Some are smaller than others, so it’s worth making a complete loop of the stalls, before buying an ukulele. Alongside those souvenir stands, you’ll find around a half-dozen ukulele vendors set up. For a $1 a person, you can walk around hundreds of stalls and pick up all the Hawaii souvenirs you could possibly want to take home. The Aloha Stadium Swap Meet (or flea market, if you will) takes place on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday at the Aloha Stadium, Honolulu–about a 20 minute drive (depending on traffic) from downtown Waikiki.
The Aloha Stadium Swap Meet ( web site | map) That said, you could always pick up a set of new ukulele strings (I recommend Aquila strings for around $7-$8) and see if they improve the sound any. Unfortunately, they really are toys and you shouldn’t expect much out of any uke purchased from an ABC Store. Where to Buy an Ukulele on Oahuįor less than $20 you can pick up a brightly painted ukulele that will keep any child happy or give you the chance to do your best (or worst) Don Ho or Tiny Tim impression. OK, so with those ukulele buying tips in mind, let’s move on to my recommended places to buy an ukulele on Oahu.
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You can also pick up a ukulele tutorial book, but you’ll find plenty of free YouTube tutorials and chord charts with a simple Google search. These range from $20 to around $60 and worth the investment. A ukulele bag can be a soft “gig bag” or a hard-shell protective case. Your ukulele strings will lose their tuning often–at least at the beginning or after changing strings–so a tuner is essential and shouldn’t cost more than $20 (you can pick them up online for closer to $10). When buying your first ukulele, be sure to also grab a protective bag and a digital tuner.
These are generally the same sound quality as the standard shaped ukulele, but some players claim the shape adds a little more volume and a slightly fuller tone. Still, these are great entry-level instruments and require less care and attention than a solid Koa wood ukulele costing $500 and up.Īs a side note, you may see pineapple-shaped ukuleles. They generally come in nice looking wood variations, though most are not solid wood–they’re laminate composites. Meanwhile, most ukuleles in the $40 to $150 price range are fabulous instruments and make great ukuleles to learn on and grow your playing abilities. Sadly, few ukuleles less than $20 are even remotely playable. Great for handing to a child, or for hanging on a wall. In most cases, the brightly colored ukuleles you see in the ubiquitous ABC Stores tend to be not much more than a toy or souvenir.
The soprano ukulele comes in many different colors, designs, and wood-types. (The downside is that those with larger hands may find the soprano ukulele harder to play, so test out the larger sizes and buy what suits you best.) Brightly Colored Ukuleles The soprano ukulele also tends to be a lot cheaper than its larger siblings–the concert size, tenor size, and baritone ukulele. This is generally the smallest size instrument and the one that has that bright, “plinky” sound you think of, when you think of the sound a ukulele makes. To make it easier to take your ukulele home with you, I’d recommend buying a soprano ukulele (sometimes referred to as a “standard” ukulele). As an avid ukulele player and uke collector–I have 10 ukuleles in my collection, much to the amusement and chagrin of Sheila– I wanted to share with you some ukulele buying tips–as well as my recommendations for stores that sell ukuleles in Waikiki, Honolulu, and Oahu-wide.įirst up, let’s start with a few ukulele buying tips. Whether you pronounce it “oo-koo-lay-lay” (the Hawaiian way) or you-ke-le-lee (the more common way) you may find you simply can’t return home from your Hawaiian vacation without buying a ukulele as a souvenir of your trip. Whether grabbing cocktails in Waikiki or catching a luau in Honolulu, your trip to Hawaii is practically guaranteed to include an opportunity to listen to the small four-string instrument that has become synonymous with Hawaiian music. The bug I refer to is more of a “jumping flea.” You may know it better as a ukulele. When you travel to Hawaii–Oahu in particular–you run the risk of being bitten by a rather contagious bug.