Koloa Farmer’s Market

Mistake #1 — buying pineapple, watermelons, and a bottle of fruit smoothies at Costco when we first arrived in LIhue. We should have waited for the farmer’s market to stock up. It’s only open from 12 – 1 on Mondays. I recommend doing a cursory view of all the vendors and note the prices before purchasing. I got 5 large papayas for $ 10. Warning: Fruit ripen super fast in Hawaii’s climate. Green papayas only need 1 day in room temperature then they should be refrigerated. We also got Logan fruit for a good price. The market has mainly produce and some honey.

One thing i really enjoy doing in kauai is going to farmers market. I had to research which ones are the best to go to and this was one of them. I love to support locals and try their farming products. I did read some reviews about this one and yes its true, i will do a list of whats the highlights.
a. There is a crowd of people waiting to get in
b. there is a pre looking, then after the guy blows the whistle then you can buy.
c. It is small
d. Produce is way cheaper than the supermarket, go here if you do plan to cook while your visiting or if your a local.
e. yes they have rare tropical fruits such as
1. rare pineapple which was $ 28,
2. Noni where you only eat one oz portion a day,
3.soursop which is my favorite!
f. Cheap flower bundle for $ 5 which is ABSOLUTELY MUST GET for your room or kitchen table.
g. People do rush to get in such as walking in a fast pace and just going up to vendors like its the black friday!
h. BRING A HAT! ITS SUNNY!
Parking
The parking here has a big parking lot so that isn’t a problem. The parking lot does get full fast! Come here a bit earlier or a little later. There is veggie and fruits left after 30 mins in, fyi. so relax.
Some of the FRESH ORGANIC PRODUCE and deals i got was
1. 50 cents lemons
2. 4 for $ 6
3. Star fruit $ 1 for 3
4. soursop juice which was in a jug for $ 10. This was blended with agave.
5. some kind of lettuce for $ 2
6. Tomatoes for $ 2
Overall it was a great place to take some amazing pictures and look and try out the exotic fruits, which i like to pick out all the weird ugly spiky ones. The people here rush like its black friday and it is very entertaining. It is an easy place to drive and get to, and on a clean surface to shop at, meaning no mud! Oh one thing i regret is not bringing a hat because it was super hot! Thanks for reading and hope you have fun shopping here soon!

We plan our trips to Kauai to arrive on Sunday so we can go to this market on Monday. The crowds line up about 15 minutes early and when the whistle blows it is a brisk, but civil walk to the booths. We always get the fruit and produce for the week at this market. See photos of some of the offerings.

I liked this market. I avoided the mad dash at opening time and showed up around 12:45. There was still a lot to choose from. Most of the tourists were lined up for the coconut water and not really buying produce. The avocados are huge! Unfortunately, ours never ripened before our visit was over. There are several other farmers markets on the island that are often frequented by the same vendors. One woman told me she also sells at the Hanalei market on Tuesdays. Will try that during my next visit.

What a great little market! Lots of vendors and a great way to try some of the local produce. Wasn’t a fan of all the fruits I tried (mountain apples and soursop didn’t agree with my tastebuds, but lychees, mangoes, and papaya were great!) Long beans were, fresh lettuce, and kale were great. Even got a fresh coconut to enjoy while walking around.

The whistle-​blow start and guided walk in are a little weird, but I like this market so I let it roll off. You don’t have to be there at the very first second, especially in the off season, but you do want to be there within half an hour of opening. Things will get picked over and items will sell out.
It’s not just for tourists, despite some reviews, though I suspect locals would avoid this place during high tourist season. There’s not a whole lot of room to move and a great big bottle neck can develop. We like to make for the back end of the market and work our way back to the entrance/​exit. Sellers have always been very courteous and helpful in my experience, though some are definitely more interested in their business than others. One guy selling out of the back of his truck was chatting with people as though selling produce was a second though. Another seller was quite happy to make me a smaller bag of lychee and kept offering me a free sample, but spoke very quickly and wanted to help a lot of people at once. All of them are clearly good people who care about their produce. That makes a farmers market.

I’ve lived in Koloa for over a year and this was my first time at the Monday market. It will not be my last! I showed up about 12:30 and there was no line, plenty of parking and still plenty of produce to pick from. I purchased 12 papaya, a bunch of apple bananas and bag of small mango for $ 19. Much better than Big Save! Don’t forget your own bag!

First, as another reviewer has said, don’t get into the trap that you have to arrive right at the start time, because most vendors will still be there 30 – 90 minutes later, though some will have sold out quickly. I’ve been to this market a couple of times over the years, and I’ve seen people rush to be there at noon, and the traffic caused by people looking for a parking space as close as they could get to it; just calm down people, it’s PRODUCE and your on a tropical island vacation, relax. Because the market is small, people work their way through it quickly, and you’ll get a parking space when they leave, or better yet, avoid the frenzy by parking further away and enjoy a little walk (about 200 feet).
This small market of about 20 vendors squeezed into a narrow parking lot next to a ballpark, about a quarter mile northeast of the main street in Koloa, mostly serves tourists in search of something to supplement their meals back at the timeshare, and it is mostly local produce, including a nice variety of cut tropical flowers to enjoy during your stay. There are no craft items or grab and go food here, but there is a very good variety of produce, including pineapple, apple banana, mountain apple, rambutan, a limited amount of mangosteen, mango, papaya, lime, lettuce, tomatoes, etc. Just buy something you’ve never had before and try something different.

