Honolulu Condos: Privacy, privilege reign at new Trump hotel in Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii

Privacy, privilege reign at new Trump hotel in Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii

Some very famous people own units at the Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk.

If management has its way, however, the hoi polloi will never know who they are.

Privacy is a watchword at the 462-room Trump Waikiki, which opened softly Nov. 16 and plans the real thing in February.

One month after opening, the interior is mostly complete, save for work on six penthouses, while Kalia Road will soon accommodate two-way traffic where it meets Saratoga Road.

A second restaurant, In-Yo, serving American and Japanese cuisine (for lunch) and Japanese and Italian (for dinner), opens this week.

What is not settled, however, is persuading a majority of owners to place their units into the hotel rental pool.

At present, fewer than 100 are available for hotel use, and executives say they need 250 to 300 to run an economical operation.

But management is patient, understanding that when owners have paid on average $1.5 million for a unit in the Trump Waikiki, they might like to enjoy it before anyone else does.

"I was a little surprised to learn that," admitted John Votsis, director of sales and marketing at the property. "It was a revelation, and even a little charming. But it's up to the owners, and we hope to have the rooms for the pool next year. The closing process is a process, and there is a natural progression for conditions to unfold."

"Some just want to be the first in the units, the first in the beds," said Managing Director Scott Ingwers. "They own a piece of Waikiki history."

The 38-story Trump Waikiki is the first new luxury property to open in Waikiki in a quarter century.

The 38-story, $350-million Grand Waikikian, a time-share property that opened a year ago at the nearby Hilton Hawaiian Village Beach Resort & Spa, while gorgeous and classy, is not in the same league. (The cost of the Trump project has never been disclosed.)

For one, Trump Waikiki represents a new level of luxury for Oahu's hospitality industry. Its neighbors include the Halekulani and the Outrigger Waikiki Beach Walk complex.

Assets include unobstructed ocean views that also overlook Fort DeRussy, a green-and-grassy expanse that is likely to remain that way in perpetuity.

And then there is the Trump name, a brand that screams privilege.

Every one of the five-star luxury property units, which range in price from $500,000 to $9 million and required a 20 percent nonrefundable deposit, sold in a single day three years ago.

Forty percent of the owners are from Japan, and some own more than one unit. The six penthouses are unfinished, allowing the owners to use their own architect and designer.

Trump Waikiki is the fourth in the Trump portfolio, after properties in New York City, Chicago and Las Vegas. A second Big Apple hotel opens next year, and others are planned for Fort Lauderdale, New Orleans, Toronto, Panama, Dubai, Scotland, and Cap Cana in the Dominican Republic.

Donald Trump, the American business magnate and media celebrity, is likely to attend the Waikiki hard opening in February, along with sons Eric and Donald Jr. and daughter Ivanka. But that's only if they can line up all their busy schedules.

Liana Mulleitner, director of residences and public relations, said Trump Waikiki was shooting for a January opening, but Ivanka could manage only a one-day window to fly in and fly right back out.

All current listings of Trump Tower Waikiki condos and additional photos of Trump Tower Waikiki can be found at our website, www.HNLCondos.com.