5 Things I Learned From Attending My First Tiki Oasis San Diego

By The Kevbeaux, PubClub.com Nightlife Blogger

Tiki Oasis, the first and largest tiki festival in the U.S., is certainly an appropriately-named event. This is because it really is an oasis and it’s certainly a full tiki experience.

I attended my first Tiki Oasis in 2022 on a Saturday along with my PubClub LIVE!, co-host Soul Cole. As we strolled through the area I could not help but notice how many bars there were at the event. This immediately told me something about it – it’s a party.

Everyone was dressed in some type of tiki wear; aloha shirts were all over the place. There were also people wearing decorated hats, looking like they stopped by on their way to a Jimmy Buffett concert or just came from Del Mar Opening Day.  Numerous photo op locations and selfie spots were placed everywhere. Girls in retro tiki outfits were roaming the area.

The host hotel, the Town & Country Resort at Hotel Circle (right off a trolley stop!) is like a throwback 60’s and 70’s place. It reminded me of old videos and movies I’ve seen of Palm Springs back in the day. I half expected to turn a corner and run into the Rat Pack. This provided a very cool vibe to the event.

Soul Cole and I went in as mere squids but emerged with enough knowledge to declare we are going back every year. Here are five things I learned from attending my first Tiki Oasis in San Diego.

Five Cool Things About Attending Tiki Oasis San Diego

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1.) There’s a pool party! With a band and hula/go-go dancers. It was soooo cool to be cooling off in a swimming pool listening to a tiki-style band. Many people had a rum drink in hand (I held off because I was covering a rum tasting later).

2.) The rum tasting is the most popular event for those attending as well as the rum hosts. People get the chance to talk to the rum representatives who, in turn, get to personally talk about their products.

3.) By attending the rum tasting, the reps invite you to a late-night party they host in their hotel suites. Don Papa’s Rum, an excellent small-batch rum from the Philippines, even had a DJ. These parties are nightlife affairs – most are 10 p.m.-midnight. The Philippines, I learned during the tasting, was once the world’s largest sugar cane producer. Eventually the sugar cane made its way to the Caribbean to be made into more rums. An area called Sugarlandia is the sugar cane capital of the Philippines.

4.)  Tiki Oasis is a series of events during a five-day period – some of which at San Diego restaurants and bars during the week – and some events, such as the rum tasting, cost more to attend. Ticket prices are $165 and $185 for the four-day GA and $499 for a five-day pass that includes a late-night dance party and parties on the hotel suites. The seminars require a separate ticket.

5.) The event is really casual. Okay, it’s tiki time there and I did not expect it to be all tight or anything but the overall mood of the people at the event and especially the check-in people at registration was loose and casual. This set the tone for the event and was somewhat of a pleasant surprise because I’ve been to several events where it’s not that way.

• Tiki Oasis Website:  San Diego, CA | Tiki Oasis