Iolani Palace
Honolulu, Hawaii
In downtown Honolulu, visitors will find something that exists nowhere else in the United States: America’s only royal palace. Iolani Palace was home to one Hawaiian king and one Hawaiian queen, but its reign as a royal household was short lived.
King Kalakaua began construction on the existing palace in 1879, and the ornate building was completed in 1882. After Kalakaua’s death, his sister became queen. But Queen Liliuokalani’s government was overthrown in 1893, only 11 years after the palace was completed, and the palace became headquarters for the provisional government. The queen was later imprisoned in a small room in the palace for nine months.
Iolani Palace served as the capitol until 1969, and it was restored and opened to the public in 1978. Both self-guided and docent-led group tours are available and take visitors through the first and second levels, as well as the basement gallery, which features exhibits, historic photos and items from the royal collection.
Docent-led tours take visitors through the opulent Grand Hall, private suites and the Throne Room, which often gives guests “chicken skin,” or goose bumps, said Philip Richardson, special events coordinator for the palace.
“The moment people step inside the Throne Room, they really feel the power of the room,” he said, adding that the two thrones in there still have their original fabric.
For large groups, the palace will sometimes arrange a picnic lunch on the grounds, as well as live entertainment, while smaller groups break off to tour the palace, he said.
