Dole Plantation: Plantation Garden Tour in Photos

This is one a series of posts about the Dole Plantation visitor attraction.

Visit dole-plantation.com for information about the Plantation Garden Tour. Hours: 9:30am-5pm daily (closed on Christmas Day). Tickets: Adults $5; Children (4-12 years old) $4.25; Kama'aina/Military $4.50; Children under 4 are free. 

The garden features sections covering North Shore plants, hibiscus, native species, bromeliads as well as life on the plantation and irrigation.

Pineapples belong to the bromeliad family of plants. Decorative bromeliads are prominently featured throughout the garden.

Pandanas (hala in Hawaiian). The fruit of the trees look like

pineapples (which they are not).

Cacao Tree. Waialua Chocolate sold at Dole Plantation gained national attention when Art Smith, Oprah Winfrey's personal chef was smitten by the confection.

Some cacao pods can be seen growing on the tree.

Sugar cane. At one time pineapple and sugar cane farming were the leading industries in Hawaii.

The anthurium is popular for decorative purposes because of both their beauty and durability.

The hibiscus is Hawaii's state flower.

An orange hibiscus flower.

A patch of ti leaf plants.

Ti is one of the few plants that the first Hawaiians brought thousands of miles

to their new home.

Bromeliads consists of nearly 3,000 species. One variety has the plant's gigantic flower spikes growing taller than a two-story house.

This pond is meant to represent the irrigation history of Hawaii pineapple farming. Grown on vast dry plains, a network of ditches and tunnels were created to divert water from mountain streams.

Koi fish swim in both of the Dole Plantation ponds.

(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

Dole Plantation: Pineapple Variety Garden

The Pineapple Variety Garden is free to visit.

Sectioned to grow a variety of pineapples and at various stages of growth.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

This is one of a series of posts about the Dole Planation visitor attraction.

One of the free things to do at Dole Plantation is the Pineapple Variety Garden. It educates the public that pineapples (or bromeliads) come in other forms. The photo above names other varieties of pineapple but the smooth cayenne is the one that is grown commercially.

Another sign in the garden answers some Q&As about pineapples including:
Q: How long does it take for a pineapple plant to produce fruit?
A: About 20 months for the first fruit and another 14-15 months for the second fruit.

Q: How many crops do you harvest per cycle?
A: Two crops in 4 years or 3 crops in 5 years. After the last crop is harvested, the field is knocked down and a new cycle begins, starting with land preparation.

Q: Why is the soil so red?
A: The red color is caused by decomposed volcanic ash resulting in oxidized iron in the soil. It is good soil for pineapple.

Q: What is used as planting material?
A: The crown of the fruit or slip that grows on the stem of the fruit.

Q: How many plants are planted per acre?
A: A working pineapple plantation will plant between 27,000 and 33,000 plants per acre.

Q: What happens to a Wahiawa pineapple once it's picked?
A: About 60%-70% are sold and eaten fresh, many of these right here at Dole Plantation. The rest are processed and sent farther afield for the rest of the world to enjoy.

At the far end of the garden is a fish pond. For a few cents, guests can buy feed for the fish. Visit
dole-plantation.com for more information. Hours: 9:30am-5:30pm daily (closed on Christmas Day).

The pineapple belongs to the bromeliad family of plants. These are
a decorative variety of the plant.

The Cosmosus Prozenas pineapple from South America.

The more recognizable variety of Pineapple (smooth cayenne).

The maze, tropical garden and train ride surround the Pineapple
Variety Garden.

Sign in the in the garden showing the distance to local and
international destinations.

The fish pond at the end of the garden.

Visitors can feed the fish. Feed dispensers located next to the pond's
viewing platform.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

Dole Plantation: Pineapple Express

This is one of a series of posts about the Dole Plantation visitor attraction.

Because of time I didn't have the chance to ride the Pineapple Express. The two mile train journey takes twenty minutes and is promoted as offering a look at the island's agricultural history. Guests will likely enjoy most the scenic panoramas of Oahu's North Shore.

I did find a YouTube video which is posted below from by an enterpriser visitor to Dole Planation who made a vide ten minute video of the train journey. Based on the video below, I think for my interests it was probably best I didn't get to experience it. Living in Hawaii, it doesn't looks like it will show me something I haven't already seen. Visitors will feel otherwise.

Visit dole-plantation.com for more information. Hours: 9:30am-5pm daily (closed on Christmas Day). Tickets for Pineapple Express: Adults $8; Children (4-12 years old) $6; Kama'aina/Military $7.25; Children under 4 are free when accompanied by an adult.

Dole Plantation World's Largest Maze

The big attraction at the Dole Plantation.

View of path at maze entrance.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

This is one of a series of posts about the Dole Plantation visitor attraction.

Cross this maze off the bucket list. I have a fascination with hedge mazes and for the longest time I could only imagine the fun of navigating these massive garden structures. I finally got the opportunity to visit the mazes at Hampton Court Palace in 1998 and Leeds Castle 2003. But despite living in Hawaii, this is the first time I'm trying out the World's Largest Maze at Dole Plantation.

