Queen Kapi‘olani Hotel aims high with renovation

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KAT WADE / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER

The grand opening of the newly renovated areas of the Queen Kapi‘olani Hotel on Kapahulu Avenue will be later this year. The $35 million renovation began last summer. Visitors to the Deck restaurant will be treated to a view of Diamond Head from the lanai area.

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What is old is new again at Queen Kapi‘olani Hotel, which unveiled a $35 million renovation Friday that highlights the property’s midcentury modern roots.

The renovation, which began in summer 2017, is expected to be mostly completed by July. It included the 19-story property’s exterior, its 315 guest rooms, public spaces, atrium, pool deck and lanai. About 215 renovated guest rooms already are available, with the remaining 100 slated to be added back into the hotel’s inventory in July.

The investment by the ownership group DiamondHead Land is expected to transition the property from a two-star to a four-star midpriced hotel. Rates are expected to range from $179 for a standard room to $839 for a suite with unobstructed views of Diamond Head and the Honolulu Zoo.

DiamondHead Land is a joint venture of San Francisco-based real estate investment company ProspectHill Group and longtime Hawaii tourism executive Patrick Fitzgerald, who served on the board of the Hawaii Tourism Authority from 2010 to 2014.

The joint venture spent about $55 million acquiring the leasehold property at 150 Kapahulu Ave. from Korean- based YHB in May 2015. Together with Kokua Hospitality, the hotel management company, they’ve brought in some heavy hitters to manage the property.

Jeff Perkins has been selected to serve as general manager of the improved property. The former hotel manager at the Kahala Hotel &Resort is a 20-year industry veteran whose career highlights also include a stint as director of operations and resort manager of Turtle Bay Resort.

Joy Shinobu Tomita has been appointed director of marketing. An 18-year industry veteran, Tomita was formerly director of sales at The Modern Honolulu and has worked for the Halekulani, the Oahu Visitors Bureau and the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau.

“I could really see the potential that this property could have when they explained the depth of the project and the amount that they planned to spend to elevate it,” Perkins said. “The new vision for Queen Kapi‘olani Hotel is bold and fun with lots of bright colors and retro style. It’s a nod to the property’s 1968 opening date, and it’s meant to take guests back to that golden era of Waikiki.”

Perkins and Tomita headed tours Friday offering a sneak peak at the hotel’s upgraded culinary program led by Tokyo-based Plan Do See, which is introducing two new dining concepts this summer, including the pool-terrace restaurant Deck and Knots Coffee Roasters, a lobby-based grab-and-go cafe that includes morning coffee service and, later, craft beer and wine service.

Keith Vieira, principal of KV &Associates, Hospitality Consulting, said the renovations are in keeping with the wave of gentrification that has occurred along nearby Kuhio Avenue over the past several years.

“They’ve made a significant investment both in the people that they’ve hired and in the cost of renovations. More than $100,000 per room is a significant investment,” Vieira said. “They are taking it from a tired property to one that will attract higher-spending guests. That’s the right thing to do in a market that’s growing.”