Founding fathers probably didn’t picture this: wings, DJs and orchids from the sky

The Westin Maui Resort & Spa in Kā‘anapali is putting a tropical spin on Independence Day. Now in its 15th year, the resort’s Fourth of July celebration features a petal-filled “flower drop” from a helicopter, a wing-eating contest, poolside entertainment and family-friendly activities all day long.

The annual “flowerworks” display will take place at noon on July 4, when a Blue Hawaiian helicopter showers the resort’s oceanfront lawn with thousands of fresh orchids in place of traditional fireworks. Guests are invited to gather the blooms and craft their own lei.

The celebration continues with an outdoor barbecue, poolside DJ, children’s activities and Selawe’s Wing Eating Contest. The contest kicks off at 1 p.m., offering prizes including dining credits, luʻau tickets and a two-night stay in the resort’s Hōkūpaʻa Tower. Contest registration opens June 27.

The barbecue menu includes beef brisket, BBQ pork ribs, hot dogs, shoyu butter corn and Dole Whip. Additional pop-up menu items will be available July 1–5 from the resort’s VW Bus food truck, featuring dishes such as Hawaiian dogs with crispy spam crumble, kalbi short ribs with fried rice and bacon-wrapped stuffed onion rings.

The Valley Alley, the resort’s 10,000-square-foot entertainment space, will offer specialty cocktails, duckpin bowling, Topgolf Swing Suites and arcade games. Keiki can enjoy airbrush tattoos, balloon twisting, face painting, caricature artists and photo ops.

Schedule

9 a.m. – 9:15 a.m. – Koi Fish Feeding (Lobby Pond)
10 a.m.- 2 p.m. – DJ on Pool Deck
11 a.m. – 2 p.m. – Oceanfront BBQ (Hokupa’a Lawn)
Noon – Helicopter Flower Drop (Pool Deck)
Noon – 3 p.m. – Airbrush Tattoos & Caricature Artist (Lobby)
12:15 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Lei Making (Bring your flower drop finds to Aloha Pavilion)
12:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. – Face Painting & Balloon Twisting (Lobby)
1 p.m. – Selawe’s Wing Eating Contest (Food Truck)
6:30 p.m. – Sunset Torch Lighting (Hale Mo’olelo)

For more details or to register for the wing eating contest, visit event.marriott.com.