Posting here as this is not a real event (yet)..just gauging interest.
How many people here on TC would:
Travel to NY for a Tiki Oasis/Hukilau/Hot Rod Hula Hop type event.
Meaning a 2-3 day event (weekend) centered around a Tiki themed establishment (Hotel) featuring live bands, merch booths, car show, etc.
Time frame would be anytime from April-late September.
My questions are:
How many people would be in for it?
What would you pay for the event plus lodging?
When would be the best time for it?
What type of events/ merchants/etc. would you like to see there?
Thanks

[ Edited by: tastysp 2006-12-28 11:08 ]

When you say "New York" where in NY do you mean?
The only tiki themed hotel I know of is in Lake George and I hear it sucks.
but there are a lot of us New Englanders who would love to do something around these parts.

..sbim

in the vicinity of NYC

I think it would be cool for a NY Tiki event but damn, I can barely afford going to the Tiki Oasis and the Hukilau every year.

SBIM: The Lake George "The Tikis" (formerly Howard Johnson's), is a very cool Tiki place in the middle of nowhere. Lots of Tiki and Witco last time I was there. The rooms are not the greatest but the decor and architecture remain intact. Plus they have a Hawaiian dance show! :)

I have heard horror stories about the cleanliness of the rooms. However, if it is no longer a HoJo, it may well be under new management from when those reports surfaced.

If such an event could be done so that it would be large enough to be interesting and affordable enough to go (NYC area hotels are pricy) I would be game. I have lots of friends and family around there that I could make it an excuse to go see. Plus any excuse to go to Otto's Shrunken Head is a good thing. And my wife loves to go to the city regardless of tiki stuff.

I would want a good vendor area. Half the reason I want to go to the events is to buy special stuff from Tiki Farm, Derek, Bosko, etc. etc.

So my response is: Likely, but it depends.

..sbim

I'll only go if SB goes.

New York (State, City) is very attractive as a tiki destination! East Coast, baby, represent!

On 2006-12-28 13:34, pappythesailor wrote:
I'll only go if SB goes.

always trying to get in my pants, aren't you?

:wink:

..sbim

I would consider vending as I am passing on Hukilau this year. Would depend on what your draw would be and it was worth the drive/shipping if I flew.

My husband and I would be there. The more notice the better, though, as we're beginning to plan vacation time for the whole year now.

I have always thought staying in the city made things prohibitively expensive. Maybe this is a mis-conception. If so, then that may be something you should actively tackle. It may be that a room in the city is the same as the Yankee Clipper at Hukilau, but, if you looked around a little, you could get a room in Lauderdale for much much cheaper. Knowing that may be a big factor.

I know there were those pushing for Tease-O-Rama to come to NYC when I was at the one in New Orleans, and putting performers in rooms and getting a turn out was a big reason they said no.

I am all for events on this side of the country. I have been working on a new event in Illinois for mid-May. The folks are more spread out over here, but, there are fewer things for them to do tiki-wise, so, they will go further out of their way. But also consider that 50% or more of the attendees at Hukilau are Floridians. That percentage grows every year as the event gets bigger. Locals make it a success in the end. People stayuing in the hotel are mighty important though. Locals who stay in the hotel are best. If they are taking the bus to your event, you have a whole other dynamic to consider to make it all work.

I'd be happy to tell you what I know about these things. I learned a lot of it from Otto and then from just doing it.

The event would not be in the city itself.
we're looking in long island. It's cheaper but not much

Don't lose sight of how Tiki Oasis & Hukilau started -- they were much smaller events, and while I'm sure they were thrilled to get people travelling from far-flung places for them, they didn't start out counting on it, and as Swanky notes, locals still make up the bulk of the attendees. They organically grew into something hundreds and hundreds of people wanted to attend.

It would take something very special to be worth it for me to a) fly out all the way from the west coast, and b) having arrived there, then spend my time at your event, rather than just spending time in NYC. That city's a siren, and she could prove hard to compete with for out-of-towners.

That said, I can see where it would be a real treat for people who live somewhat more local to the area to have an organized gathering.

As someone in New York, but not close to Long Island, I'd say that, if it's mainly a tiki event along the lines of Tiki Oasis/Hukilau, we'd definitely make it. If it's skewed more toward car show and such it would really depend on the cost, time of year, etc. Summer is good because there isn't a lot going on, but I realize that Long Island is a madhouse on summer weekends. Perhaps early fall?

Thanks for all the input so far.
!. The event will either be before Memorial Day or after Labor Day. That'll cut down on the Hamptons madness
2. Theme will be predominatly TIKI as the venue I'm looking at is right on the beach. However due to the lack of "real" Tiki in the area,
Events will be more Rockabilly, Surf, 50s, Burlesque themed.
3. Yes it will be local however I wanted to put the word out and see what kind of response/enthusiasm is out there across the nation for something like this.
I also wanted to see what kind of bands, vendors would be interested.
Keep the ideas and input coming
thanks

Rockabilly, surf and burlesque are good, too!

Good luck with it. It would be exciting to have something in New York!

Theme will be predominatly TIKI as the venue I'm looking at is right on the beach.

Wow... hell ya then. If there's a beach I'm hauling the board along to get some waves outta this too! :)

As NYC locals, count us in for any events in the area!

Nicole and Joe

the beach was really the impetus to do this.
I loved Oasis, but it was in the desert and the Mai Kai is close to the beach but not quite there so if I can pull this off it'll be great.
I hear the surfing isn't too bad there

[ Edited by: tastysp 2006-12-30 17:30 ]

[ Edited by: tastysp 2006-12-30 17:31 ]

Wow. over 500 views and just a handful of replies.
Boy, this place does need a shot in the arm.

On 2007-01-04 09:18, tastysp wrote:
Wow. over 500 views and just a handful of replies.
Boy, this place does need a shot in the arm.

In your first post you said you were "just gauging interest", so I guess you're getting your answer.