The maze is in the shape of an aloha shirt with a design of pineapple at its center. The maze sprawls over three acres and includes two and a half miles of paths created by 14,000 plants. The entrance/exit is the same and where you can mark your ticket with your start and finish times. The challenge is to seek eight secret stations where your mark a card by pencil using a template at each station. The templates are in various shapes such as the sun, a pineapple, a palm tree and a fish. The paths are compacted dirt and gravel. My recommendation is to bring comfortable shoes. My work shoes needed a cleaning after navigating the maze two days ago.

Aerial view of the maze. (photo: Dole Plantation)

OMG. This maze is massive. The ticket desk does give a map of the maze in case you get lost but seeking each station can be frustrating to find especially when you can see the station through the plants but can't the find the path to reach it. There are a few holes in the hedges where the plants are completing their lifespan so I did cheat once to reach one station. Often there are points where visitors bunch up and other points where it feels like you're the only one in the maze. This was definitely a fun lunch break. My time to find all eight stations and exit: 53 minutes.

Visit dole-plantation.com for more information. Hours: 9:30am-5pm daily (closed Christmas Day). Admission: adults $6; children (4-12) $4; kama'aina/military $5.

Over two and half mile of paths cover the maze.

One of the templates at eight stations in the maze.

Where the plants are full the maze walls are very solid.

In a few portions, some of walls need filling out by new plants.

From ground level, one can't tell that these collection of plants
form the shape of a pineapple.

The plants that form the pineapple crown.

The plants that form the fruit portion of the pineapple.

Gates mark entrances from the center of the maze.

The only place to take a break is at the maze's center where there
are some benches.

Walking to the maze finish line.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

Dole Plantation in Wahiawa, Hawaii

Gift shop and restaurant is located in the main building at Dole Plantation.

Dole Plantation visitor map.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

This is one of a series of posts about the Dole Plantation visitor attraction.

At one time pineapple was a king crop in the Hawaiian Islands. Though the crop is now grown cheaply elsewhere, the heritage of the fruit remains on the island of Oahu at the Dole Plantation. Located 40 minutes from Honolulu and en route to the North Shore the attraction is worthwhile for morning or afternoon of fun not only for visitors but locals too.

I had time to spare while going to a business meeting in the town of Waialua, I got call that the meeting was pushed back two hours. It was too late to return back to my office but fortunately the call came while I was approaching Dole Planation and decided to make a lunch out of the visiting the attraction.

Aerial view of Dole Planation in Wahiawa. (photo: Dole Plantation)

For the longest time I've been wanting to visit the "World's Largest Maze" and now I got the chance. Hopefully I could do it before my meeting time. Other things to do include the Pineapple Express and Plantation Garden Tour. These three attractions each carry an admission. It's free to visit the gift shop, the Plantation Grille restaurant and the Pineapple Variety Garden. This and the next few posts will cover these individual attractions.

Visit dole-plantation.com for more information. Hours: Visitor Center 9:30am-5pm daily.

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Dole branded t-shirts.

The vast gift shop floor.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

DOLE PLANTATION STORE
Call it a tourist trap if you will but at least the shop carries many worthwhile products related to the Dole Plantation. Many products carry the Dole name from shirts to candied pineapple chunks and mango slices. Perhaps more interesting is the salad dressings in lilikoi, Maui onion ponzu and pineapple flavors. You can even find Maui onion salsa. A whimsical dispenser sells pineapple flavored candy.

The shop's Waialua Chocolate gained national attention when Art Smith, Oprah Winfrey's personal chef, was smitten by the confection. The chocolate is grown on the North Shore of Oahu and consists of 70% cacao. This item and other Dole Plantation products are available online at shop.doleplantation.com

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Dole brand pineapple chunks and mango slices.

Salad dressings in lilikoi, Maui onion ponzu and pineapple flavors.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

PINEAPPLE GRILLE
The restaurant is the only place to eat for a few miles so if you're hungry when at the Dole Plantation, this is it. The menu selections include cheeseburgers, hot dogs and salads and their signature Dole Whip soft serve ice cream. Visit the dole-plantation.com to download a copy of the menu. There's also the Waialua Roasters coffee bar for those craving a caffeine fix. The Plantation Grille is open 10:30am-4:30pm.

The dining tables are all outside. Most are beneath umbrellas but some are located in the shade of the restaurant building. I had already eaten before heading out the day. So I just grabbed a cool iced coffee and then went to challenge myself to complete the Pineapple Maze before heading my rescheduled meeting time.

Waialua Roasters coffee bar.

Outdoor restaurant seating at the Pineapple Grille.

The Pineapple Grille interior.

Stocked shelves of Dole Plantation food products.

Maui Onion Salsa.

The gift shop also sells other favors such as these tropical mango
macadamia nut cookies.

Pineapple candy dispenser.

Bromeliad plants like the walkway to the Dole Plantation entrance.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)