On Friday, December 18, Fairmont Orchid will hold a Hawaiian protocol ceremony at Ahuakūpuna, with ʻoli, to open its holiday season. The same evening, Blue Ribbon Sushi opens a pop-up at Mauna Lani's Surf Shack that runs nightly from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. through January 3. The next afternoon, Saturday, December 19, the Mauna Lani Holiday Market sets up in the resort's lower lobby from 1 to 6 p.m. with Mālama Hawaiʻi Makers Market. That Saturday is also the first day of Mauna Lani, Auberge Collection's December Holidays program, which runs through December 30, and the first day of the Mauna Lani Resort Association's "Festive Period."
So one weekend starts December for both resorts and the association. This December also adds a new venue. The Mauna Lani driving range is being rebuilt as a social space, and it is scheduled to open during the month.
The range becomes The Bays
On November 4, The First Call Golf carried the announcement that Mauna Lani, Auberge Collection will unveil more than $4 million in golf improvements this December. The project includes The Bays, which the release calls Hawaiʻi Island's first Toptracer-powered driving range; The Wave, a new putting course; The Academy, an instruction program; a refreshed clubhouse and retail space; and a redesigned entryway that the resort describes as welcoming "resort guests, visiting golfers and kamaʻāina."
Toptracer's location directory backs up the "first" claim. Its Hawaiʻi section lists Poipu Bay Golf Course on Kauaʻi; Bayview Golf Course, Oahu Country Club and Olomana Golf Links on Oʻahu; and Maui Nui Golf Club on Maui. None of them are on this island. Until now, a Big Island golfer who wanted shot-tracking range practice had to fly to another island.
The resort's own page for The Bays shows that the design is aimed at more than golfers:
- Eight covered bays with 16 hitting areas, lounge seating and Toptracer technology
- A natural-turf tee for traditional practice
- Food trucks, self-service drinks, live sports and music, which the page calls "Hawaiʻi Island's first and only social golf experience"
- Happy hours, according to the main golf page, which says the range is meant for anyone "whether you're a seasoned golfer or picking up a club for the first time"
- Solar-powered Toptracer setup, according to the announcement, with group seating and food and beverage service
The Wave sits next to the range and covers more than 50,000 square feet. The release says its contours are "inspired by the movement of the Pacific," and that it is meant to host concerts, receptions and private events in addition to putting. Mauna Lani's golf page says The Wave has two parts, an 18-hole putting course and a nine-hole short course, and that lessons from The Academy can use both The Wave and The Bays.
In the release, General Manager Pete Alles described the additions this way:
"With The Bays and The Wave, guests can take a lesson, enjoy a friendly competition or simply spend time together."
For someone who lives on the Kohala Coast, the important part of that quote is "simply spend time together." Before this project, the main reasons to drive up to the golf clubhouse were a tee time or a range bucket. A covered bay with food trucks and live sports is something you could plan an evening around, and so is a putting course designed for concerts.
How kamaʻāina get on the course now
Mauna Lani already has a residents' route onto the North and South Courses, and the new range makes it more useful. The resort offers kamaʻāina golf rates year-round through a separate booking engine with a three-day booking window. Current rates are shown in the online tee sheet, not on a published price list. At check-in you need a valid Hawaiʻi driver's license, and anyone without one pays the visitor rate. The golf contact form lists "Mauna Lani Resident Ohana Offers" and "Kama'aina Offers" as separate inquiry topics, so residents can ask about either one directly.
Frequent players have two more options. The annual membership includes unlimited play on the North and South Courses, practice-facility access, tee times up to 60 days in advance and special rates for up to three accompanied guests. The Players Program is single memberships only. It offers preferred golf rates, discounted practice-facility use, tee times up to 10 days in advance and free bag storage. Both include practice-facility benefits, and in December the practice facility becomes The Bays.
The clubhouse bar is the easiest way in for someone who doesn't golf. It is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and the resort says it welcomes golfers and non-golfers.
