The Farrington Detour Runs Through ʻEwa Villages. Here's What's Along the Way This Holiday Season

Since September 14, Farrington Highway has been closed around the clock between the east and west ends of Old Fort Weaver Road. All traffic now goes onto the older road that runs through ʻEwa Villages. The Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation expects the closure to last about a year. That puts the old plantation town on the daily route through the holiday season and on toward next September.

The best-known holiday outing on this side of the island is run from the same town. The Hawaiian Railway Society, whose home is 91-1001 Renton Road in ʻEwa, runs the Holiday Express, and booking opens Monday, November 2. So the detour gives you a rough map of the season too.

What closed, and what the closure is for

The closed stretch is part of the Farrington Highway Widening project. The project runs from Fort Weaver Road to Kapolei Golf Course near UH West Oʻahu. It will widen the highway from two lanes to three, with a center two-way turn lane, and add bike lanes and sidewalks on both sides from Kapolei to ʻEwa. The full closure is for rebuilding the Honouliuli Stream Bridge. Crews are working on the mauka side first and then the makai side. They are building concrete support blocks 14 feet long, 14 feet wide and 7.5 feet tall, which take up nearly the whole width of the highway.

There are two timelines, and they are easy to mix up:

• The bridge closure: about one year from September 14, 2026, weather permitting.
• The whole widening project: started May 1, 2025, with completion estimated for April 2028. Total cost is $138 million, and the City and County of Honolulu has put in $15 million toward construction.

HDOT says closing the road fully, instead of working around live traffic, saves $500,000. That is a small share of a $138 million project, and the trade-off is a year of detours. HDOT has not announced a new end date. Its Oʻahu lane closure schedule for October 24 to 30 still lists the detour and contraflow on eastbound Farrington Highway near Old Fort Weaver Road "until further notice." The same schedule shows a second closure through Friday, October 30: the right lane of southbound Fort Weaver Road between Papipi and Kimopelekane, for manhole drilling.

The bus stop that served the closed stretch of Farrington has moved to Old Fort Weaver Road for the length of the closure.

The plantation town the old road passes through

Much of the traffic now on Old Fort Weaver Road used to pass ʻEwa Villages without slowing down. The town is laid out around Renton Road, and the ʻEwa Villages Historical Society has mapped its landmarks by address:

The churches and the school are working buildings, not museums. Most of these landmarks are best seen from the sidewalk while walking the town.

Two city parks sit on the same road. The Department of Parks and Recreation lists ʻEwa Mahiko District Park at 91-1145 Renton Road and Asing Community Park at 91-1450 Renton Road. A park in the middle of the village makes an easy stop if you're already in ʻEwa Villages for an errand or a train ride.

The railroad has been here the whole time

The Hawaiian Railway Society is at 91-1001 Renton Road. Its site lists visitor hours of 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Scheduled rides run on restored historic trains on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, with pickup in ʻEwa Beach or Ko Olina. On the society's homepage, a standard ride is $20 and a seat in the premium Parlor Car 64 is $35. Ticket sales run through the Hawaiian Railway Society website.

The Toy Train Museum on the same grounds is free, and donations are welcome. Volunteers built it from Peter Caderas's personal collection over three years and more than 5,000 volunteer hours. Its hours are short:

• Wednesday: noon to 1 p.m.
• Saturday: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., closed for lunch from noon to 1 p.m.
• Sunday: noon to 3 p.m., closed for lunch from 1 to 2 p.m.

On a Wednesday, the museum's open hour is the slot to plan around.

Holiday Express booking opens Monday

The 2026 Holiday Express flyer lists eight nights, all Fridays and Saturdays:

Booking opens November 2, 2026, and stays open until the rides sell out. Tickets are $25 per person for ages 2 and up, $5 more than a regular daytime ride. Lap children 23 months and younger ride free, and every child must be with an adult. The train is decorated with hundreds of lights, guests are welcome in holiday pajamas, and a special guest waits at the station at the end of the ride.

The details that matter most for families are in the flyer's fine print:

1. Check-in starts at 6 p.m. at the office, where you pick up physical tickets.
2. Boarding starts at 6:50 p.m., and the train leaves at 7 p.m. sharp.
3. Seating is first come, first served.
4. The ride lasts 90 minutes without stopping. There is no restroom on the train and no stop at Ko Olina, so use the restrooms before boarding.
5. Snacks and drinks are welcome on board. No animals or alcohol are allowed anywhere on the property.
6. The flyer's cancellation policy reads: "You have 7 days from your day of event to cancel for a full refund." To cancel, call the office at 808-681-5461 and leave a message if no one answers. Messages are time-stamped.

The flyer doesn't name a boarding address, so confirm where to check in when you book. With a 6 p.m. check-in and a 7 p.m. departure, getting there likely means driving during the evening commute while the detour is still in place. Arriving at the start of check-in instead of at boarding time leaves room for traffic.

Planning around the detour, one weeknight at a time

The other dependable evenings this season are a few minutes from the village, and each one runs on a different night.

Wednesday: Bird of Paradise at Hawaiʻi Prince Golf Club, 91-1200 Fort Weaver Road, has live music from 4 to 8 p.m. The restaurant serves lunch and pūpū daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Its page also lists Thanksgiving and Christmas meals for November 26 and December 25.

Thursday: The Wai Kai Thursday Night Market runs from 4 to 8 p.m. at 91-1621 Keoneula Boulevard on November 5, 12 and 19 and December 3, 10 and 17. Wai Kai's events calendar shows no market on November 26 or December 24. On Thursdays, Fairway Tavern at Ewa Villages Golf Course, 91-1760 Park Row, stays open until 10 p.m. On Sunday through Wednesday it closes at 6 p.m.

Friday and Saturday: On Holiday Express weekends, the train takes the evening. Fairway Tavern serves until 10 p.m. both nights. Zippy's Ewa, at 91-1717 Fort Weaver Road, keeps its dining room open until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and until midnight Sunday through Thursday.

Saturday, November 21: Wai Kai holds its Feast & Finds market in Parking Lot D from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

For quick stops, the Ewa Town Center directory puts several eateries at Fort Weaver and Geiger roads. Its listed hours:

• Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf: opens at 5 a.m. daily.
• Ewa Seed Company: shave ice weekdays 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sundays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Ramen-Ya: 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
• Taste of Hong Kong: 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
• L&L Drive Inn: opens at 10 a.m. on weekdays and 8:30 a.m. on weekends.
• Genki Sushi: stays open until 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

These hours come from the center's spring directory, so call ahead before making a special trip.

HDOT updates its Oʻahu lane closure page every week. Check it before a Holiday Express night. If a change to the Old Fort Weaver Road detour is coming, that page will list it first.

If the detour has you rethinking your commute, or what this stretch of ʻEwa will be like once the road opens back up, Hawai‘i Homefront can talk it through with you calmly and without pressure. You can also start with a free home valuation.