Post #574224 by Cammo on Tue, Feb 1, 2011 6:17 PM

"...why the formerly Hanalei hotel became a beige walled palace of boredom. But there are places like “rainforest café” that though obviously not tiki, still have a childish and inaccurate form of escapism..."

That's my point, that as soon as you think you've nailed down a cohesive reason, another example pops up of the success of the exact opposite! If beige is a color everyone "likes" and feels "homey with", why is Rainforest Cafe such a big deal? Why is there no beige in Disneyland? Why no beige in Las Vegas? Or Joe's Crab Shack, or 94th Aero Squadron, or Lucille's BBQ, or countless other corporate-controlled theme destinations? Why in fact is there nothing ENTERTAINING at the Hanalei anymore? The answer is much more elusive than you'd think, and throwing blame around on the managers or the public ain't gonna cut it.

Beige by the way has even been scoured from the walls of Nordstroms and Neiman Marcus, it's all black and white and dark 50's-era decorations there now. It's weird.

Don't worry. I have the reason. It was told to me by some of the managers at the Hanalei and two other hotels nearby who will remain nameless (to protect the guilty.) At least 2 people have come really REALLY close, but haven't nailed it.

You really have to think like THEM not like us to understand. And it's pretty simple. . .