HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
The 'First Lady of Waikiki' opened in 1901 and is the site of Jane Stanford's 1905 strychnine death; guests report a Victorian-dressed apparition near the hotel's century-old banyan tree.
2365 Kalākaua Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96815
Research updated September 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$$
Beachfront luxury room and suite pricing typical of Waikiki historic-hotel rates. Reserve via Marriott or marriott.com.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Paved beachfront approach, elevators throughout
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1901 · First Hotel in Waikiki · Site of Jane Stanford's 1905 Death · Historic Hotels of America · Beaux-Arts Beachfront Architecture
The Moana Hotel opened on March 11, 1901 on Kalākaua Avenue, the first major hotel built in the Waikiki district of Honolulu. Designed in the Beaux-Arts style by architect Oliver G. Traphagen, the four-story wooden building offered 75 rooms — each with a telephone and private bath, then a novelty — together with ice machines on every floor and Hawaiʻi's first electric-powered elevator.
On February 28, 1905, Jane Stanford, co-founder of Stanford University, fell ill in her room at the Moana after ingesting a substance later identified as strychnine. She died the next day. A first strychnine poisoning attempt the previous January at her Nob Hill mansion in San Francisco had failed when she tasted the bitter bicarbonate water and forced herself to vomit. She had sailed to Hawaiʻi to recover. A 2003 review by Stanford University historian Robert W.P. Cutler concluded that the death was a homicide; the case has never been solved.
The property's Banyan Courtyard centerpiece was planted in 1904 and remains one of the largest banyan trees on Oʻahu. The original 1901 building has been added to several times — including the Diamond Head and Tower wings — and was substantially restored in the late 1980s. The Moana operated under various brands across the 20th century and today is the Moana Surfrider, A Westin Resort & Spa, marketed as the 'First Lady of Waikiki' and admitted to Historic Hotels of America.
Sources
Honolulu Magazine, Honolulu Haunts, and Mysteries of Hawaiʻi have published recurring accounts of a Victorian-dressed female apparition seen in the original 1901 wing of the Moana Surfrider, especially in late-night hallways and around the Banyan Courtyard. According to Honolulu Haunts and Moon Mausoleum, guests describe the figure as gliding through corridors as if searching for her room. Ghost-tour operators commonly identify her as Jane Stanford, who died on the premises on March 1, 1905 after ingesting strychnine — a death Stanford University historian Robert W.P. Cutler concluded in a 2003 review was a homicide.
Less-documented accounts collected by Mysteries of Hawaiʻi mention a WWII-era soldier figure on lower floors of the original building and a child apparition occasionally reported by housekeeping staff. The hotel does not promote these stories and offers no paranormal programming; the lore circulates primarily through Honolulu's established ghost-tour community and a small body of newspaper and magazine features.
Notable Entities
Stay overnight at Waikiki's oldest hotel, opened March 11, 1901, in a Beaux-Arts building anchored by the 1904 banyan tree where guests have long reported a Victorian-dressed apparition.
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