Small market with local farmers; while each farmer has a small batch of fruits/​veggies, each takes great pride in their selection. My husband and I selected a sugar loaf pineapple, some papayas, limes and flowers. The fruits were the best we’ve ever had (both on the mainland and on Kauai + Maui). We stopped at Maui after our visit on Kauai and were in search of the perfect pineappple… tried several from Maui-​based markets, but none compared to the one from the Koloa market.
The flowers we purchased were extremely inexpensive — they came in a vase and lasted about 2 weeks. It was a great spruce of color in our hotel rooms on Kauai and Maui.
The atmosphere was fun, with high energy. It’s abuzz once the market opens, and stays open until the food starts to sell. We drove back by around 12:30 (market opens at noon) and it was already closed.
If looking for the full experience, I recommend getting a frozen coconut to drink while shopping. After you’re finished, the sellers will chop it for you to eat or take with.

Don’t get sucked into the frenzy, most folks don’t even know what they want to buy. Opens Monday at noon with a long line at the gates but it’s just a small strip of stands so set your expectations. Try some local fruits such as starfruit, rambutan, longans, lychees, creamy apples, apple bananas and papayas. Don’t get overwhelmed by the rush, there are many more farmers’ markets on the island.

The strangest market I’ve been to ever. The fixed start time and guided walk into the market resembled cattle being led to the slaughter, with death-​by-​high-​prices. This market is made for tourists and elderly transplants from the mainland. Full disclosure… I went here after flying in from Hilo, where they were selling 6 papayas for a dollar at their market.

Great inexpensive produce, flowers, and a variety of whatever the sellers bring (e.g. Yummy goat cheese). Only problem was that it goes all too quickly and starts at 12:00 and many leave by 1:00 be aus they are sold out.

The family and I hit this place in search of things we couldn’t get on the main land. We picked up breadfruit, mangosteen, sap sour, and a few things I don’t know the name of in English. Everything was really good and we were surprised by the fruits that were available. I really liked the bread fruit. The guy who sold it to us told us how to prepare it: core and peel, dice, boil, smash and fry. It was really good; crisps up like a potato but slightly less starchy with a fruitier flavor. The prices were high but it was a fun experience and worth the chance to eat things you’d not get main land.

This market was a frenzied flavor of awesome. Set start time. Lots and lots of people waiting. Blessing. Whistle. Go! Bring bags, a friend for helping carry things, small bills, and a tiny bit of patience. Produce-​focused which was wonderful. So, so worth going!

Open every Monday, at 12 noon.
We arrived 5 minutes before noon, and were surprised to see hundreds of people waiting for the opening. There were 20 – 25 booths. The fruits and vegetables were fresh, ripe, and inexpensive. There were some really exotic fruits that I’ve never seen before, for example, tropical cherry which was like grape with thicker skin, star fruit that I haven’t seen at other farmer’s markets, and some fruits that I’ve already forgot the names of.
The market is located on Anne Knudsen Park. The Google Map has it wrong. It’s on on the RIGHT hand side of Maluhia Rd. (also known as 520) when you come from Koloa Rd. Once you turn left onto Maluhia Rd. from Koloa Rd., it’s almost immediately on the right, passed the baseball field.
If you are here on Monday, definitely go there! Based on the amount of people that showed up, I’d agree with all the other reviews about going there early. Bring several bags! They don’t offer any carrying bags. Because some of the fruits are really ripe and soft, you don’t want to squeeze them, so separate bags might be a good idea. Most of the booths don’t seem to accept credit card.

i was lucky to make it there today & fell in love with the little local farmer’s market… the selection of tropical fruits & veggies is amazing. so thanks to this, i was able to try rambutans, cream apples, sugar pineapple for the first time & eat mangos & chikus like back home, get mangosteen after 18+ years. also the lady selling coconuts is a must stop — you can have an ice cold coconut with a straw & once you’re done with the juice, she’ll crack it open so you can scoop the flesh with a plastic spoon. for $ 5 you’ll get all of this plus great rehydration if you’ve been out in the sun

I agree with other posters when they say, «Get there as soon as it opens». Otherwise it gets «picked over». We went 30 minutes after it opened once and the best was gone. Great flowers for a centerpiece in your room. A comparable arrangement of fresh exotic flowers would cost well over 100 dollars on the mainland. Got em for 10 dollars Get the small «sugar» pineapples if you can… they alone are worth the visit!

The selection is amazing. Everything is very fresh, and the flowers are beautiful. You can get hand-​strung leis or exotic beans and fruit. Prices are just right. And the pineapples are so much fresher and riper than what they have at the local grocery stores.
Don’t be late… it starts at noon… and gets picked over pretty fast.

The Koloa farmer’s market or sunshine market is held at the baseball field on the main drag in Koloa, Mondays at noon. Go early to get a good selection. Most of the vendors sell the same things; bananas, avocados, pineapples, papayas, grapefruits, tomatoes, rambutan, coconuts… there’s an occasional orchid vendor in between. I had time to make a circuit and check out all the tables (15 – 20 or so) and then figure out what produce I wanted to buy from where.
I think other markets are larger and have more variety, but this was a great quick little stop for fresh local produce. Bring lots of small bills with you to facilitate transactions!