The airport gift shop displays might be tempting, but the rows of mass-produced mugs, generic “Hawaiian” shirts made overseas, and plastic hula dancers capture none of the islands’ true spirit. These aren’t real souvenirs from Hawaii.
The best souvenirs from Hawaii carry the islands’ mana (spiritual energy) and support the people who call Hawaii home. They connect you to the artists who shaped them, the farmers who grew them, and the landscapes that inspired them. For guests staying at our Big Island bed and breakfast, you’re perfectly positioned to discover the Big Island’s most authentic treasures. Here’s where to find popular souvenirs from Hawaii that actually mean something.
Homegrown and Handmade Finds
The Big Island’s farmers’ markets and community gatherings offer the most direct connection to local makers.
Cooper Center Farmers Market
Just down the road from Volcano Village Lodge, the Cooper Center hosts a Sunday morning and Thursday night market with local produce and handmade products that make perfect keepsakes.
Browse handmade jewelry crafted from native woods like koa and mango, each piece showing the unique grain patterns that make Hawaiian hardwoods so prized. Discover ceramics glazed with colors inspired by the volcano, with deep reds like molten lava, blacks like cooled basalt, and greens like the rainforest canopy. Local photographers sell prints of Kīlauea’s eruptions and native birds, while crafters offer everything from woven lauhala baskets to hand-poured candles scented with plumeria and pikake.
The Cooper Center is also home to a bookstore and thrift store where community members donate and sell pre-loved items. You might stumble upon vintage Hawaiian shirts, unique housewares, or books about Big Island history, which are usually one-of-a-kind finds.
Maku’u Farmers Market
If you’re venturing toward Puna, the Sunday Maku’u Farmers Market offers a more sprawling selection. Vendors sell everything from organic produce to handmade instruments, tie-dye clothing, and healing crystals. Look for locally made bath and body products using Hawaiian ingredients like kukui nut oil, coconut, and tropical botanicals.
Browse racks of flowing dresses and comfortable island wear designed and sewn by Big Island seamstresses. Sample homemade jams, hot sauces, and baked goods before buying jars to take home.
Hilo Farmers Market
Operating daily (with the biggest crowds on Wednesdays and Saturdays), Hilo Farmers Market brings together over 200 vendors in downtown Hilo. For souvenirs, focus on locally roasted macadamia nuts, Big Island honey in dozens of varieties, homemade preserves, and packaged local snacks.
The flower vendors here sell spectacular orchid leis that can be carefully packed for travel, bringing home Hawaii’s fragrance and beauty. The crafts section features woodwork, woven goods, and island-inspired artwork that ranges from traditional to contemporary styles.
Gourmet Finds Worth Packing Home
Hawaii’s unique agriculture and culinary traditions create flavors you simply can’t find elsewhere. These edible souvenirs let you extend your vacation and share tastes of the islands with friends and family.
Tea Hawaii & Company
Located near Volcano Village on the slopes of Kīlauea, Tea Hawaii offers something truly special: estate-grown Hawaiian tea. Owners Chiu Leong and Eva Lee cultivate rare tea varietals in volcanic soil under the canopy of native ʻōhiʻa trees. Their small-batch teas, from delicate whites to robust blacks, capture the terroir of the Big Island in every sip.
Visit for their garden tour and tasting, then bring home beautifully packaged teas paired with a handmade porcelain tea shell as souvenirs. “This tea actually grew in a Hawaiian rainforest next to an active volcano” makes for a better story than anything you’d find at a chain store.
Volcano Winery
Wine from Hawaii? Absolutely. Volcano Winery has been producing unique vintages since 1986, using estate-grown Symphony grapes and creative tropical fruit blends. Their Macadamia Nut Honey Wine tastes like nothing else on earth. It’s sweet, nutty, with a distinctive island character.
Beyond wine, the winery produces small-batch teas from their own Camellia sinensis plants, creating another exclusive Big Island product. Their Infusion Tea Wine blends these two passions into something completely original.
Kona Coffee
Kona coffee remains one of the most recognized souvenirs from Hawaii, but quality varies dramatically. Skip the blends (which can contain as little as 10% Kona beans) and seek out 100% Kona coffee from reputable farms. Better yet, visit farms in the Kona coffee belt where you can taste before buying and meet the farmers who tend these precious plants.
Many small farms roast their own beans, offering ultra-fresh coffee with tasting notes that reflect their specific microclimate and processing methods.
Kaʻū Coffee Mill
Located on the southern slopes of Mauna Loa, Kaʻū Coffee Mill cultivates and roasts award winning coffee grown in volcanic soil and cooled by steady mountain breezes. Buying straight from the mill means your beans are fresh, traceable, and tied to the community that grows them. Bagged coffee travels well and makes a thoughtful gift for anyone who loves starting the day with a reminder of the island.
Kona Sea Salt
Kona Sea Salt harvests pure Hawaiian sea salt from deep ocean water drawn from more than 2,000 feet below the Kona Coast. The water moves through volcanic rock over time, which leaves it clean and rich in minerals. The company offers pure white Kona sea salt, flavored blends, and traditional alaea salt colored by iron-rich volcanic clay. This salt has long been part of Native Hawaiian cooking and cultural practices. It travels easily, lasts a long time, and adds a clear taste of Hawaii to meals back home.
