The Dole Cannery

Terrible layout, dirty and no signs or bathrooms easily accessible. Went to a movie here and spent 10 minutes looking for the theater bc we parked by Costco.
Weird people hanging out in the halls, theater was abandoned looking. Probably only time I’m coming to this hole.

We visited Dole Cannery which was one of the the tourist things that were planned. And. it was very touristy. Haha. I know, I am a tourist complaining about a place being too touristy. We waited almost an hour to ride the Pineapple train. It is a slow moving train that shows the different types of pineapple. It is informational I guess, and I did get a picture holding a pineapple, but yeah. It is pretty weak. My kids got bored right away, and truthfully, everyone was bored. Who cares about different types of pineapples? Maybe we weren’t it in the mood because it was raining. It’s an ok place to visit on the way to North Shore, but don’t stay there too long. Prob good for an hour max to get some pictures in.

I always complain about spending money on things I don’t need at craft fairs. So I quickly browsed hoping not to find anything I’d like, that is until I saw the products by Be.Loved.
I walked away telling myself I don’t need it, and as I got closer to exiting, I walked back and I did this 3 times. Ended up buying t-​shirt and a long matching necklace, which I don’t regret buying.
I have been to many craft fairs held at Dole Cannery, and they tend to have different vendors each time, not very many vendors in attendance, I would guess about 35 vendors? They are located on the 2^nd floor right up the escalators. Because the vendors are set up between walkways, it is very tight and sort of difficult to shop, but that don’t stop crafters from attending.
Looking forward to more craft fairs at Dole Cannery.

My friends and I did the“haunted“train ride and it’s just a audio recording in the dark. Not worth it at all.

Dole Cannery is a sleepy yet interesting mall home to several restaurants and stores. I stop by at Toylynx occasionally when I want to get gaming supplies, visit the Subway and Chinese restaurant, and use the restrooms there.
This mall is not very big compared to Ala Moana Center or Pearlridge Center but it still works. There are not many businesses here, but the ones that are here are decent to great.
Parking is located on the Costco side of the mall. Dole Cannery extends all the way to Regal Theaters at Dole.

Dole
Definition of a DEAD Mall!
When the full on double locks go on the bathrooms and deadbolt locks go onto power outlets inside the eating areas– it is a sure sign that it is a dead mall.
Yes– It is really close to IHS but if there were people in the mall on a regular basis, many homeless people go to where they are not bothered on purpose… but people need to be there in order to necessitate having a normal security presence.
Let’s think of what GGP does for Ala Moana or what is expected at Kahala Mall… There is a normally updated website, there is a monthly flyer with coupons and ads to promote business, and a stage with local community performers to bring family and friends into the walking mix. None of this at DOLE!
Basically, there is a spa, a fake 7/​11, a Chinese fast food, a subway, the pokemon/​magik card store, two uniform places and then just office space use.
The Dept of Ed. Teachers accreditation does not need to be in a mall. Really– the number of times a person needs to visit that office is between 0 –1 times, cause stuff can be done online.
Really the CAM must be horrible cause there is open air holes in walls where they could put doors instead of doors on the bathrooms so that the A/​C stays in the building instead of leaving. For a few reasons it’s upsetting– the energy wasted makes HI a worse place for it. IT is a waste on CAM, and people get annoyed.
More than once– Germanic speaking tourists have stopped me– and asked where is the food court, and I laugh because the sign is still up which they point to, but I explain that there is just 1 Chinese place and subway. So then they walk away.
I go here to go to the movies or sit indoors after getting Costco. Still– it needs to improve because of it’s great historic value.

It’s been close to 10 years since the last time I visited The Dole Cannery. I walked around the shopping center to see what was interesting.
I noticed there was a sign on the entrance doors informing that there was no public restrooms. Really? I did find the mens and women restroom only they needed a special code to access it (I wonder if the restrooms are for employees only).
A lot has changed since my last visit. What ever happened to the food court that was located up stairs? I was craving for a small hamburger from McDonald’s…only to find out that they no longer exists.
I guess the food court got moved downstairs but the only food establishment that was open was Subways. There was the Dole Cannery Mini Mart that was opened for individuals who wanted to purchase small items.
I didn’t know that The Actors Guild (TAG) was located here. I also didn’t know that the Oceanic VIP Music Hall was located here. I noticed a jewelry store, Eye Center of Hawaii, a massage parlor, China Bazaar, Toylynx, as well as the main office for the vendor who supplies the hard liquors to many businesses that sells alcohol.
How long ago did Rascals Family Fun Center open? I didn’t recognize that business the last time I was at The Dole Cannery. I do recognize the Regal movie theaters. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched a movie at this theater. There were a lot of empty store fronts.
Will there ever be a revival of store fronts here at The Dole Cannery? Or will it be shutting it’s doors one store front at a time? Only time will tell.

What can I say about Dole Cannery?
Well the history about the place is really cool and it being an old factory.
With more state employees flocking to Dole… OPEN MORE FOOD PLACES please :)
There are a ton of new department of education workers now, we need variety like a real food court.
Starbucks would be SO awesome here!

Ghosts of the working past.
Once an operating pineapple processing plant, it became a visitor tour operation with accompanying retail operations. It then converted into a straight retail operation with a mini food court on the second floor.
Today it’s a ghost of its former self, the main concourse area is pretty empty with more office, specialty retail operations that probably does not appeal to the general populous. Seems to have lots of tenant space available. There is a role playing game store and specialty candy store that seem pretty popular.
Worth a visit for the many posters/​pictures of a bygone pineapple era.
Trivia: a place where you can still find working pay phones in a funky open booth.

It is a darn shame nothing productive can be done with this historic complex. Unless you want to catch a movie there is absolutely no reason to stop at the Dole Cannery.

Really cool place. A lot of history and a lot of fun. Unfortunately parking can sometimes be horrendous. Other then that it is a definite must go to place if you are visiting the island !

Right across from Costco, Home Depot, Best Buy and close to the Regal theaters. Convenient location and has some cool shops. A bunch of medical businesses, restaurants, and other small businesses. Worth looking around if you’re in the area.
Ideal Collectables:
Chocolates by Padovani: