BlackSand Capital, a Honolulu-based
real estate investment firm, officially completed the purchase of the Royal Lahaina
Resort Dec. 9.
The terms of the sale, including financial
details, are not being disclosed.
Royal Lahaina Resort sits on 27 acres on
Maui’s Kaanapali Beach. The 500-room property, which opened in 1962, features three pools, a spa and
luau grounds.
“The pandemic has been a challenging
time for all of us in Hawaii, and the visitor industry has been especially hard
hit,” B.J. Kobayashi, BlackSand’s chairman and CEO, said in a statement. “As a
Hawaii-based company that invests in Hawaii, we see this acquisition as an
opportunity to be part of the recovery effort, not just for the visitor industry
but for our local communities and our entire state."
BlackSand has hired Highgate Hotel
affiliate Highgate Hawaii Concession Co. to operate the property. BlackSand
and Highgate also partner on the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel.
The property was previously owned and
operated by Hawaiian Hotels and Resorts, and updates were completed on the
lobby, lounge, pool area, restaurant, guestrooms and beachside cottages while
the resort was shut down in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Stephen Hinck has been named the new
general manager for the resort. Hinck, a 37-year veteran in the Hawaii
hospitality market, joined Highgate in 2018 as general manager of the Hilton
Garden Inn, Waikiki.