Hilton Hawaiian Village

The Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort is a resort hotel on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii. The resort first opened in 1955, and since has grown to become the largest in the Hilton chain of hotels. It is one of largest hotels in the world and the largest in the US outside of Las Vegas.





== Pre-history ==

Located on the Hawaiian island of O'ahu. The site was the former village of Kālia, which had many ancient aquaculture fishponds. It was later part of the former Bernice Pauahi Bishop estate (until 1912), and was also the childhood home of Duke Kahanamoku and his many cousins from the Paoa family.

The portion of the Bishop estate nearest the ocean beach was developed around 1900 as a small hotel, named the Old Waikiki; then redeveloped in 1928 as the Niumalu Hotel.





== History ==





=== Hawaiian Village Hotel (1955–1960) ===



The Hawaiian Village Hotel was conceived, constructed and first administered by Henry J. Kaiser, the same industrialist who built the Hoover Dam and Grand Coulee Dam and founded the Kaiser Permanente health system.

In 1954, Kaiser and developer Fritz B. Burns bought the 16 acres (6.5 ha) Kalia estate of John Ena Jr. and combined it adjacent properties, including the Niumalu Hotel, to construct the Hawaiian Village, converting the flat to a lagoon.