Kona Village Resort opened in 1965 on 82 private acres located on Kahuwai Bay along the Kohala Coast. An ancient Hawaiian fishing village with lush tropical lagoons and pristine white and black sand beaches previously occupied this site. Kona Village has 125 unique Polynesian architectural designed with thatched-roof bungalows called hales.  
The nobility, called Ali’i-nui and the workers, called maka-ainana, lived by fishing and trading with the mauka (mountain) people who lived on the slopes of Hualalai. Pa’akai, or Hawaiian sea salt, was a known commodity from this region. In 1801, many of the residents of Ka’upulehu moved north to Puuanahulu or south to Kona because of the Hualalai lava flow that covered much of the area. In 1939, the last resident, Mahiko, died and was buried at Ka’upulehu with his ancestors.
A tidal wave in 1946 closed the ponds from the sea and mixed the white sands of Kahuwai Bay with the black sands of Maheawalu, thus creating the “salt and pepper” beach now fronting Kona Village. In 1961, Johnno Jackson and his wife Helen arrived at what was left of the long-abandoned village. They had sailed much of the South Pacific in their schooner, the “New Moon”, and quickly saw the possibilities of fulfilling their dream of building a truly Polynesian resort.
Materials were brought in by barge; air dropped by plane on the beach and later, driven over a very rough six-mile road from the main highway. The rugged terrain at Ka’upulehu required Johnno to build an airstrip to transport guests, staff and supplies. For many years, guests arrived, either by a private plane piloted by Johnno himself or Royal Hawaiian Air service, which took over the flights in 1967. Housekeepers, cooks, and other staff were flown in to the Village each morning and out again in the evening. Planes loaded with groceries, bar supplies and ice, were a common site on the landing strip.
To link the Village and its approximately 40 hale with civilization, a radiotelephone link and power plant were installed and a new well for freshwater was drilled. To this day, Kona Village Resort still generates its own electricity and pumps water from the deep.
Jackson relinquished ownership in 1966, selling Kona Village to Signal Oil Company. A swimming pool was added and a bar was constructed using the hull of the “New Moon,” which had sunk in the bay. In 1979, the resort was sold to Cambridge Pacific, a consortium of Canadian investors. In 1984, AIRCOA (Associated Inns and Restaurants Company of America) purchased the resort. Kona Village Associates purchased the resort, which now totaled 125 hale, in 1989. Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts, LLC purchased the resort in the summer of 2004. In March 2007, the resort was purchased by Kona Village Investors, LLC, a joint venture between affiliates of MSD Capital, L.P., the private investment firm for Michael Dell and his family, and Rockpoint Group, LLC, a global investment management firm.
Kona Village, guests enjoy snorkeling and diving with spectacular viewing of Hawai‘i’s dazzling marine life.
On March 11, 2011 there was a 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Japan that sent a tsunami across the pacific ocean.  All the Kona Village guests and employees were evacuated with prior warning.  The Kona Village was impacted and sustained damage to the restaurants, hales, and infrastructure that caused it to close without a scheduled reopen date.  We hope to see the Kona Village Resort reopen in the future with its spirit of aloha.  Kona Village Resort is a very special place with wonderful people.   
Ulrich Krauer serves as general manager bringing a background of luxury boutique resort management and the spirit of hospitality and aloha.