When it comes to luxury living in Honolulu, Kakaako is home to most, if not all, of the most sought after luxury projects on the island. Designed by world renowned architects with finishes curated by some of the best interior designers, you can be sure that a handful of these projects are most than just homes, they are true works of art. When it comes to the ultra-luxury segment of the residential market, there are only a handful of projects that fit the mold. In Honolulu, true luxury comes with a high price tag, let's take a look at some of the best lucury projects in Honolulu. 

Our Top Picks:

Park Lane Ala Moana (2016)
Waiea , Ward Village (2016)
Victoria Place, Ward Village (2024)
Kalae, Ward Village (2026)

Honorable Mention:

One Ala Moana (2015)
Hokua (2006)

Park Lane Ala Moana

Park Lane is one of the most unique and sought after condo projects in all of Honolulu and comes with the highest average price tag of any of the projects on our list. Built in 2016, Park Lane Ala Moana was developed by The Kobayashi Group, one of the oldest and most successful developers in the state. What makes this project so unique is that it is just 6 stories in height and sits on just over 7 acres of pristine oceanfront land. Every other project on this list is a 400 foot condo tower, but the designers of Park Lane had to work with a low building envelope so turning the traditional tower design on it's side, the architect created a horizontal tower. At the spine of the building was a beautifully landscaped "Lane" with tropical plants and artwork connecting residents do different parts of the project. Another big draw to Park Lane are the very large usable lanais with built-in WOLF bbqs. In every other building on our list, BBQing is strictly forbidden because of the risk of fire and of course smoke. Park Lane worked around this by building vents over every BBQ to prevent smoke from bothering neighboring units.

The average sold price for a unit at Park Lane in 2022 was just over $5,500,000 which is the highest of any projects on our list, by far. What drives the price at Park Lane is of course it's beauty in design and location, but also the size of the units are unlike other projects in Honolulu. The average unit sold at Park Lane was roughly 2,000 sqft in 2022. The highest sale at Park Lane in 2022 was for a 4,125 sqft, 4-bd 4.5-ba, residence that sold for $12,400,000. There were 3 sales in Park Lane in 2022 over $10,000,000. 

If you're looking for a larger residence and want a lanai to take in Hawaii's cool tradewinds (and don't mind the high price tag) Park Lane is the project for you. Also, for those that prefer brand new construction, I've heard Park Lane II is in the works...

Waiea, Ward Village

Waiea was compled in 2016 and designed by world-famous architect, James Cheng. With only 174 total residences in the building, it is one of the most exclusive condo projects in Honolulu. Waiea was the first completed condo tower in Ward Village, developed by The Howard Hughes Corporation, and really set the tone for what buyers could expect from future Ward Village projects. Waiea had some issues shortly after completion related to the engineering and design of it's "wavey" window facade which resulted in a $100M lawsuit between the developer and contractor. The building is currently going through the repairs for the windows with additional taking place on the amenity deck. Prices came down in the builidng shortly after the litigation was annouced and Waiea found itself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Fast forward a few years later and construction is wrapping up and owners can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Waiea is a stunning project and now that the caution tape is gone, I think buyers will start seeing why this is one of the most luxurious projects in all of Honolulu. 

Victoria Place

Victoria Place is scheduled to be completed in 2024. Developed by the Howard Hughes Corporation and sitting oceanfront adjacent to Waiea, Victoria Place was one of the fastest selling projects in Ward Village history with all inventory sold out. What lured buyers in were the amazing unobstructed ocean views that living in the "first-row" has to offer. The architect for Victoria Place is Solomon Cordwell Buenz who designed Park Lane Ala Moana, Kalae, Anaha, and One Ala Moana. The lobby for the building will be an open-air deisgn very much like the high-end resorts found around the Hawaiian Islands. On the 5th is the amenity deck where you'll find 2 pools, a spa, fitness center and plenty of space for entertaining friends and family. This building is not yet completed but I'm really looking forward to next year when we get to see the finished product for the first time. I have high hopes for this one. 

Kalae

Last on our list for ultra-luxury condos is Kalae. This is Howard Hughes' most recently launched project (launced in October of 2022) and is currently 80% sold out. The major draw for Kalae, like the other condos on this list, are the unobstructed views of Kewalo Harbor, the pacific ocean, and of course, Diamond Head (Honolulu's "Eiffel Tower"). One of my favorite aspects of Kalae is the interior designer selected to curate it's finishes. Nicole Hollis, out of San Francisco, is one of my favorite designers right now. Her projects have a timeless beauty and it's one of the reasons why I decided to purchase a unit for myself. The floor plans at Kalae are very generous in size with the one-bedroom on the Diamond Head side featuring approximately 950 sqft, which is larger than most two-bedroom units in Ward Village.