Sheraton Waikiki Unveils ‘Sand-sational’ Holiday Displays
After 250 hours over 15 days and 32 tons of sand, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around the Sheraton Waikiki.
Sandsational Sand Sculpting, a company based in Melbourne, Fla., has put the finishing touches on the second of two holiday sculptures at the hotel.
The first one, completed on Nov. 9 using eight tons of sand, is titled “Santa’s Serenade,” and features Santa Claus playing the ukulele and singing to Mrs. Claus in the hotel’s main lobby. The second sculpture in the Sheraton Waikiki Porte Cochere titled “Santa’s Selfie,” was completed on Nov. 18 and features 24 tons of sand.
Since 2007, Sandsational has been creating visually stunning masterpieces in the Sheraton Waikiki lobby. At the beginning of the year, Sandsational’s sculpture was a tribute to the Mālama Honua voyage by the Hokule‘a canoe, as well as a sculpture titled, “Fireknife Dancers” as a tribute to a Samoan warrior’s knife dance, performed before battle with the nifo oti, or “tooth of death.”
“There isn’t a better way to combine the magic of Christmas with art on Waikiki Beach,” says Sheraton Waikiki general manager Kelly Sanders, who is credited with bringing Sandsational to the Sheraton Waikiki, which remains the only hotel in Hawaii to feature sand sculptures of any kind. “When we look at how people react to these works of art, it’s a look of pure joy and amazement – and that’s what the holidays are all about.”
The sculptures are expected to remain at the hotel through early 2016 when a new sculpture will be made in the lobby.
