Halekulani to open beach-front resort on Okinawa

Halekulani Corp., a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Mitsui Fudosan Co., announced plans today to open a second location at the site of the Okinawa Inbu Beach Hotel Project in the summer of 2019.

Halekulani’s newest property, Halekulani Okinawa, will be a 360-room resort on a roughly 420-acre stretch of beach in the Onna Village, Kunigami District, on the west coast of Okinawa. Rooms will have ocean views and amenities that make them suitable for the extended-stay market.

Mitsui Fudosan officials said their decision to open Halekulani Okinawa “as its first luxury hotel in Japan under its proprietary hotel brand” is an outgrowth of a 2015 business plan that identified hotel and resort business as new growth opportunities.

“I’m confident that Halekulani Okinawa will crystallize the evolution of the Halekulani legacy that has been carefully handed down over the generations from a century ago. I’m delighted that the opening of this new hotel in 2019 will turn a new page in the history of the Halekulani legacy and carry it boldly into the future,” Halekulani Chief Operating Officer Peter Shaindlin said in a statement.

The expansion comes as the original Waikiki Halekulani hits a 100-year benchmark — a Halekulani Hotel has been operating on Waikiki Beach since 1917. Mitsui Fudosan purchased the hotel in 1981. After investing about $125 million to turn Halekulani into a medium-high rise, Mitsui Fudosan held a 1984 grand opening to introduce the property as an international luxury hotel.

Representatives of Halekulani and Mitsui Fudosan were not available for comment today. Neither was Jun Yoshie, who has been selected as Halekulani Okinawa’s first general manager. Yoshie said in a statement that he is “excited to be playing a part in the development of the west coast of the main island of Okinawa.”