Guestrooms Buddha statue at
the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel
At the top of the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel’s grand staircase, roped
off and surrounded by scaffolding, safely ensconced in his wooden
crate, I imagine the 7th-century pink granite Buddha sculpture
meditating to pass the time. “Don’t worry, it’s okay, it’s still
here,” he thinks.
That mantra may make the wait more tolerable for faithful Mauna
Kea-philes who have journeyed to the Big Island’s Kohala Coast
since 1965. Temporarily closed for a $150 million repair and
renovation project, the Mauna Kea will re-emerge as a luxury
property second to none as soon as December of this year. That’s
the plan, according to Prince Resorts Hawaii, which manages the
property and the adjacent Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel. Plans call for
the Mauna Kea’s room inventory to be reduced from 310 to 258,
allowing for certain guestrooms and baths in the main building to
be enlarged. Enhancements are in the works for the golf course,
public areas, restaurants, retail spaces and spa facilities, but no
changes are planned to the structure’s classic design.
Originally built by Laurance S. Rockefeller, the Mauna Kea was
the most expensive hotel ever constructed for its time at $15
million.
“I want it to be what it was,” said Susan Tanzman of Martin
Travel and Tours, in Los Angeles. “I was there on my honeymoon in
1971, and I didn’t think there was anything to compare to it.”
Both Tanzman and Lois Mitchell, of ProTravel International,
admit Mauna Kea was showing its 40-plus years before it closed in
December 2006 following an October earthquake, and both agents
wished for updated soft goods, high-quality materials, televisions
and the best in amenities, service and food and beverage. Neither
wants to see changes to the hotel’s ambiance, particularly the
open-to-the-ocean blue-tiled lobby.
“Mauna Kea has an incredible opportunity to do the right thing
with this renovation,” said Mitchell. “As far as setting, you don’t
mess with perfection, but it takes people with vision to see what
it is and make it better.”
The Mauna Kea’s next incarnation is guided by at least three
visionaries. The architectural firm is Honolulu-based John Hara and
Associates, recently honored with the Governor’s Award for
Distinguished Achievement in Culture, Arts and Humanities. For the
interiors, Prince has tapped Barry Design Associates of Los
Angeles, who have enhanced hundreds of uber-luxury properties
including the Four Seasons Resorts in Beverly Hills, Newport Beach
and Carlsbad, and Maui’s Grand Wailea Resort. Rees Jones, son of
original golf architect Robert Trent Jones Sr., is directing the
golf course rejuvenation, bringing it up to modern standards
without changing its character.
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel will remain
closed until at least December.
“The Mauna Kea was an iconic hotel,” said Joe Toy, president of the
Honolulu travel industry consulting firm Hospitality Advisors. “It
has such recognition globally and a strong following in the U.S. as
a golf resort. Re-establishing that property will create a lot of
buzz on the Kohala Coast and on the Big Island in general.”
“It can move the needle on the Island,” said
Tanzman. “People don’t ask to go to the Big Island, they ask for
the Mauna Kea. I want it to reopen so I can sell the heck out of
it.”
According to Toy, the luxury market has been very strong for the
last few years.
“Stronger luxury properties are emerging in other destinations
including Mexico, Asia and the Caribbean. Some of the [Hawaii]
properties have kept up, for example, Kapalua Resort and Grand
Wailea on Maui, and the Halekulani and Kahala on Oahu,” he
said.
According to a December 2007 TravelDailyNews.com report, the
luxury travel boom is fuelled by so-called High and Ultra-High Net
Worth Individuals whose financial assets are worth over $1 million
and $30 million respectively. Their numbers are increasing these
individuals by 11.3 percent in 2006 and travel is high on their
list of things to do with disposable income.
“The Mauna Kea is what’s missing in all the islands,” said
Mitchell. “People ask all the time what’s the best hotel in Hawaii
for high-end top-of-the-line clients. [Without the Mauna Kea], what
am I going to tell them?”
With limited options on Kauai and development encroaching on
venerable hotels like the Halekulani and Kahala, Mitchell looks to
Four Seasons Resorts on Maui and the Big Island.
“But when their top suites or deluxe doubles are sold out, where
do we go? I say, please God, let them bring back the Mauna Kea,
because if they do we will sell it until the cows come home,” says
Mitchell.
Back in his box, the Buddha statue might just be contemplating
that prayer as he repeats his mantra: “Don’t worry, it’s okay, it’s
still here.”
| CONTACT Mauna Kea Beach Hotel
888-977-4623
www.maunakeabeachhotel.com With an anticipated reopening in December 2008, the hotel hopes
to start taking reservations this summer. |
