The Pink Palace of the Pacific since 1927. Duke Kahanamoku surfed out front. The history is the point.
The Royal Hawaiian opened in 1927 as the second hotel on Waikiki Beach, after the Moana, and was immediately claimed by the wealthy and famous as the address in Hawaii. Its Moorish-Spanish architecture, painted in the coral pink that earned it the nickname 'The Pink Palace of the Pacific,' became the defining image of Waikiki for three decades. Duke Kahanamoku, the father of modern surfing, surfed the break in front of the hotel. The original building is a National Historic Landmark.
The hotel operates today as a Luxury Collection property under Marriott management, with the original 1927 building (the Historic Wing) and a 1969 tower addition (the Mailani Tower). The Historic Wing rooms are smaller but carry the full weight of the building's architecture, the pink plaster walls, the arched windows, the original woodwork. Mailani Tower rooms are larger and more contemporary, with ocean-facing views from the upper floors.
The Mai Tai Bar on the beach terrace is where the Royal Hawaiian's famous cocktail, invented here in 1953, is still served by the pitcher at sunset. Azure restaurant faces the beach from a covered terrace and serves a contemporary Hawaiian menu anchored in local fish. The Royal Hawaiian Spa in the Mailani Tower is one of the larger spas on Waikiki Beach.
The Royal Hawaiian is the most symbolically loaded honeymoon hotel in Hawaii, the Pink Palace, the beach, the original Mai Tai at sunset, and its combination of history and genuine beach luxury makes it the choice for couples who want the most iconic version of a Hawaii honeymoon. The Honeymoon Suite in the Historic Wing is the most romantic room on Waikiki Beach. See all honeymoon hotels →
Return visits to the Royal Hawaiian, for couples who honeymooned here or who have been coming for decades, are among the most emotionally satisfying hotel experiences in the Pacific. The hotel knows how to mark an occasion. The Mai Tai Bar at sunset, with the original cocktail and the view of Diamond Head, produces a milestone-appropriate moment at a lower price than the surrounding five-stars. See all anniversary hotels →
From $400/night. Check availability.
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Editorial · #9 on the Top 20 Hotels in Hawaii 2026 list
Royal Hawaiian's case for the Hawaii stay is the Pink Palace heritage. The 1927 property is the second-oldest Waikiki hotel (after Moana Surfrider), nicknamed The Pink Palace of the Pacific for the pink-painted Spanish-Moorish exterior.
The 528 rooms and suites include the Royal Historic Suite, the Mailani Tower Suite, and the multi-bedroom Family Suite.
The Surf Lanai (the property's signature all-day venue overlooking Waikiki Beach), the Mai Tai Bar (the cocktail anchor where the Mai Tai cocktail was popularised by Victor Bergeron in 1944), and the Azure Restaurant anchor the dining. The 1927 Spanish-Moorish architecture combined with the pink-painted exterior produces the working heritage Waikiki visual signature. The Marriott Bonvoy points-earning at the Luxury Collection tier suits the Bonvoy-aligned traveller. The Waikiki Beach position is alongside Halekulani in the working Waikiki-heritage cluster. The structural difference from Halekulani is the larger-scale property (528 vs 453 rooms) at a lower entry rate (USD 500 vs USD 700). Best for the working heritage Waikiki stay at the Pink Palace.