The Moana Hotel, also known as the First Lady of Waikīkī, is a famous historic hotel on the island of Oʻahu, located at 2365 Kalākaua Avenue in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. Built in the late 19th century as the first hotel in Waikiki, the Moana opened its doors to guests in 1901, becoming the first large hotel in Waikīkī. The Moana Hotel is regarded as the flagship in Hawaiʻi tourism, and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In Hawaiian, moana means "open sea" or "ocean."
The wealthy Honolulu landowner, Walter Chamberlain Peacock, in an effort to establish a fine resort in the previously neglected Waikiki area of Honolulu, incorporated the Moana Hotel Company in 1896. Working with a design by architect Oliver G. Traphagen and $150,000 in capital, The Lucas Brothers contractors completed the structure in 1901. Construction of The Moana marked the beginning of tourism in Waikiki, becoming the first hotel amidst the bungalows and beach houses.
The Moana's architecture was influenced by European styles popular at the time, with Ionic columns and intricate woodwork and plaster detailing throughout the building. The Moana was designed with a grand porte cochere on the street side and wide verandas on the ocean side. Some of the 75 guest rooms had telephones and bathrooms (unusual at the time), and the hotel featured a billiard room, saloon, main parlor, reception area, and library. Peacock installed the first electric-powered elevator in the islands at the Moana, which is still in use today.
Design features of the original structure that survive to this day include extra-wide hallways (to accommodate steamer trunks), high ceilings, and cross-ventilation windows (to cool the rooms prior to air conditioning).
The Moana officially opened on March 11, 1901. Its first guests were a group of Shriners, who paid $1.50 per night for their rooms. Peacock did not find success with his endeavor, and sold the hotel to Alexander Young, a prominent businessman with other hotel holdings. The Young estate operated the hotel until the Matson Navigation Company bought the property in 1932 for $1.6 million.
Over the course of Matson's ownership of the Moana, it grew along with the popularity of Hawaiian tourism. Two floors were added in 1928 along with Italian Renaissance-styled concrete wings on each side of the hotel, creating its H shape seen today.
The hotel's outward appearance was altered slightly over the years, including "updates" to such designs as Art Deco in the 30's and Bauhaus in the 50's.
From 1935 to 1975, the Moana's courtyard hosted the Hawaii Calls live radio broadcast. Legend has it that listeners mistook the hiss of the radio transmission as the waves breaking on the beach. When learning of this, the host instructed the soundman to run down to the waterfront to actually record the sound, which became a staple of the show.
In 1952, Matson built a new hotel adjacent to the Moana on the east side, called the Surfrider Hotel. They sold all of their Waikiki hotel properties to the Sheraton Company in 1959. In 1969 Sheraton built a towering new hotel on the Moana's west side. They named it the Sheraton Surfrider Hotel and the previous Surfrider was turned into a wing of the Moana. Sheraton sold all of their Hawaiian hotels in 1974 to Japanese industrialist Kenji Osano and his Kyo-Ya Company, though Sheraton continued to manage them. In 1989, a $50 million restoration (designed by Hawaii architect Virginia D. Murison) restored the Moana to its 1901 appearance and incorporated the two adjacent buildings into one beachfront resort with a common lobby, renaming the entire property the Sheraton Moana Surfrider.
The restoration has cemented the Moana as one of Waikiki's premier hotels. It includes 793 rooms, (46 suites), a freshwater swimming pool, three restaurants, beach bar and barpoolside snack bar.
The property has been recognized with the President's Historic Preservation Award, the National Preservation Honor Award, Hawaii Renaissance Award, and the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association International Golden Bell Award. The main historic section of the hotel, The Banyan Wing, has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 2007, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, management company of the Moana, rebranded the hotel from a Sheraton Hotel to a Westin Hotel. The name of the hotel became "Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa".
The hotel is the base of operations for about 24 White House staffers who accompany Barack Obama to his Winter White House at Plantation Estate during Christmas visits.
The wealthy Honolulu landowner, Walter Chamberlain Peacock, in an effort to establish a fine resort in the previously neglected Waikiki area of Honolulu, incorporated the Moana Hotel Company in 1896. Working with a design by architect Oliver G. Traphagen and $150,000 in capital, The Lucas Brothers contractors completed the structure in 1901. Construction of The Moana marked the beginning of tourism in Waikiki, becoming the first hotel amidst the bungalows and beach houses.
The Moana's architecture was influenced by European styles popular at the time, with Ionic columns and intricate woodwork and plaster detailing throughout the building. The Moana was designed with a grand porte cochere on the street side and wide verandas on the ocean side. Some of the 75 guest rooms had telephones and bathrooms (unusual at the time), and the hotel featured a billiard room, saloon, main parlor, reception area, and library. Peacock installed the first electric-powered elevator in the islands at the Moana, which is still in use today.
Design features of the original structure that survive to this day include extra-wide hallways (to accommodate steamer trunks), high ceilings, and cross-ventilation windows (to cool the rooms prior to air conditioning).
The Moana officially opened on March 11, 1901. Its first guests were a group of Shriners, who paid $1.50 per night for their rooms. Peacock did not find success with his endeavor, and sold the hotel to Alexander Young, a prominent businessman with other hotel holdings. The Young estate operated the hotel until the Matson Navigation Company bought the property in 1932 for $1.6 million.
Over the course of Matson's ownership of the Moana, it grew along with the popularity of Hawaiian tourism. Two floors were added in 1928 along with Italian Renaissance-styled concrete wings on each side of the hotel, creating its H shape seen today.
The hotel's outward appearance was altered slightly over the years, including "updates" to such designs as Art Deco in the 30's and Bauhaus in the 50's.
From 1935 to 1975, the Moana's courtyard hosted the Hawaii Calls live radio broadcast. Legend has it that listeners mistook the hiss of the radio transmission as the waves breaking on the beach. When learning of this, the host instructed the soundman to run down to the waterfront to actually record the sound, which became a staple of the show.
In 1952, Matson built a new hotel adjacent to the Moana on the east side, called the Surfrider Hotel. They sold all of their Waikiki hotel properties to the Sheraton Company in 1959. In 1969 Sheraton built a towering new hotel on the Moana's west side. They named it the Sheraton Surfrider Hotel and the previous Surfrider was turned into a wing of the Moana. Sheraton sold all of their Hawaiian hotels in 1974 to Japanese industrialist Kenji Osano and his Kyo-Ya Company, though Sheraton continued to manage them. In 1989, a $50 million restoration (designed by Hawaii architect Virginia D. Murison) restored the Moana to its 1901 appearance and incorporated the two adjacent buildings into one beachfront resort with a common lobby, renaming the entire property the Sheraton Moana Surfrider.
The restoration has cemented the Moana as one of Waikiki's premier hotels. It includes 793 rooms, (46 suites), a freshwater swimming pool, three restaurants, beach bar and barpoolside snack bar.
The property has been recognized with the President's Historic Preservation Award, the National Preservation Honor Award, Hawaii Renaissance Award, and the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association International Golden Bell Award. The main historic section of the hotel, The Banyan Wing, has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 2007, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, management company of the Moana, rebranded the hotel from a Sheraton Hotel to a Westin Hotel. The name of the hotel became "Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa".
The hotel is the base of operations for about 24 White House staffers who accompany Barack Obama to his Winter White House at Plantation Estate during Christmas visits.