Kamehameha Schools has sold its remaining interest in the Royal Hawaiian hotel, selling the lease fee landholdings under the iconic pink oceanfront resort to Japan-based Daisho Co. for $510 million.
The transaction closed Nov. 6, KS said in an announcement Friday.
According to KS, the property will continue to be held and operated under its current long-term ground lease to Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts.
Daisho Co. is a private, family-owned company with hospitality holdings in Asia and the Pacific, KS noted. This is the company’s first commercial venture in the Islands.
Guided in part by its Strategic Plan 2030, KS says it manages its portfolio as one that “evolves to meet the needs of the trust and the Native Hawaiian community.”
“In a globally competitive market, Ke Kula ‘o Kamehameha must manage Pauahi’s portfolio with care and strategy, mindful of how best to position our ‘āina to serve the evolving needs of our lāhui, both today and for generations to come,” the announcement states. “This means sometimes acquiring ‘āina, sometimes restoring it, and at times, when conditions call for change, releasing lands so their value can further the mission in new ways.”
KS sold the buildings and improvements at the neighboring Royal Hawaiian Center in 2014 — you can read more about that here — but said in the Nov. 7 announcement it is “not presently considering a sale” of its remaining interest in the lands underneath the shopping center.
Crystal Rose, chair of the KS Board of Trustees, said in the announcement that the trust only sells land “after much deep and agonizing consideration.”
“Our kuleana is to steward a dynamic portfolio that best serves our trust. At the same time, we know that our lands carry historical significance, especially this one, which our founder and generations of ali‘i before her had nurtured,” she says.
KS CEO Jack Wong said in the announcement that in the coming months, KS will meet with its school communities, alumni and lāhui to discuss and better explain its changing role as a landowner.
Dubbed the “Pink Palace of the Pacific,” what’s now called the Royal Hawaiian, a Luxury Collection Resort, Waikīkī, opened nearly a century ago on Feb. 1, 1927, and was built for $4 million by the Matson Navigation Co., as a “luxurious resort for Matson passengers,” a history on its website notes.
Following the Dec. 7, 1941, bombing of Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Navy recreation and morale office leased the Royal Hawaiian, “transforming the resort into a major rest and relaxation center for Navy personnel,” the site reads. “The resort was restored to its pre-war elegance in 1947.”
KS is one of the largest landowners in the state, according to the 2024 Hawai‘i Data Book, ranking third behind the state and federal government with more than 363,000 acres.
In August 2024, KS announced it would pay a total of $872.5 million as part of a $4 billion global settlement in the wake of the 2023 Maui wildfires. Read more about that here and here.
It’s also gearing up for another legal battle: Virginia-based nonprofit Students for Fair Admissions recently filed a lawsuit challenging its admission policy.
For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up here for our free Daily Edition newsletter.
Stephanie Salmons can be reached at stephanie@alohastatedaily.com.
