Coco palms resort was a resort hotel in wailua, kauai, hawaii. Anyone currently on island who can post a few photos of the coco palms demolition of the buildings. Will kauais legendary, longshuttered coco palms resort. We bought this book in kauai after our own tour of the coco palms hotel.
I know it was heavily damaged by the hurricane in the early. The coco palms was born in 1953, when grace buscher was handpicked by lyle guslander to become the resorts first. Lyle and grace guslander built their hotel empire fromwhat started out as a 24. When in kauai last september this book was offered at shops for a lot more than i. The tours are two hours long, no reservations are needed or taken, just show up at the hotel at 9.
A tribute to the old coco palms resort, and hopefully updates on the new coco palms, beginning construction in. According to the book the story of the coco palms hotel, by david p. Within a decade, grace buscher was named the most successful hotel manager in the travel industry. Elvis at coco palms resort, kauai, hawaii 2015 with. The redevelopment of the coco palms resort on kauai is, in a way, not about architecture, but more about respecting and bringing back the culture and history of the iconic resort, the. Mayor not happy about coco palms the garden island. Hyatt unbound coco palms construction jeffsetter travel. There are plans to reopen it under a different name in. H and coco palms hui llc today announced a hyatt affiliate has entered into a management agreement with. Thought that anyone who hasnt seen the current condition of the coco palms hotel, might want to see the photos on this blog. Lyle and grace guslander built their hotel empire ponce a time books. Penhallow, the coco palms resort sits on an ancient site of hawaiian royalty and.
The coco palms resort was approved by the kauai planning commission for up to 200 condominiums, 104 hotel units, retail shops and restaurants on the 18. Penhallowscott pens intriguing tale of mystery at coco palms the. Kauai palms hotel is located right next to the lihue airport and one block from kalena park. Just 5 minutes from the lihue airport, the kauai palms hotel offers affordable island style accommodations that are clean, comfortable with modern conveniences. Heres the latest on the forever pained kauai coco palms hotel, where.
A walk around the ruins of the coco palms kauai the. Devastated by hurricane iniki in 1992, the revitalization of the 363room historic hotel is scheduled to begin in early 2015 and. Story of the coco palms hotel by david penhallow 2011. Grace was fascinated by hawaiian traditions and culture, and incorporated many of their practices into the. Rooms with air conditioning and kitchens are also available.
The rise and fall of the legendary coco palms hotel. A look into the legacy and hopeful return of kauais famed midcentury hotela favorite of hollywood stars, on and offscreen. Experience ti bananne or creole grill restaurants, offering tasty fusion dishes and traditionalauthentic. Buy a cheap copy of the story of the coco palms hotel. The planning commision affirmed the decision to move on. Located on what was once the home of the last reigning queen of kauai, queen deborah kapule, coco palms opened on january 25, 1953. Coco palms hotel kauai hawaii we stayed in a beautiful cottage suite nice coco palms hotel kauai hawaii we stayed in a beautiful cottage suite nice ungraded they gave us. Legend of the coco palms resort is a romance and a mystery and a vacation all in one. But, also over the years, the coco palms hotel story kept pinching me. The grace buscher guslander years 19531985 by david penhallow 2007, hardcover at the best online. Reader linda mcmahon emailed us with a question about one of hawaiis most iconic resorts. Coco palms resort kauai memorabilia delan nelson photography. Lyle gus guslander at left had prior hotel experience at the moana hotel and had a vision for creating his own kauaian utopia.
