Kualoa Ranch: A Chance to Visit Hollywood Without Leaving Hawaii

It seems that the past few years have brought somewhat of a Hollywood fever to our beautiful islands. Sure we have always had Hollywood Productions come in and do some filming every now and then, but now the film and television industry is booming here in the islands. Kualoa Ranch seems to have capitalized the most on this point, and the ranch has played host to some of the biggest Hollywood movies of all time.

I am a huge movie fan. I watch them all, keep up with the awards, and write about all the big time movie and television productions that come through the islands. Kualoa Ranch is one of the very best places for you and your family to go if you are in the mood for an amazing movie tour. Everything from Jurassic Park to 50 First dates has filmed on location at Kualoa Ranch.Recently, Kualoa Ranch received a national award. Kualoa Ranch was one of two Hawaii film tour companies to recently make a list of the nation’s 10 most popular film tours on TripAdvisor, a popular travel booking and review site. Kualoa Ranch’s movie tour took sixth place behind top-ranked tours in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Boston and Washington, D.C. The tour includes a bus ride to film locations from “Jurassic Park,” “Godzilla,” “Pearl Harbor,” “50 First Dates” and “You, Me and Dupree.”

While there are of course a million great things to do in Hawaii, taking your family on this tour will be quite an adventure, especially if any of you like movies and TV.So who can we thank for all the recent success the last decade or so? Well, there have been a number of big productions that have come through the islands, but if I had to tab one show or movie that really opened the doors of Hollywood to the Hawaii possibility, I would have to point directly to “LOST.” The hit ABC show filmed here for 6-years, brought over $600 million worth of revenue to our state, and in turned, opened the door for other huge productions to come into town. You can look back over the last few years and see what I mean. Within the past few years, huge productions have come through to film including:

• Hawaii Five-O (always filming here)
• Pirates of the Caribbean 4
• Just Go With It
• Battleship
• And more

This is where I want to bring my point home. The islands are now bustling with movie and television productions, and Kualoa Ranch is right in the center of it all. If you want to treat your kids to an amazing movie adventure tour, or simply want to see one yourself, then there are few better then the tour that Kualoa Ranch offers.

Movies and Television Shows Filmed at Kualoa Ranch

• “Karate Kid” (1984)
• “Jurassic Park” (1993)
• “Godzilla” (2000)
• “Pearl Harbor” (2001)
• “50 First Dates” (2004)
• “Journey to a Mysterious Island” (2011)
• “Battleship” (2012)
• “Magnum, P.I.” (TV, 1980-1988)
• “Lost” (TV, 2004-2010)
• “Hawaii Five-0” (TV, old and new versions)
• “Off the Map” (TV)

Some movies filmed on Kauai

• “South Pacific” (1949)
• “Blue Hawaii” (1961)
• “Donovan’s Reef” (1963)
• “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1983)
• “Six Days, Seven Nights” (1998)
• “Avatar” (2010)
• “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” (2011)
• “Just Go with It” (2011)
• “The Descendants” (2011)
• “Soul Surfer” (2011)