It was one of the last remaining pieces of beachfront land in Waikiki that was still owned by a Hawaiian trust. Now, though, the land under the iconic Royal Hawaiian Hotel, also known as the “Pink Palace of the Pacific,” has been sold.
Hawaii
Hawaiian trust sells land under famed Waikiki hotel
Landowner Kamehameha Schools announced earlier this month that it had sold the 10.3-acre parcel for $510 million to Daisho Co. Ltd., a Japan-based real estate company. It’s the second major property sale the trust has sold this year. In September, it sold nearly 500 acres under the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai on Hawaii Island to billionaire Michael Dell for an estimated $400 million.
Daisho’s portfolio holds $1.5 billion in assets with properties located in Singapore, Japan and Australia. The company “acquires and develops select properties for long-term retention,” according to its website. The Royal Hawaiian Hotel will continue to be operated under its long-term land lease, according to Kamehameha Schools’ announcement, by Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts, which has a long history in Waikiki; the company also owns the Moana Surfrider and the Sheraton Waikiki.
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Kamehameha Schools is a private trust founded by the will of Hawaiian Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop in 1884 to improve the education of Native Hawaiians. It is the largest private landowner in the state, with around 364,000 acres in its portfolio, and its endowment has an estimated $4.7 billion in Hawaii real estate, according to a 2024 annual report.
“We are always emotional when we sell land because all aina [land] is special. We only sell after much deep and agonizing consideration,” Crystal Rose, chair of the Board of Trustees of Kamehameha Schools, said in a Nov. 7 news release. “Our kuleana [responsibility] 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 alii [royals] before her had nurtured.”
The Royal Hawaiian Hotel opened in 1927. At the time, Kamehameha Schools wanted a hotel built on the property, and Matson Navigation Co. invested $4 million in building the luxurious resort for its Matson passengers, the hotel explains on its website. Its Moorish style of architecture with a pink stucco finish became an iconic symbol for tourism in Waikiki.
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The land under the iconic Royal Hawaiian Hotelon the island of Oahu, Hawaii, is now owned by a Japan-based real estate company.
Kamehameha Schools still owns land under the neighboring Royal Hawaiian Center, including Helumoa, the historically and culturally significant royal coconut grove. It’s the last piece of land the trust owns in Waikiki, and in the Nov. 7 announcement, the trust explicitly said that it is not considering selling the Helumoa land at this time.
The nonprofit Queen Emma Land Co. is the last of the Native Hawaiian-serving organizations to own beachfront property in Waikiki, according to public records. It is the fee owner of the land under the Outrigger Waikiki.
Why Kamehameha Schools decided to sell the land under the Royal Hawaiian Hotel is still unknown, but its CEO Jack Wong said in a statement included in the Nov. 7 announcement that “it is best to sell the fee simple at this time.” SFGATE reached out to Kamehameha Schools for further comment but was told it’s not making additional statements at this time.
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Generally, the trust generates income from land leases to put toward its mission of educating Native Hawaiians. “Today, competition is global and intense,” Wong said in a statement in October about the launch of the trust’s 2030 strategic plan.
“To endure, we must excel at financial management. Yet financial strength alone is not enough,” he continued. “True success comes when stewardship and strategy work together, when we malama aina [care for the land] to educate keiki [children], care for ecosystems, create homes and jobs, grow food, restore culture and strengthen identity.”
Aside from selling land, in recent years Kamehameha Schools has purchased approximately 11,000 acres, including a 656-acre ranch on Hawaii Island and a 3,885-acre parcel above Lahaina on Maui.
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Editor’s note: SFGATE recognizes the importance of diacritical marks in the Hawaiian language. We are unable to use them due to the limitations of our publishing platform.
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The East Hawaii community is invited to join state Rep. Chris Todd for a town hall focused on a recap of the 2026 legislative session and important updates impacting Hawaii Island residents.
Todd represents House District 3 (portion of Hilo, Keaukaha, Orchidland Estates, Ainaloa, Hawaiian Acres, Fern Acres, portions of Kurtistown and Keaau).
