Blue Hawaii

Speaking of Hawaii... one of my very favorite movies is Blue Hawaii starring Elvis Presley. The scenery in the movie is absolutely beautiful, it has a great story, the music is wonderful, and Elvis is... well, what can I say- I am a HUGE Elvis fan and he is great in this. The wedding scene at the very end of the movie when they are floating on a raft down the canal behind the Coco Palms Hotel is SO romantic and beautiful.

Well, one of the biggest thrills for me when we were in Hawaii in December 2007 was taking a Hollywood in Hawaii tour on the island of Kauai. We got to see many places where they filmed movies and TV shows like Gilligan's Island, South Pacific, Fantasy Island, Jurassic Park, as well as many others. But what I loved the very most was going to the old Coco Palms Hotel where they filmed Blue Hawaii. The hotel is now closed down and abandoned, but the lobby is still wide open- there are no doors at the entrance. And behind the hotel, the canal and guest cottages are still there. It is still lush and green and beautiful. The tour guide pointed out the cottage that Elvis loved to stay in when he visited quite often. It was so neat to be there- I didn't want to leave. I'll never forget that experience! Are there any other Blue Hawaii fans out there?

This is Elvis in front of the Coco Palms Hotel. No, I didn't take the picture- I wish!