The Royal Hawaiian is turning 90 — another milestone for the stately Waikiki landmark that has been nicknamed the “Pink Palace of the Pacific.” When the hotel opened on Feb. 1, 1927, it was distinctive not only because of its salmon color but because of its Spanish-Moorish architecture, which was not familiar in Hawaii but popular on the mainland at the time, due in part to Rudolph Valentino movies.

Rising six stories with 400 rooms, the Royal lived up to its name: There were fountains, 40 varieties of plants and 800 palm trees in the gardens; rugs imported from Czechoslovakia, Tunisia, Holland and Persia on the floors; and a theater-ballroom whose walls displayed images of barges floating down the Nile.

Matson Navigation Co.’s impetus for building the Royal Hawaiian was simple: It would attract and house wealthy visitors who sailed to Honolulu on Matson’s ships.

“When you arrived at the hotel, you were dressed to the nines,” said Kehaulani Kam, director of cultural relations for Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ Waikiki properties, including the Royal Hawaiian. “Gentlemen, you were wearing a suit; ladies, you were wearing a chic dress with a matching hat, purse, heels and stockings. That was the standard of the Royal, which was the place to be and be seen.”

On her twice-weekly, 90-minute historical tour of the hotel, Kam shares a narrative that’s chock-full of fascinating tidbits and anecdotes. Among them:

>> It took a week for Matson’s liners to make the San Francisco-to-Honolulu run. After being at sea for that long, guests were not keen about looking at water during their stay at the Royal.

“The preferred rooms had garden views,” Kam said. “The maids, valets, nannies, drivers and other staff occupied the ocean-view rooms. That changed when people began coming to Hawaii by plane instead of boat in the 1960s; they wanted a room with an ocean view. The 17-story Royal Beach Tower was built in 1969 for that purpose; all of its 120 rooms faced the ocean. It’s now called the Mailani Tower with 179 rooms.”

>> In the main lobby is a 9-by-9-foot map of the Hawaiian islands created from two pieces of parchment paper by Ernest Clegg, an esteemed New York artist and mapmaker in the 1920s. It took Clegg 18 months to complete the map, which was affixed to the wall with a special resin and framed in koa wood. It’s the only artwork that remains from the day the Royal Hawaiian opened.

“The map depicts Clegg’s distinctive style, which incorporates elements of Renaissance cartography in the typography, borders and decorative cartouches,” Kam said. “It includes the Hawaiian coat of arms and the words ‘Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono,’ meaning ‘The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness,’ which was adopted as our state motto in 1959.”

>> Shortly after Pearl Harbor was attacked on Dec. 7, 1941, thrusting America into World War II, Matson leased the Royal to the Navy for use as an R&R center. “Luxuries flew out the door; gone was the glamorous ambience,” Kam said. “The Navy brought in its own furniture, including bunk beds. Three or four men shared a room.”

The Persian Room, the grand dining room, became a mess hall, the beauty salon was turned into a dispensary and a baseball diamond was built on the grounds. Seamen had access to Waialae Golf Club, now Waialae Country Club, which Matson had built in 1927 for guests vacationing at the hotel. Although the course is now private, registered guests can still book tee times through the concierge.

>> King Kamehameha and his favorite wife, Kaahumanu, had homes on the land where the Royal Hawaiian stands; later, so did his grandson, Kamehameha V, and his great-granddaughter, Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop. Since opening day, the hotel has been a haven for “royalty” such as Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Frank Sinatra and Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson.

In the lower arcade are photos of other celebrities enjoying time there, including Mickey Rooney, Bing Crosby, Shirley Temple and Amelia Earhart.

>> The Royal has Portugal, and Kimo and Sarah Wilder, to thank for its distinctive color. In 1920, the kamaaina couple toured Europe, taking a particular fancy to Lisbon’s quaint pink houses with blue shutters. When they returned to Hawaii, they used that color scheme for their home, which was near the hotel’s site.

“A Matson executive saw the house and asked Mrs. Wilder for her permission to paint the hotel the same color,” Kam said. “She said yes, and the Royal has been pink ever since.”

Happy 90th!

For details about these and other 90th-anniversary festivities, call 931-7912 or go to royal-hawaiian.com/celebrate90.

>> Themed “Journey Through the Decades,” the March 3 Royal Gala will be a fundraiser for the ALS Association in Hawaii. It will run from 6 to 9:30 p.m., including a reception, silent auction, performances by past Monarch Room entertainers and a gourmet dinner featuring modern interpretations of the original opening-night menu.

>> The 90th-Anniversary package includes a commemorative tin of goodies from the Royal Hawaiian Bakery, which will open on Wednesday; $90 resort credit per stay; and a choice of a Royal Hawaiian luggage strap or tag. Rates start at $430 per night; there is a minimum three-night stay.

>> A culinary adventure called the Epicurean Journey will be offered each quarter. Themed Roots & Vines, the first event will be a March 31 dinner followed the next day by an interactive cooking class, luncheon and a talk by a farmer or fisherman (to be determined). Call 921-4600 to make reservations.

>> In February, Azure will introduce a new tasting menu honoring the Royal Hawaiian’s colorful history.

>> Also planned are summer concerts, screenings of movies that have been filmed at the hotel and fashion partnerships, including an anniversary Tori Richard aloha shirt and four limited-edition Paul Mayer shoe designs.

— Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi

Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based freelance writer whose travel features for the Star-Advertiser have won several Society of American Travel Writers awards.