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“Virtual Park Activities” website features online Parks & Rec resources
New webpage compiles digital park activities created during the pandemic 




O‘AHU – With all major City and State COVID-19 restrictions recently lifted, Mayor Rick Blangiardi and the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) are proud to announce a new website compiling our digital recreation resources for quick and easy community access.

The “Virtual Park Activities” webpage ( bit.ly/virtualparkactivities ) features a catalog of DPR’s digital recreation and education material posted throughout the pandemic, including: activity books, word searches, puzzles, keiki games, and environmentally-focused education booklets. It also hosts links to online classes from our “Nā Pāka ma ka Hale (Parks at Home)” series, the “Kupuna in the Park” series, and every episode from our virtual events: the Nā Hula Festival, Virtual Wa‘a Fest, and three Talk Story Festivals.

At the bottom of the website are links to each edition of
Mo‘olelo Pāka (Park Story) a once quarterly and now monthly newsletter highlighting events in your City parks. This newsletter was launched during the pandemic to continue connecting our island community to City park staff, news, and amidst a fluctuating pandemic environment.

Launched in April 2020, "Nā Pāka ma ka Hale" was the first of DPR’s digital pandemic resources. It was created to continue providing recreational opportunities to our communities (and beyond) with the onset of initial park closures and COVID-19 physical distancing guidelines.

With the COVID-19 pandemic most profoundly impacting our Senior (Kupuna) population, "Kupuna in the Park" was our way of keeping those members of our ‘ohana (family) engaged and entertained. Launched in November 2020, these classes were designed for the elderly, but can be enjoyed by all age groups.

While many of our special park events from March 2020 to February 2022 were cancelled due to the pandemic, several events were modified for the digital age! Our 32nd and 33rd Annual Talk Story Festivals were great examples, allowing us to continue the Hawaiian tradition of passing knowledge orally through these unique storytellers in a virtual atmosphere.

Celebrating its 80th festival, the Nā Hula Festival featured video performances from four halau, the Royal Hawaiian Band, and a rebroadcast of the 2014 Nā Hula Festival. Since its creation in 1940, Nā Hula has celebrated the grace and artistry of hula as the longest-running, annual, non-competitive hula event.

Prior to the return of an in-person Kualoa/Hakipu‘u Canoe Fest in March 2022, DPR staff continued perpetuating the Polynesian ocean voyaging culture through video interviews of five experienced watermen and women. Now these videos live in perpetuity and can be viewed anywhere you have an internet connection.

Mahalo to our island community for their continued support of your City parks, especially during many of the tumultuous pandemic days.

If you need an auxiliary aid/service, other accommodations due to a disability, or an interpreter for a language other than English in reference to this announcement, please contact the Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation at (808) 768-3003 on weekdays from 7:45 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. or email parks@honolulu.gov
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