Hawaiian Art: Supporting Local Creativity
Art created by Big Island artists captures the islands’ essence in ways mass-produced items never could. These pieces become cherished parts of your home, constant reminders of your connection to Hawaii.
Volcano Art Center
Housed in the historic 1877 Volcano House hotel building within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, the Volcano Art Center represents some of the finest Hawaiian art on the island. Every piece, from paintings and prints to sculptures and jewelry, is created by juried artists, ensuring exceptional quality.
Browse oil paintings of Kīlauea’s eruptions by artists who witnessed them firsthand. Discover intricate woodwork that honors traditional Hawaiian craftsmanship while embracing contemporary design. Find wearable art in the form of handcrafted jewelry using native materials. The center also offers reasonably priced items like greeting cards and small prints for budget-conscious shoppers.
Purchasing from Volcano Art Center directly supports working artists and funds art education programs throughout the island, so your souvenir becomes an investment in Hawaii’s creative community.
Volcano Garden Arts
The enchanting gallery and café of Volcano Garden Arts showcases local and Hawaiian artists working in diverse media, including ceramics, textiles, paintings, jewelry, metalwork, and more. The curated selection means every piece meets high artistic standards while maintaining accessibility.
2400 Fahrenheit Glass Blowing Studio
Watch molten glass transform into stunning art at 2400 Fahrenheit in Volcano Village. The heat of the furnace, the skill of the artists, and the glow of molten glass create a mesmerizing experience. The finished vases, bowls, ornaments, and sculptures capture light in ways that evoke both volcanic fire and ocean waves.
Glass art travels surprisingly well when properly packed (the studio provides excellent packaging), and these pieces become statement items in your home. Every time light passes through that hand-blown bowl, you’ll remember watching it take shape.
Volcano Gallery
Volcano Gallery focuses on Hawaiian-themed art with a mix of established and emerging artists. Paintings, photography, and mixed media works showcase the Big Island’s dramatic landscapes, while cultural pieces honor Hawaiian traditions and native plants and animals. The owners are knowledgeable and passionate about connecting visitors with art that resonates personally.
Other Unique Souvenir Stops
Some of the best souvenirs from Hawaii don’t fit neatly into categories but deserve special mention for their uniqueness and quality.
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Store
The park’s on-site stores located at the Welcome Center and the Kahuku Unit, operated by the nonprofit Hawaiʻi Pacific Parks Association, offer a wide range of souvenirs for all ages. Field guides help identify birds, plants, and lava formations. Books by Hawaiian authors and historians provide context often missing from tourist literature. Collectibles, apparel, plush creatures, and educational games help encourage even the youngest recipients to learn more about the park’s efforts.
Proceeds support research, education, and preservation within the park, making every purchase contribute to conservation. The selection of park-specific items, from patches to posters, can’t be found elsewhere.
Akatsuka Orchid Gardens
For nearly 70 years, Akatsuka Orchid Gardens has been cultivating spectacular orchids. While living plants require USDA inspection and proper paperwork to leave Hawaii, the gift shop offers orchid-themed items that travel easily: beautiful prints, orchid-scented products, and books about orchid cultivation.
Akatsuka also offers orchid shipping straight to your door through their certified program. Taking home a living orchid means your souvenir blooms year after year, a growing reminder of your time in Hawaii’s rainforest.
Kilauea Kreations
Kilauea Kreations in Volcano Village specializes in locally made products ranging from clothing to home goods. Look for items featuring original designs inspired by the volcano, native plants, and Hawaiian culture. The focus on local makers means your purchase supports Big Island families and businesses.
Volcano House and Kilauea Lodge Gift Shops
Both restaurants offer curated gift shops with quality items you won’t find in typical tourist traps. Volcano House, perched on the rim of Kīlauea Caldera, focuses on park-related items and Hawaiian cultural products. Kilauea Lodge’s shop reflects the property’s cozy, artistic character with locally made crafts and gourmet foods.
Volcano Village Lodge Aloha Bag
For a ready-made collection of Big Island favorites, our Aloha Bag brings together some of the island’s best edible treats and other Hawaii-made goodies, all packed in a keepsake cooler bag. It’s perfect for late-night snacking or as a thank-you gift for the house-sitter back home.
If you’ve fallen in love with your experience with us, consider sharing it with a Volcano Village Lodge gift certificate for someone special. It’s a souvenir that creates new memories rather than gathering dust.
Bringing Hawaii Home
The best souvenirs from Hawaii transport you back to specific moments of your trip, like sipping tea while watching mist drift through the rainforest, tasting wine while learning about volcanic terroir, or chatting with an artist as she explained how she captures lava’s glow in glass.
Choose thoughtfully, buy locally, and bring home pieces of Hawaii that honor the islands’ beauty, culture, and people. Your souvenirs will mean more, last longer, and keep giving back to the place that gave you memories worth keeping.
Book your stay at Volcano Village Lodge and explore the Big Island’s authentic side, one meaningful souvenir at a time.