Before December 18: Thanksgiving week on both properties
The holiday season starts before that December weekend, and on publish day it is already underway. Mauna Lani, Auberge Collection runs its Thanksgiving program from November 21 to 29. It includes Thanksgiving dinner at CanoeHouse, a Thanksgiving buffet at HāLani and a Thanksgiving lūʻau. Two smaller events are worth noting. Steel & Song: A Hawaiian Music Celebration runs November 19 through 22, and Grateful for Makahiki is set for November 24.
At Fairmont Orchid, the annual Turkey Trot 5K is Saturday, November 21. Registration opens at 6:30 a.m., the race starts at 7:30 a.m., and the proceeds and donations benefit The Food Basket.
The deadline residents are most likely to miss is Fairmont's Holiday Social, the hotel's annual kamaʻāina business social, on Saturday, December 5. Tables must be booked by November 25. The evening starts with a 6 p.m. gala reception, followed by a 6:30 p.m. buffet with prime rib, slow-roasted porchetta and a raw bar, and dancing to a live DJ until 10 p.m. Tickets are $150 per person including tax and service charge. The event is 21 and over, self-parking is free, and reservations are by phone at 808-887-7333.
The Monday market that runs through the whole season
One event continues through the holidays without a break. The Mauna Lani Resort Association calendar lists Market Mondays at The Shops at Mauna Lani every Monday from 3 to 7 p.m. That includes November 23 and 30, and in December it continues on the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th.
The Shops has been changing this year. Big Island Now reported in March that the center's new owner, BH Properties, planned short-term upgrades to landscaping, lighting and seating, and wanted to recruit lifestyle boutiques and more restaurants. The same article listed Juice 101, Mauna Lani Coffee Co., Hawaiian Island Creations and Knead & Bake among the businesses at the center. Market Mondays is held there every week.
The weekend of December 18, then through New Year's Eve
Here is the second half of the season, listed by date across both resorts, The Shops and the association calendar:
| Date | Where | What |
|---|---|---|
| Mondays, Dec 7, 14, 21, 28 | The Shops at Mauna Lani | Market Mondays, 3–7 p.m. |
| Fri, Dec 18 | Fairmont Orchid, Ahuakūpuna | Holiday Opening Ceremony with Hawaiian protocol and ʻoli |
| Dec 18 – Jan 3 | Mauna Lani, Surf Shack | Blue Ribbon Sushi pop-up, nightly 5:30–8:30 p.m. |
| Sat, Dec 19 | Mauna Lani, lower lobby | Holiday Market with Mālama Hawaiʻi Makers Market, 1–6 p.m. |
| Dec 19 – 31 | Resort-wide | Festive Period, construction activities prohibited |
| Thu, Dec 24 | Fairmont Orchid, Pauoa Bay | Santa arrives by outrigger canoe |
| Dec 24 & 25 | Brown's Beach House | Four-course holiday menu |
| Dec 24, 25 & 31 | Binchotan | Sushi, yakitori and seafood buffet alongside à la carte |
| Thu, Dec 31 | Fairmont Orchid, the Pointe | Sunset Toast for the last sunset of 2026; New Year's Eve Lūʻau |
Fairmont's full lineup, including the New Year's Eve Lūʻau Under the Stars, is on its Holidays at the Orchid page. Mauna Lani's Thanksgiving and December events are on its holidays page.
The quiet weeks on the association calendar
The Festive Period line in that table matters most to owners. The Mauna Lani Resort Association calendar marks construction activities as prohibited on every day from December 19 through December 31. The same calendar marks Thanksgiving Day, November 26, and the following Friday, November 27, as construction-prohibited days.
So for most of the second half of December, the same dates that bring the Holiday Market, the sushi pop-up and Santa's canoe arrival are also closed to construction activities. An owner planning a lanai refresh or an interior project around the holidays would need to fit the contractor's schedule around both windows. This is general information, not legal advice, so confirm how the calendar applies to your property with your association or the right professional.
If you have been wondering how a new amenity like The Bays fits into the value of your Mauna Lani home, Lovette Llantos would be happy to talk it through over a coffee before the holiday rush. Get your free home valuation, and we'll map out the season ahead with you.
