About the Tour
The Northeast Tiki Tour (NETT) is a celebration of the Polynesian-styled establishments, tiki drinks and décor made popular during the second half of the last century.

For one day, people who cherish all things tiki hop onto a chartered bus and are whisked away to visit some of the remaining great examples of mid-century Tiki in the Northeast.

And, there’s nothing like it anywhere else.

It’s not just a Pub Crawl: it’s an Americana experience.
The tour focuses on visiting well-preserved, circa late 50s-60s Polynesian-styled establishments, rather than concentrating on a particular alcoholic beverage.

New England is home to an unusually large number of Polynesian “tiki” restaurants which have survived the last three decades’ indiscriminate “updating”. This unique circumstance offers tiki-minded visitors a fabulous opportunity to see excellent examples of mid-century Polynesian kitsch.

Joe Desmond, avid tikiphile and NYC rum enthusiast, agrees. “The world really needs to see the great tiki places in New England,” says Desmond. “We try to get back to New England as often as possible to visit family and the tiki bars…and not necessarily in that order!”

However, driving to several different places in one day is a Herculean feat, even for the most intrepid tikiphile. Adding cocktails to the mix makes the journey a dangerous and foolhardy one. By streamlining the overall experience into a bus tour, NETT organizers Michael “Sully” Sullivan and Jay Kennan give enthusiasts the opportunity to safely enjoy a day full of rum-based cocktails and Polynesian fare at five authentic mid-century paradises.

By visiting these places, NETT aims to build awareness of and generate respect for the historical value of these remaining Tiki palaces. The bus tour provides with a rich and varied experience. Each place has a marvelous aged patina which only comes with decades of gentle neglect (or resistance to progress). Tour attendees can enjoy the same dishes and cocktail specialties that their parents, grandparents (or great-grandparents) did. In addition, attendees also enjoy live entertainment (including bands Waitiki and Ninth Wave), exclusive raffles, and other fun surprises.

Past stops have included Hu Ke Lau in Chicopee, South Pacific in Newton, New Tiki in Westford, Bali Hai in Lynnfield, Mon Kou in Attleboro, and Kowloon in Saugus. Please visit the current tour home page for more info.

The Original Tiki Tour
It all began in August 2007. With visions of (faux) palm trees swaying in their heads, a group of about fifty tiki enthusiasts from throughout the northeast region embarked on the inaugural Northeast Tiki Tour, intent on their search for the elusive Tiki palaces hidden in suburbia.

Organized by Michael “Sully” Sullivan and Jay Kennan, the 2007 bus tour was a six-hour whirlwind beginning in North Attleboro, Massachusetts with stops at South Pacific in Newton, New Tiki in Westford, Bali Hai in Lynnfield, Mon Kou in Attleboro, and Kowloon in Saugus. The award-winning Boston-based band Waitiki accompanied the tour, performing a special concert at New Tiki. For more about the 2007 tour, read this article.

“I was really amazed at how nice a group we managed to assemble by just putting out a call for tiki-heads,” organizer Kennan reminisces. “Almost immediately, I realized things were going to go smoothly because of the great bunch of people we had.”

Inspired by the enthusiastic response from attendees as well as the tiki community at large, Sullivan and Kennan went to work combing New England for stops for the next event. Their explorations led them to organize not one, but two Tiki Tour events for 2008.

“The tiki (cocktail) scene is really booming here in New England.  So much so, that we had to add a second tour for the spring!” says organizer Sullivan. “I think that the success of the (mid-century) tiki bar could be attributed to the naïve, easily-digested escapism these places offered the work-weary...  We’re lucky that we still have a bunch of great old joints here.”

Why a Northeast Tiki Tour?
Sure, there are better examples of mid-century Polynesian kitsch in other parts of the country. But it’s the stoicism lurking beneath the thatch that makes these Northeast places especially charming. Many are multigenerational, family-run businesses with decades of accumulated vintage appeal.

NETT’s mission is to build awareness of and generate respect for the historical value of these remaining Polynesian establishments as well as to create a support base for the organizations, artists and musicians that are an integral part of the tiki community.

Each NETT event offers tiki devotees, exotica buffs, mid-century enthusiasts and cocktail aficionados a fine sampling of yesteryear’s cuisine, cocktails and kitsch. Although the bus tour will always be the event’s primary focus, the NETT experience also includes performances by local and national musicians, amateur mixologist room crawls and Polynesian dance exhibits.

Long-term plans include expanding the event to include guest speakers, a full day marketplace for vendors, onsite demonstrations, workshops and other community-building activities.
 
 

 
 
 
 
 

With any luck, you're hearing music and that music is by Waitiki.  Yes, they'll be with us on the tour!  Click the logo to go to their website and order their new CD.  (Buy their old one too.)