Honolulu, Hawaii

The tides are changing in Honolulu. Hawaii’s capital is becoming a cultural powerhouse—in 2017 it will host its first Biennial, which will attract artists from across the Pacific Rim as well as celebrate Hawaii’s own underrepresented artists. Check out the litany of installations, panel discussions, and performances from March 8 to May 8, when creative forces will transform sites like Foster Botanical Garden, City Hall, and Chinatown. But the cresting art scene can be found year-round. In the gritty Kaka’ako neighborhood, dozens of new Pow! Wow! murals saturate the walls of warehouses, construction sites, and burgeoning collectives-cum-galleries like Lana Lane Studios. Further proof the capital is becoming an arts hub: Even touristy Waikiki is changing, thanks to brand new art-centric hotel, Surfjack Hotel & Swim Club, which collaborated with local artists—from the restrooms’ custom bird-of-paradise wallpaper to the Matthew Tapia–designed graphic mural at the bottom of the pool that reads “Wish You Were Here.” —Jenna Scatena