The Pacific Islander Festival of San Diego returns to Ski Beach in Mission Bay on Saturday, September 26, and Sunday, September 27, 2026. This is the 32nd annual edition, and admission and parking are free.
The Pacific Islander Festival Association, the nonprofit behind the event, describes it as the largest and longest-running celebration of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander culture in the United States. Festival hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Ski Beach Pavilion, 1600 Vacation Road.
More than 100 vendors are expected. Food booths serve dishes from across the islands, including kalua pork, chicken katsu, poke and shaved ice. A cultural village hosts demonstrations and workshops representing Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia, with weaving, carving and traditional navigation among the activities.
Craft and retail booths carry handmade goods, traditional clothing, shell leis, jewelry and artwork. Community organizations also set up on site with health services, education programs and family resources.
Music and dance run throughout both days. The association says the festival draws thousands of visitors and supports its scholarship and cultural education programs.
The festival is a fixture of San Diego’s late-September calendar, and Mission Bay’s open lawns and water give it a setting closer to the islands it celebrates than most urban festivals can offer.
Sources
- Pacific Islander Festival Association, festival page
- Eventbrite, 32nd Annual Pacific Islander Festival of San Diego
- San Diego Tourism Authority, Pacific Islander Festival
