When I asked my good friend Michelle about her new job as a liquor rep. for Montanya Rum she told me it was going well and that she was going to San Diego to promote the rum at Tiki Oasis. Now I was not entirely sure what Tiki Oasis was but it sounded fun, so when she told me she had an extra ticket and invited me to come help her and check it out I was intrigued. I emailed my cousins who live in Carlsbad, just north of San Diego (BTW not the Carlsbad with the caverns, that is in New Mexico) to see if I could stay with them and I was in luck! So I booked a trip with Priceline and totally lucked out there too because I bid on a ticket and got a direct ticket with relatively good flight times for a great deal. I booked an economy car and I was ready to go!
So with all my trip details all figured out, I set out to find out more about Tiki Oasis. Turns out it’s a sort of tiki-themed conference and party. For four days, people with interest and business in all things tiki descend to the old Hanalei hotel, now the Crowne Plaza. For four days, people of all ages, eat, drink and live in tiki themed goodness. Think pool party meets, Polynesian, throw in a bit of 50’s and 60’s kitschy nostalgia, and pinch of spice and you have got Tiki Oasis. There are rum and chocolate tastings, ukulele jams, a pin-up safari, hula girls, burlesque and shriner culture (lots of fezzes made an appearance), room parties, Marina the mermaid, a costume contest, vintage swimming suits, and most importantly, lots of laid back and crazy fun.
If you want to get an idea of the actual events and symposiums (these people are serious about their tiki!) then check out the official Tiki Oasis website: http://tikioasis.org/
You might also enjoy the Marina the mermaid video; I did:
http://www.youtube.com/tikioasistv#p/u/0/tUeHmYoWkhg
As a side comment, Tiki Oasis is huge! I had no idea that tiki culture is so big until this event. The event entry tickets and the Crowne Plaza sells out and overflow goes to the Holiday Inn next door. The whole convention center and hotel for four days is all about tiki.
So with all my trip details all figured out, I set out to find out more about Tiki Oasis. Turns out it’s a sort of tiki-themed conference and party. For four days, people with interest and business in all things tiki descend to the old Hanalei hotel, now the Crowne Plaza. For four days, people of all ages, eat, drink and live in tiki themed goodness. Think pool party meets, Polynesian, throw in a bit of 50’s and 60’s kitschy nostalgia, and pinch of spice and you have got Tiki Oasis. There are rum and chocolate tastings, ukulele jams, a pin-up safari, hula girls, burlesque and shriner culture (lots of fezzes made an appearance), room parties, Marina the mermaid, a costume contest, vintage swimming suits, and most importantly, lots of laid back and crazy fun.
If you want to get an idea of the actual events and symposiums (these people are serious about their tiki!) then check out the official Tiki Oasis website: http://tikioasis.org/
You might also enjoy the Marina the mermaid video; I did:
http://www.youtube.com/tikioasistv#p/u/0/tUeHmYoWkhg
As a side comment, Tiki Oasis is huge! I had no idea that tiki culture is so big until this event. The event entry tickets and the Crowne Plaza sells out and overflow goes to the Holiday Inn next door. The whole convention center and hotel for four days is all about tiki.
Tiki Oasis kicks off at Bali Hai, an old Polynesian themed restaurant on the water. It was my introduction into the event and I was impressed by how into it people were. The first evening was a casual meet and greet type event but with Mai Tai’s and people in tiki wear with burlesque and tiki themed entertainment. I had this photo taken with one of the other attendees because his headdress was so cool, with glowing eyes and everything!
By the second day, Tiki Oasis was in full swing. I pulled into the parking lot and saw this car right away; a jeep adorned with tiki torches and skulls, with custom plates that said Tiki Al. Pretty hard core. As I was taking a photo, Tiki Al happened to come up and so we chatted a bit before I went inside. We ended up chatting later when he was showing some tiki mugs he’d had manufactured in China. I asked if he went there to have them manufactured and turns out he lives there – just like me! Kind of cool or creepy that we ran into each other – I’m not sure. Seriously what are the odds off running to a person that lives in Shanghai in a party in another state?
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The first order of the day was the Sip and Shop cocktail giveaway that I was doing with Michelle. We were at the Tiki Bongo shop and giving out the Free-style, a rum drink made with clove and basil infused simple syrup, pineapple juice, and soda. A tasty treat that was very popular given that it was free and inside a cool shop! Michelle and I were busy handing out drinks and chatting with attendees and dressed in vintage swimsuits to suit the occasion ; )
Here’s a photo of us after it was over and when we’d had a chance to partake in a cocktail ourselves as well. Oh and the best part was eating rum infused pineapple. Yummmmy!
Here’s a photo of us after it was over and when we’d had a chance to partake in a cocktail ourselves as well. Oh and the best part was eating rum infused pineapple. Yummmmy!
After changing and treating ourselves to sushi courtesy of tips we got serving drinks, we watched some of the entertainment on stage and then did the rounds in the room parties. These room parties are wild – sometimes they have lines to get in and they are very organized with sponsors for drinks, live bands, burlesque and cool decorations. Some of the rooms were unrecognizable after all of the decorations. In between the room parties, we went in the elevator parties. That’s right a party in the elevator. At first I thought this was silly but then I realized it was fun! There were two elevators and each one had a band in it and sometimes a hostess serving drinks. If you really wanted to get somewhere fast though you took the stairs because the elevator was otherwise occupied with a party. Here is a pic of one of the elevator parties.
After a long day of serving and consuming drinks, plus lots of entertainment and socializing, I decided to call it a night so that I’d have energy for the party the next day.