Kamanele Park

Two stars for this park but five stars for the bucket swings. The bucket swings itself is such a find. I've been looking everywhere for these types of swings. My daughter loved them when she rode on them in California and I just couldn't find any of those swings in Hawaii until today. Today I just wanted to try something different and go to the Manoa Marketplace open market. But on the way there I quickly glanced at Kamanele Park and saw that there were swings. I've noticed that many parks are getting rid of their swings altogether and just putting in the climbing apparatus with slides. But this park had tons of swings when I looked. And then I had to do a double take because I saw the bucket swings. My husband and I decided to take her to the park in the afternoon after her nap. And she loved it. She's really small so these bucket swings were perfect for her. As soon as she got into the swing, she was laughing and having a grand ole time. She didn't want to get out! We kept asking her, do you want to come out and she kept motioning that she didn't and wanted us to push her some more. She ended up riding the swing for a good twenty minutes! I'm so glad that there is a park that we can go to where she can ride the swing. But as far as the park in general, there really isn't anything else to do there. There's two bucket swings and four regular swings. There's no equipment, just swings. I guess if you want to have a picnic there, it would be a good spot since they have tons of grass. Also if you're into bird watching, there these green parrots flying around in the trees above. Kind of unusual to see in a regular tree but worth searching for.

The only park with a working swing set in Honolulu! Located right at the entrance to Mid Pacific Institute, Kamanele Park is a clean park with two swing sets. We stopped by here today to take our 8-year old to the swing sets because she hasn't been able to use one since pre-school. Since it was Sunday we were able to park right on the street and she spent a quick 15 minutes swinging her heart out. There was another woman there with her two year old and they were swinging and writing on the sidewalk with chalk.There didn't seem to be any weird happenings or drug dealers in the area, and the park seems clean although I didn't use the restroom facilities. I'd totally come back again with my family to have a simple picnic.

I didn't realize this was an actual park. I usually come and go thru Manoa for various trips, but on a walk from Kaimuki to Manoa Marketplace, my friend and I decided to pass through here, because there was restroom facilities.Not everyday you spot something new when you've been seeing the same ol stuff. Thankful that I got a chance to come thru the area and check out this spot. The park itself isn't too large, but it is self-supporting with restroom facilities. Definitely nice to have whenever you are in the area walking or something and need to use them. First impressions was that I thought it was not a community park, but an empty lot that stood untouched with a structure towards the back of the property. I didn't realize that this was an actual park until I asked my friend. I spent probably 10 minutes here enjoying the scenery, using the park's facilities, enjoying the morning before heading into Manoa Valley to continue our morning workout. The grounds itself is maintained fairly good by the good folks of the City and County of Honolulu Department of Parks and Recreation. I found that the restroom facilities were generally clean for a public restroom facility. There's one bench on the property, but that's about it.The overall experience here at the Kamanele Park was short and sweet. Casual yet brisk to suit my needs. Too bad that the park itself is restricted due to its size and doesn't have that much stuff to sit on, i.e chairs and benches to soak up the beauty that is Manoa. For the most part though, the entertainment is the location and the picturesque scenery that can be obtained by hanging out here. I did enjoy the quiet nature of the park and the location is not far from the University of Hawaii - Manoa campus. I would definitely recommend coming here if you are in the area, but the only thing is that there is very little options to sit down and relax. I know I didn't sit down, but there aren't many options to choose from anyway. You may need to bring chairs or something comfortable. While it is lovely during the daylight hours, best bet would be to avoid the area during the night hours, even in Manoa. My experience here was good and 2 thumbs up, even though I spent 10 minutes here. You can bet I will be back here soon, since I usually do my Sunday morning running thru here.Kamanele Park is located next to the Mid Pacific Institute and a block or so away from the University of Hawaii - Manoa campus. It's address is 2237 University Avenue in the heart of the University district of urban Honolulu. Like all community parks, there is no admission fee accessed here. Just come as you are and you'll fit right in. As far as parking goes, best bet would be to use nearby residential parking as your main parking points and walk on over. If you are like me, main route 6 comes thru the area up and down University Avenue. There's also routes 5 and 13, but you'd need to walk further after stopping nearby. It's the perfect place to hang out and have a picnic. Just throw down a mat and you'll be fine. I enjoyed the wide open space that the Kamanele Park provides, even though it's not that big. You probably can put a decent sized home here and have a generous spot to play. It's a nice green space for anyone and everyone to enjoy. Come on down if you are in the area. It's quite therapeutic and happiness thrives here.5.0 stars for the overall experience.Support local!A+

Beautiful day!!! This fall break we were on the hunt for playgrounds with swings and found one at Kamanele park. Pros: no batteries required, free, easy to find, shaded area for a peaceful picnic, no doggy pop, big beautiful trees, and the kids loved it. We even saw wild parrots!!! Cons: May be tough finding parking, may be muddy (the 2 swings close to the bathroom had puddles but the ones in the middle were fine)Me daughter noticed a decline in swings at playgrounds (park across Kalihi YMCA-gone, aweoweo park-gone) so we were fortunate to find joy at Kamanele park.

This is the only park I know that has a swing set (for infants) in Honolulu. Not sure why that is! Beautiful park. Ample street/neighborhood parking a block or two away.. not sure why people complained of it as a problem if they are going to walk/run around in a park anyways. Bathrooms were clean. No homeless. Plenty of toilet paper. Trees were amazing, benches with people playing instruments and studying. Good time to be had. One of my favorite parks to have stumbled across.Enjoy!

Awesome park. Beautifully maintained. Wish there was reserved parking. We had to circle a few times for a stall. Other then that, my kids had an awesome time.

Just a heads up to Kamanele Park Fans and surrounding community. The Outdoor Circle is working on a new playground for this park. Follow the effort on Facebook/kamanele park or at KamanelePark.com.

Nice park with lots of large old trees that provide shade. There's a couple of tables to have lunch & usually a nice cool breeze. The negatives are lack of parking, filthy restrooms. & old play ground equipment. Also there a homeless person that "lives" behind the restroom building.

No parking, must find street parking away from park. Only swings, no playground for children.

As other reviewers have stated, this park is one of the rare few on island with bucket swings. My child absolutely loved that. However, despite the serene Manoa location right outside the Mid-Pac main entrance I am 99% sure we witnessed a drug deal take place at the bathroom area. This was at 5pm. WTF. Super sad that young families cannot even enjoy themselves in public without being hypervigilant and having to witness crap like this.