Hawaiian Hotel Kicks Off $115M Redevelopment

by Gail Kalinoski

Alohilani Infinity Pool, rendering

Honolulu—The 839-room Pacific Beach Hotel in Honolulu will be completely renovated and transformed in a $115 million redevelopment that will take about 18 months and end with a new name—the Alohilani Resort at Waikiki Beach.

International design firm Rockwell Group and local architectural companies WATG and Pacific Asia Design Group are working on the renovations, which will be underway soon in the public areas. The hotel will remain open during the 18-month renovation, with the expected completion set for fall 2017.

The hotel’s exterior façade, guestrooms and suites and public areas, including a 280,000-gallon lobby aquarium will be reconceptualized and two new pools will be added.

Two new restaurants by celebrity chef Masaharu Morimoto will be created for the hotel. A second-floor restaurant to be known as Morimoto Asia will be the signature restaurant, while Momosan Waikiki will be located at street level and offer casual dining. “Oahu is a place where I have always had a great affinity for the island’s people and culture, and I consider it to be a home away from home,” Morimoto said in prepared remarks.

“We are thrilled to be working on the redevelopment of the Pacific Beach Hotel,” Shawn Sullivan, partner, Rockwell Group, said in a prepared statement. “Influenced by Kuhio beach, we are blurring the boundaries between indoor and outdoor to connect guests to the ocean. The Morimoto restaurants and pool deck will have stunning views of the water, while neutral hues and organic forms will transform the lobby, retail areas and guestrooms into warm, welcoming spaces.”

The hotel, managed by Highgate, a premier real estate investment and hospitality management company, is steps from Waikiki Beach and has ocean and Diamond Head views. The new name, Alohilani Resort at Waikiki Beach, was chosen to honor Queen Liliuokalani and is Hawaiian for “the heavenly brightness.” The Kalakaua Avenue hotel sits on land held by the Queen Liliuokalani Trust.

In addition to refurbished guest rooms, the renovation plans include a new open-floor plan lobby that features a group arrival lounge and business and education center. A new pool deck will feature a saltwater infinity pool and a shallow water pool for children. The hotel’s famous oceanarium will get new coral and a replenishment system that filters water directly from the ocean. The giant aquarium will have more than 1,000 protected marine animals inside.

The hotel is the eighth largest on Oahu, according to the Pacific Business News.

General Manager Rob Robinson said the hotel team was “committed to honoring our unique history and the Hawaiian culture in a thoughtful and authentic way which will serve as the foundation for everything that we do; from our cultural programming to our elevated levels of service.”