DISCOVER OUR HAWAII MOVIE TOUR LOCATION GUIDE
Learn interesting facts about each movie location featured in the 7-hour Roberts Hawaii Movie Tour below, including Wailua Falls, featured in Fantasy Island, Coco Palms, features in Pirates of the Caribbean – On Stranger Tides, and Kapaa Town, featured in Jurassic Park.
WAILUA FALLS
Many visitors to Kauai will recognize these Wailua Falls from the opening credits of Fantasy Island, the long-running television series starring Ricardo Montalban and Herve Villechaize, but these gorgeous waterfalls have also been captured in a number of other shows of various genres including western, supernatural fantasy, action adventure and comedy. On a sunny day, it’s not uncommon to see colorful rainbows in Wailua Falls’ mists.
Filmed here: Castaway Cowboy, Dragonfly, Fantasy Island, The Amazing Race, Tropic Thunder
HANAMAULU BAY
Hanamaulu Bay has played a prominent background role in several films, including Voodoo Island– a 1957 film about a Haitian zombie cult on an uncharted Pacific Island featuring Boris Karloff – and Donovan’s Reef, a 1963 romantic comedy starring John Wayne, Lee Marvin and Elizabeth Allen. More recently, Harrison Ford and Anne Heche filmed on location here after their characters’ plane crashed on a deserted island in the 1998 movie, Six Days Seven Nights.
On the southern end of Hanamaulu Bay is a rock jetty with a small lighthouse – the remnants of Ahukini Landing, once the main port of Kauai. Donovan’s Reef and Pagan Love Song are among the movies that filmed here in the 1950s and ‘60s.
Filmed here: Donovan’s Reef, Pagan Love Song, Six Days Seven Nights, Voodoo Island
COCO PALMS
The iconic Coco Palms was once the premier resort of Kauai, and in its hey day, accommodated numerous Hollywood celebrities during their location shoots on the island including Rita Moreno, Rita Hayworth, Howard Keel, Esther Williams, Boris Karloff, Mitzy Gaynor, Rossano Brazzi and Elvis Presley.
While the Coco Palms may be best known for its starring role in Elvis’ Blue Hawaii, a number of other movies were also filmed on site here, including the blockbuster fantasy, Pirates of the Caribbean – On Stranger Tides. The resort closed in 1992 due to damage from Hurricane Iniki.
Filmed here: Blue Hawaii, Death Moon, Dinocroc vs. Supergator, Fantasy Island, Jungle Heat, Miss Sadie Thompson, Seven Women From Hell, She Gods of Shark Reef, Pirates of the Caribbean – On Stranger Tides, Voodoo Island
OPAEKAA FALLS LOOKOUT
In the Hawaiian language, Opaekeaa means “rolling shrimp,” which were once abundant in Opaekaa Stream. Cascading more than 150 feet, Opaekaa is one of Kauai’s most accessible waterfalls and has been featured in several films. The lookout is an excellent place to enjoy fabulous views of Kauai’s natural splendors, including Wailea River.
Filmed here: Donovan’s Reef, Lt. Robinson Crusoe USN, Seven Women From Hell
KAPAA TOWN
Located on Kauai’s east side, Kapaa is known as a great spot for shopping. It was also the site of a traffic jam when fans of Steven Spielburg realized the famous director was in town for the day, filming a scene for a new sci-fi flick, Jurassic Park. Two days later, Hurricane Iniki roared over the island. Though stuck on the island, Spielburg grabbed the opportunity to capture footage of the storm, some of which ended up in the final movie.
Filmed here: Honeymoon in Vegas, Jurassic Park
MOLOAA BAY
Moloaa Bay was one of the locations used to film the original pilot for the popular TV show, Gilligan’s Island. After CBS rejected this first pilot, a second pilot was successfully filmed in California, and Gilligan’s Island eventually went on, in re-runs, to become one of the most successful series to ever air on network television.
Filmed here: Gilligan’s Island, Castaway Cowboy, Lt. Robinson Crusoe U.S.N., Seven Women from Hell
HANALEI PIER
Once built for the export of rice, taro, and other wetland crops grown in the valley, Hanalei Pier is now a gathering place for the people of the island.
Filmed here: Miss Sadie Thompson, Wackiest Ship in the Army, South Pacific, and more!