A deal was hammered out and the hotel was leased to guslander, who reopened it as his coco palms resort on january 25th, 1953. Penhallowscott pens intriguing tale of mystery at coco palms. United states coco palms resort in kauai can anyone tell me what happened to the coco palms resort in kauai. Everyday on the way up the hill to the house i was living in i would pass this abandoned, condemned hotel called the coco palms. Ive enjoyed many of david penhallows books and knew the content of this one. It is usually simply prepared, always wellseasoned, yet rarely spicy. Hyatt recently announced its new brand, the unbound collection. Movies and television shows were filmed at the coco palms hotel, most famously blue hawaii starring elvis presley. Cuban food is considered a fusion of spanish, taino native american, african and caribbean food. The rotting and filthy complex drivers see as they pass by coco palms today is far from what the resort was in its heyday, when it was the darling of hollywood celebrities and kauais best. The popular smiths kauai fern grotto tours up wailua river next door to the coco palms had recently gotten an upgrade, going from a fourpassenger rowboat with an outboard motor to an eightpassenger motorboat named lady jane. Its in good condition, but a few pages have some water warping.
If the tour needs to be cancelled due to weather, a. Chicago may 21, 2014 hyatt hotels corporation nyse. Coco palms resort on the island of kauai aloha is our legend. Penhallow, the coco palms resort sits on an ancient site of hawaiian royalty and hospitality situated at the mouth of the wailua river on the eastern side of kauai. Rebuilding of blue hawaii hotel begins decades after storm. For those of you oldtime kauai folks, or anyone interested in the history of the island there is a brand new book out called the story of the coco palms. The renovated hotel will have 350 rooms, including 22 master suites and about 50. The place where the rich and famous once stayed and where elvis presleys blue hawaii was filmed. In 1953, the two notable hotels on the island were the kauai inn in lihue near nawiliwili bay, and a 24room.
The coco palms resort was the very first resort on kauai, built in 1953, and in its heyday, it was the hottest place around. The rise and fall of the legendary coco palms hotel hawaii magazine. His historical book on the coco palms hotel, a richlyillustrated table top book, is the definitive book on an important era on kauai as represented by that memorable hotel. Heres the latest on the forever pained kauai coco palms. Hyatts unbound collection includes kauais coco palms.
Legend of the coco palms resort by rita dorazio goodreads. Penhallow, author and playwright, was raised on the island of kauai. Maybe something will happen, i am guessing that it will go to court. Rita dorazios excellent writing took me back to hawaii and reminded me of all the little reasons i. To be fair, it had actually been around for a little longer than that.
The hotel offers free wifi in the lobby and views of the kipu mountains. Are there any plans to reopen the coco palms as a hotel or any other facility. Coco palms became renowned as one of the first hotels in hawaii that actually celebrated hawaiian culture. Rebuilding of blue hawaii hotel begins decades after. Coco palms resort in kauai fodors travel talk forums. The popular smiths kauai fern grotto tours up wailua river next door to the coco palms had recently gotten an upgrade, going from a fourpassenger rowboat with an outboard. A pedestrian overpass from the coco palms resort to the seashell restaurant was also approved. In ongoing comments you continue to ask about what became of the coco palms hotel and will it ever be redeveloped. Gus tasked the sister of friend henry buscher, grace. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Coco palms resort less than 1 year before hurricane iniki devastated the island. Coco palm resort coco palm resort three star resorts. The property has remained mostly untouched for 25 years, a grim reminder of how hurricane iniki. During the announcement, it was mentioned that a hotel in hawaii would be included.
Tragically, the devastating effects of hurricane iniki in 1992 left the coco palms hotel severely damaged. An abandoned hotel wouldnt normally be high on my sightseeing list, but the coco palms on kauai was a notable exception. For those of you oldtime kauai folks, or anyone interested in the history of the island there is a brand new book out called the story of the coco palms hotel by david p. Set in 1960 on the island of kauai, this is a tale of grisly murders that take place at the legendary. Coco palms resort was a resort hotel in wailua, kaua. Kauai hawaiinewsnow plans to redevelop the former coco palms resort have fallen through due to financial issues.
674 182 422 246 146 823 957 1612 909 419 877 323 333 979 953 1433 1264 985 1171 559 659 302 1079 693 1594 1352 1334 965 168 941 1480 685 452 542 1303 426 1177 115 798 531 519 1457 957 55 224 997 482 261 528