Lyon Arboretum normally keeps weekday hours. It's open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and closed on weekends and on State and Federal holidays. On Saturday, December 5, the gate at the top of Mānoa Road opens anyway for the second day of the 2026 Fall Plant & Craft Sale.
That one weekend opening shapes the valley's early December. Lyon has built the sale's parking around reservations and a walk-up window, and walk-ups park in the upper Mānoa neighborhood. Mānoa Heritage Center runs a hands-on workshop that same Saturday morning. If you live in the valley, the first weekend of December takes place uphill, a few blocks from home.
A Weekday Garden on a Saturday
The sale runs Friday, Dec. 4, and Saturday, Dec. 5, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. It's set up around the Visitor Center and Greenhouse. Lyon calls it a holiday shopping event, with plants, Aloha shirts, local honey, art, food and music. All proceeds support the arboretum's conservation, education and research work.
On a regular weekday, a visit takes little planning. Admission is free with a suggested $10 donation, no reservations are needed, and parking is first-come, first-served. If the arboretum lot fills, there's a paid lot at Paradise Park just before Lyon. The sale has its own rules. Lyon says attendance is "primarily managed through staggered 1-hour reservation time slots" to keep the experience smooth and control traffic flow.
Two Ways Through the Gate
Reservations opened on Eventbrite through Lyon's website on Nov. 9 at 10 a.m. Lyon describes them as limited and asks people to book only if they're sure they can come. By the time you read this, some time slots may already be gone, so the walk-up window is the option most people can still count on.
| Parking reservation | Walk-up | |
|---|---|---|
| Hours | Staggered 1-hour slots during the 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. sale | 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. each day |
| How you get in | Booked on Eventbrite via Lyon's site, opened Nov. 9 | No booking needed |
| Where the car goes | Main lot next to the sale area | Drop-off at the entrance gate, or park in the upper Mānoa neighborhood |
| What it covers | One vehicle and its passengers | Each shopper |
The last row of that table matters most to people who live in the valley. Only reserved cars use the lot next to the sale. If you live within walking distance of the top of Mānoa Road, you're in the best spot for the walk-up window. You can leave the car at home, walk up after 10:30, and skip the drop-off entirely. Walk-up shoppers who drive will be parking on the streets of the upper valley for most of both days.
Lyon also has some practical requests. Bring your own box, cart or bag for purchases. Cash speeds up checkout. Leave pets at home, since only service animals are allowed. If you're buying plants, plan to bring a cart, and remember that the reserved cars get the lot next to the sale. Walk-ups who parked down the road will be carrying their purchases back to the car.
Saturday Morning Starts Down the Valley
The walk-up window opens at 10:30 a.m. That leaves time for a morning activity first, and Mānoa Heritage Center has one scheduled.
On Dec. 5, from 9 a.m. to noon, the center hosts a Peʻahi (fan) workshop with Kumu Wes Sen. Students use big strips of lauhala to learn how to make the body and handle of a basic fan. Once they have the basics, they can go on to fans in other shapes and designs. The session costs $45 with a material kit included and is limited to 20 participants.
The workshop ends at noon, and Lyon's walk-up window runs until 2:30. That gives you a full Saturday in one valley:
- 9 a.m. to noon: Peʻahi workshop at Mānoa Heritage Center with Kumu Wes Sen.
- After noon: Head up Mānoa Road to Lyon while the walk-up window is open.
- Before 2:30 p.m.: Get through the gate, then shop until the sale closes at 3 p.m.
If the workshop doesn't fit your weekend, the Heritage Center's December calendar has public tours on Dec. 2, 4, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 18, 22 and 29. There's also a Japanese-language tour on Dec. 21 from 10 to 11 a.m. The Dec. 4 tour runs from 2 to 3 p.m., the same Friday the sale opens. Tours require a reservation, are capped at 10 people per time slot, and generally last 60 to 90 minutes. You can see the full month on the Mānoa Heritage Center calendar.
What's on the Tables
Most of the plants and crafts at the sale come from local growers and makers. Lyon's announcement lists these plant sellers alongside Lyon's own Horticulture Department:
- Hui Ku Maoli Ola
- Laʻau Hawaiʻi
- Olomana Tropicals
- Lang's Nursery
- Mix Plate Nurseries
- Nuʻuanu Orchids
The plant list includes tropical ornamentals, Hoya, native plants, ferns, orchids, jade vines, aroids, gingers, bromeliads and carnivorous plants. Craft vendors include David Shepard Hawaii, NaKui Studio, Nicole Nakata Art and Meli Hawaii, with wearable art, botanical art, Aloha shirts and local honey.
For food, the Khao and Papas food truck will be there, along with fresh local items from Da Poi Boi 808 and drinks from Bitter Root Brewery. Conservation groups and the UH Insect Museum will run educational booths on native and invasive species in Hawaiʻi. If you garden in the valley, those booths on native and invasive species connect directly to what's growing in your own yard.
The Weeks Leading Up to the Sale
The sale is the biggest event of the season at the back of the valley, and Lyon's November schedule builds toward it.
On Friday, Nov. 20, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., Lyon hosts a hands-on workshop on making a Thanksgiving floral centerpiece. Participants turn flowers, foliage and greenery from their own backyards into a holiday arrangement. Sign-up is through Eventbrite, linked from the Lyon Arboretum homepage. Lyon notes that its community classes are usually held on Fridays or Saturdays.
Lyon now also offers walk-up docent-led tours covering the arboretum's plants, history and stories. They cost $15 per person, and children under 12 are free. No reservation is needed. You check the docent calendar, then sign up at the Gift Shop when you arrive if a docent is available. Groups are kept to seven people or fewer. The tours page has the details.
Lyon's Seed Conservation Lab is being renovated, and the arboretum warns of frequent closures on short notice. It also mentions last-minute closures due to construction on the property. Before any weekday visit this season, check Lyon's homepage and its calendar of events and closures.
Closer to the valley floor, Mānoa Public Library kicks off its holiday season with a PG-13 screening of "Superman" on Thursday, Nov. 12, from 4 to 6 p.m. Hawaiʻi's public libraries close on Thanksgiving, Nov. 26, and on Christmas Day, Dec. 25.
Here's how the dates line up. A Thanksgiving centerpiece workshop at Lyon on Nov. 20. The library and Lyon close for the holiday on Nov. 26. Then the plant and craft sale on Dec. 4–5, a lauhala fan workshop at Mānoa Heritage Center the morning of Dec. 5, and Heritage Center tours on weekdays through Dec. 29. Almost all of it happens within a couple of miles at the top of the valley, and the one Saturday Lyon opens its gate is the busiest day of the stretch.
At Team Hawaii, we keep track of the dates that shape daily life in Mānoa, from a Saturday when Lyon's gate opens to walk-ups to a fan workshop down the road. If you're planning your December around the valley, or just want to talk about what's coming up here, let's connect.
