Ilikai Hotel & Suites - Honolulu, Hawaii - Original Icon at the Head of Waikiki

First opened for business in 1964, the Ilikai Hotel & Suites has the distinction of being positioned at the "entrance'' to Waikiki. It overlooks the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor, within easy walking distance of both Waikiki Beach and Ala Moana Beach Park.

Most local residents associate the 26-story Ilikai with the popular television series "Hawaii Five-O,''' which was frequently filmed here. In fact, actor Jack Lord stood on the penthouse balcony overlooking Waikiki Beach for the panoramic shot that opened every episode of the hit TV show. The hotel helped popularize the famous beach, which in turn spurred mass tourism to Hawaii.

The Ilikai's original developer, Chinn Ho, sold the property for $35 million in 1974. More recently, ownership was claimed by local developer Brian Anderson, who paid $218 million for it in July 2006. By that time, most of the space in the 1,009-unit building was privately own as condominiums and time-shares - 806 of them in all.

Anderson's plan was to renovate the Ilikai at a cost of $60 million, bringing its aging rooms on par with more recent Waikiki developments. It was to be an upscale condominium hotel, with 343 hotel rooms, new commercial areas and an expanded parking garage. The Ilikai became a member of the Aqua Hotel and Resorts chain and was put under the operation of Hawaii Hotel Management LLC.

However, the hotel never stopped losing money. It experienced continued financial difficulties in competition with its more modern neighbors and eventually went into bankruptcy. The 203-room, 16-commercial-space hotel operation was purchased at a foreclosure auction in May 2009 by iStar FM Loans LLC, a subsidiary of New York-based iStar Financial Inc., for $51 million. The Ilikai Hotel was subsequently closed by iStar in July 2009, putting some 150 employees out of work.

The condominium and time-share portion of the Ilikai remained open, however, and Aqua Hotels & Resorts has continued to take bookings through its web site, with the option to move guests to affiliated properties should the Ilikai's rooms not be available.

Those who are able to place reservations will find that the one- and two-bedroom units are quite spacious, as was the custom with old Waikiki resorts, ranging from 600 to 1,187 square feet of living space. They come with full lanais, in-room refrigerators and coffeemakers or full kitchens. Guests have access to a large fitness center, a special bather's elevator, a business center, gift shop, hair salon, the outdoor swimming pool and sundeck, and an open-air courtyard

Sarento's "Top of the I'' Italian Restaurant serves dinner here nightly from 5:30pm to 9pm Sunday through Thursday, and until 9:30pm on Friday and Saturday. Its bar is open for cocktails till 11pm or midnight.

Given its prime real estate, the Ilikai is unlikely to remain shuttered as a hotel for very long. The only drawback it has ever had is being a long walk from attractions in central Waikiki, but it has always more than made up for that inconvenience with its spectacular views of the beach and Diamond Head in the distance. The address is 1777 Ala Moana Blvd, Honolulu HI 96814.