2 Best Sights in Honolulu and Pearl Harbor, Oahu

The museum holds an impressive permanent collection that includes the third-largest assembly of Hiroshige's ukiyo-e Japanese prints in the country (donated by author James Michener); Italian Renaissance paintings; American and European art by Monet, Van Gogh, and Whistler, among many others; and a newer gallery of Hawaiian art. Originally built around the collection of a Honolulu matron who donated much of her estate to the museum, it is housed in a maze of courtyards, cloistered walkways, and quiet, low-ceiling spaces. The newer Luce Pavilion complex, nicely incorporated into the more traditional architecture of the museum, has a traveling-exhibit gallery, an excellent café, and a gift shop. The Doris Duke Theatre screens art films. This is also the jumping-off point for tours of Doris Duke's striking estate, which is now the Shangri La Museum of Islamic Art, Culture, and Design. If you wish to visit Shangri La, you should reserve tickets well in advance.

Originally named the Hawaii State Art Museum, this fairly compact museum reopened after a renovation in late 2023 as Capitol Modern, a somewhat opaque name chosen to distinguish it as a contemporary art venue. The museum has four galleries that display art from the Hawaii-focused state art collection and the Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts. There's an outdoor sculpture garden and courtyard where events occur frequently, as well as The POD (Passion on Display), which presents artist-in-residence and temporary exhibitions. All galleries and programs at the museum are free; also check for free monthly events such as live entertainment.

Hawaii was the first state to legislate that a portion of the taxes paid on commercial building projects be set aside for the purchase of artwork. The state bought an ornate period-style building (at one time the Armed Services YMCA Building), and, in 2002, opened a 12,000-square-foot museum on the second floor dedicated to the art of Hawaii in all its ethnic diversity.