Community members will have the opportunity to ask questions, share concerns and engage in discussions about legislative priorities and local issues.
The town hall is from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 31, at the Keaukaha Elementary School Cafeteria, 240 Desha Ave. in Hilo
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – The Honolulu Fire Department is preparing to open recruitment for new firefighter recruits.
The application period for recruits will open June 2 and run through June 4.
HFD officials are encouraging people interested in public service, emergency response and teamwork to explore a career in the fire service.
Firefighters respond to emergencies across Oahu, including fires, rescues, hazardous materials incidents, crashes and medical calls.
Recruits will receive extensive training, including emergency medical response and search-and-rescue operations.
Interested applicants are encouraged to begin preparing now for the physical and mental demands of the profession.
For more information, visit fire.honolulu.gov.
Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
Hawaii
Tourist accused of hurling rock at endangered Hawaiian monk seal was trying to protect sea turtles, lawyer says
The defense attorney for a tourist from Washington state accused of hurling a coconut-sized rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal says his client was trying to protect sea turtles and has since been physically assaulted, threatened and doxed.
Igor Lytvynchuk, 38, of Covington, Washington, is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Honolulu Wednesday on charges of harassing and attempting to harass a protected animal.
Earlier this month, a witness recorded what prosecutors say was a video of him throwing the rock at a Hawaiian monk seal at a Maui beach. He later made arrangements to surrender in the Seattle area as special agents with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were seeking to arrest him, prosecutors said.
The video drew widespread condemnation and demands for prosecution in Hawaii, including from Maui’s mayor. Scientists identified the seal as an adult male known as “R404,” NOAA said.
According to prosecutors, a state Department of Land and Natural Resources officer investigated a report of Hawaiian monk seal harassment in Lahaina, the community that was largely destroyed by a deadly wildfire in 2023. A witness showed the officer video of the seal swimming in shallow water while a man watched from shore.
The video showed Lytvynchuk throwing the rock, directly at the seal, narrowly missing its head, prosecutors said in a criminal complaint.
Maui resident Kaylee Schnitzer, 18, told HawaiiNewsNow she witnessed the incident while taking photos nearby.
“What he was picking up was like a rock the size of a coconut,” Schnitzer said. “It wasn’t no small rock. It was the size of a coconut. And he threw it right, directly aiming towards the monk seal’s head.”
When a witness confronted Lytvynchuk, he said “he did not care and was ‘rich’ enough to pay any fines,” according to the complaint.
Afterward, a man “brutally assaulted” Lytvynchuk, his defense attorney Myles Breiner told The Associated Press. Lytvynchuk declined to file a police report on the assault, the attorney said.
Breiner explained his client had been to Hawaii previously and was familiar with sea turtles, but not Hawaiian monk seals. Lytvynchuk is a fisherman and thought the seal was an aggressive sea lion, the lawyer said.
“So his response was not to hurt this monk seal, but to get it away from the turtles,” Breiner said.
The incident shows NOAA must do more to educate the public about protecting Hawaiian monk seals, Hawaii’s U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, a Democrat, said in a statement.
Since the video surfaced, Lytvynchuk has faced death threats and doxing, including receiving a package at his home containing what appeared to be feces, Breiner said.
He said his client is being treated unfairly because he’s a white outsider. “The vast majority of attacks on monk seal and turtle are by locals,” he said.
Lytvynchuk is charged with violations of the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Hawaiian monk seals are a critically endangered species. Only 1,600 remain in the wild.
“The unique and precious wildlife of the Hawaiian Islands are renowned symbols of Hawaii’s special place in the world and its incredible biodiversity,” U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson said in a statement. “We are committed to protecting our vulnerable wild species, in particular, endangered Hawaiian monk seals.”
If convicted, he faces up to one year in prison for each charge. He also faces a fine of up to $50,000 under the Endangered Species Act and a fine of up to $20,000 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
In 2016, a man was seen on video appearing to beat a pregnant Hawaiian monk seal in shallow water.
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