Ko Olina
Place of Joy
The name Ko Olina means
Place of Joy, and this 642-acre resort community with luxurious resorts and
vacation villas has the pristine lagoons and wide, white beaches that have brought
joy to the people of Hawai'i for centuries. The vegetation is unexpectedly arid
here, but this sunny western shoreline of O'ahu offers breathtaking scenery
with the towering Wai'anae mountains, vast amphitheatre valleys, sparkling blue
water and golden beaches.
600 years before
westeners came, Polynesians came to this coast to fish the teeming waters. They
named Wai'anae for this abundance of ocean life, wai meaning water and anae
for the popular mullet. Archaeological
records verify Ko Olina as an ancient settlement and show that hula was
practiced here in honor of the volcano goddess Pele, who legend says visited
with her sisters. Scores of heiau and
religious sites have been documented along this coast and deep in the valleys.
Ko Olina was
considered a sacred place by Hawaiian chiefs and royal families. It was also a
favorite fishing and relaxation spot for the chiefs, including the great King
Kamehameha who came here with his favorite wife, Queen Ka'ahumanu.
A coastal trail leading
north of the resorts leads to a large
ocean pool near Paradise Cove, almost certainly one of the sacred pools of
Queen Ka'ahumanu. The pool is separated from the ocean by natural walls of reef
over which the waves flow. The cove is noted among local fisherman as having good
Threadfin fish and the property adjacent is the location for the popular Paradise
Cove hukilau (gathering of fish using
a net pulled by many hands).
In
1877, the vast, dry Ewa plains surrounding Ko Olina were purchased by
industrialist James Campbell who drilled water wells and built a sugar cane plantation.
In the late 1930s, his daughter, Alice Kamokila Campbell, moved to what was
then a secluded shore in the Ko Olina area. She named her home Lanikuhonua,
“where heaven meets the earth.” Today, Lanikuhonua is a site
for Hawaiian cultural education as well as a wedding venue.
In the mid
1980s, Hawai'i developer Herbert Horita and his Japanese investment partner,
Takeshi Sekiguchi, purchased the Ko Olina Resort property and designed and
built the four stunning man-made lagoons, marina basin, golf course and all the
infrastructure. However, when the Japanese economic bubble burst in the
early 1990’s, the Japanese were forced to sell their interests. The one hotel remaining
from that time is now the Marriott Ihilani Resort and Spa. Other development later
followed with the building of condos, Marriott timeshares and resorts such as
the Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa and Marrior's Ko Olina Beach Club. More
resorts are planned.
Still
remaining, despite wars and property development, are the three beautiful natural
lagoons on the outer edges of the resort area, thankfully still staying somewhat
untouched through the ages. When the sun sets in the evening, you can stand at
the mouth of any of the aqua lagoons and watch the rainbow colors of the
setting sun.
