Rice Street to host holiday trifecta

Downtown Līhu‘e will get into the Christmas spirit with three events on Rice Street this Friday.

Santa and Mrs. Claus will visit the Kaua‘i Festival of Lights at the Historic County Building Park, while the annual Christmas Craft Fair takes place behind the nearby Kaua‘i Museum. And to cap it off, the Rotary Club of Kaua‘i’s Lights on Rice Parade start from Vidinha Stadium at 6 p.m.

2022 marks the first time the events have been held since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Rice Street Business Association President Addison Bulosan.

“We’re so happy our community can gather again,” said Bulosan, who is also a Lights on Rice MC. “It’s so good to have friends and family around again like we used to.”

The parade will head down Ho‘olako and Rice streets, and end on ‘Eiwa Street at the Historic County Building.

Santa and Mrs. Clause will visit The Festival of Lights from 6 to 8 p.m. each Friday before Christmas Day. (The festival’s exterior display will be lit from 6 to 11 p.m. each night through New Year’s Day.)

The Christmas Craft Fair will run from noon to 8 p.m. on Friday. For the safety of pedestrians and vendors at the fair, there will be no access to the Līhu‘e Civic Center parking lot through the ‘Eiwa Street entrance behind the museum from 4:30 p.m. on Thursday until noon on Saturday.

In preparation for Lights on Rice, the Kaua‘i Police Department will close all streets along the parade route, from 5:45 to 8 p.m. or until the conclusion of the parade.

To accommodate the parade and road closures, the bus stop on ‘Eiwa Street will be temporarily relocated to Hardy Street, fronting the state building, from 5 to 10 p.m. on Friday. Route 70, Līhu‘e Shuttle will not operate on Rice Street during the parade.

Additionally, all spectators are advised to exercise caution along the parade route. No parking will be allowed along the parade route, including ‘Eiwa and ‘Umi streets, after 4:30 p.m. on Friday. There will also be no parking allowed in the parking lots of the Historic County Building and the state buildings on Friday, from 4:30 p.m. to midnight, to allow parade floats to park in these lots.

Motorists should allow additional time to get to their destinations as traffic delays are expected.