meeting. The meeting was held from October 18-22 and drew over 16,200 registrants from 52 countries! It was an honor to welcome ADA back in Hawaii and the Hawaii Convention Center for the third time in their 159-year history.
We will close this month with a couple of events hosted by the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival. First will be Hawaiian Airlines Presents Winederland this October 26th at our Rooftop Garden. We expect nearly 2000 guests to enjoy 20 acclaimed wines poured by their actual winemakers and pair them with dishes by 20 renowned chefs, including our very own Executive Chef, Kevin Nakata. Lastly, we’ll also have HMAA Presents Keiki in the Kitchen Family Sunday on October 28th. Kids will get a chance to meet Food Network’s Ace of Cakes star Duff Goldman and Disney’s Bizaardvark star Ethan Wacker. It will be a great day for the whole family.
Check out some of our photos below for highlights of some of our notable group and to find out more on upcoming events next month.
We are very excited to share that the Hawaii Convention Center is now a LEED Gold Certified Building! We were awarded the LEED v.4 O+M: Existing Buildings Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. HCC is the first and only “public assembly, convention center” to earn LEED v.4 O+M Gold Certification in the U.S., and is the only LEED v.4 O+M Gold project in Hawai‘i. This certification places HCC among a select group of buildings to complete an extensive review of sustainability and conservation practices.
Our 3rd floor furniture complemented by 2018 Global Tourism Summit throw pillows! We hope that our new common area furniture will provide an enhanced meeting experience while attending a meeting or event at HCC.
To mark our 20th year of operations, we have launched our Hoʻomaluō Program, a comprehensive approach to environmental sustainability with the goal of enhancing the guest, planner, staff and community meetings and events experience. For more information, visit https://www.meethawaii.com/convention-center/about/green-initiatives/
A highlight of the 2018 Global Tourism Summit is a luncheon that featured OVB’s Kainoa Danes co-hosting with Sophia the Robot, an artificial intelligence bot created in 2015 by David Hanson, the founder and CEO of Hanson Robotics.
Too pretty to eat? HCC’s Executive Chef Kevin Nakata was among the featured chefs who prepared delicious dishes during the Global Tourism Summit’s Aloha Reception. Pictured here is his Charred Japanese Eggplant with black sesame, yuzu kosho, smoked trout roe, fried garlic and micro shiso.
We also welcomed back our Customer Advisory Board for our annual Fall meeting. The HCC Customer Advisory Board is designed as a strategic think tank and client forum in which senior association executives and meeting professionals share their experiences and perspectives to help the Hawai’i Convention Center better serve the needs of key citywide meeting and convention planners, attendees and stakeholders.
The 17th Annual Chopsticks and Wine event was held at our 4th Floor Kalakaua Ballroom last October 11th. Hosted by the Honolulu Japanese Chamber of Commerce (HJCC), this annual food and wine dinner event attracts over 1,000 attendees featuring Honolulu’s top restaurants, chefs and fine wines & spirits.
Aloha ADA! Our lobby was bustling with activity during the week of the dental convention.
We are also excited to share that our new 1801 Cafe + Bar has now opened! The next time you’re at HCC, be sure to stop by our Lobby and grab a bite to eat or a cup of coffee. If you’re around for happy hour, you’ll get to enjoy some of our favorite cocktails and local brews.
