LAST YEAR HAWAII HAD A RECORD
NUMBER OF
VISITORS --- MORE THAN 9 POINT 3
MILLION.
NO DOUBT MANY OF THOSE TOURISTS
HAVE
BEEN HERE BEFORE.
DASH
BUT THERE'S A GOOD CHANCE FEW,
IF ANY
OTHER GUESTS, RETURN AS OFTEN
ONE
PARTICULAR WOMAN WHO'S BEEN
COMING BACK TO THE ISLANDS FOR
NEARLY 90 YEARS.
ALWAYS TO THE SAME HOTEL, EVEN
IN THE
VERY SAME ROOM.
For Maryann Fleck, every night
in Hawaii always end at
the Mai Tai bar. A place she,
and many other regulars call
the heart of the Royal Hawaiian
hotel.
But in many ways, Maryann is
both the heart and the soul of
this iconic property.
MARYANN FLECK / ROYAL HAWAIIAN
REGULAR:
"There's something special about
the Royal, there's
something about Hawaii general
which I'm sure you hear from a
lot of people. But it's a second
home to me. I
wish it was my first home. I
would live here if I could"
Her real first home is Seattle.
And her first trip to Hawaii was
in 1929 when she was just 8
months old.
Her parents brought her here on
the Matson Lurline
... And they stayed at the Royal
Hawaiian, which was
built by Matson just 2 years
earlier.
She eventually took a job with
United Airlines and says her
first real vacation here was in
1949... at the of 20.
MARYANN FLECK"For the most part
even coming back
every year multiple times every
year since right? Yes
they're very kind to me always
have the same room". She can
thank Avis Nakachi for that. A
37 year employee of the hotel,
Avis is her hand picked front
desk agent.
Who schedules her own vacations
around
Maryanne's... So that she's
always there to check her in.
AVIS NAKACHI / FRONT DESK AGENT:
"She's just a
genuine kind person who's always
interested in people or us and
our families and we've known her
and her
family. Because she's been
bringing her own family and
grandchildren She's just a very
special person"
And then there's Annie Cheung.
Her hand-picked
housekeeper . Who's also been
there for Maryann ...
for nearly 40 years running.
ANNIE CHEUNG / HOUSEKEEPER:
"Before
she comes she text me to make
sure I clean her room.
Also even before she comes she
gets in touch with you? Yes text
message for me"
More than just a guest of the
hotel, or even a good friend,
Maryann has become family.
ANNIE "Yeah she's like my best
friend like my mom you
know ha ha"
She says she remembers very well
the days when the Royal was one
of only two hotels in Waikiki.
MARYANN "I do. There were
thatched hut's were the
Halekulani is. There were little
thatched huts"
BUTT TO: "It was wonderful
AVIS "I can't even imagine what
it was like back then
being like so beautiful and
peaceful and not so crowded
like it is today. But she
thrives on people
And that's what keeps her coming
back to her home
away from home.
"You come back not just as a
visitor but you come back
to attend weddings graduations
and birthdays of
the employees of this hotel? Of
course they're my friends.
They're your family? Yes, and
they come to Seattle".
But much as she loves to host
her second family there
... Her heart is always here.
MARYANN: "There's a thread and
that's never been broken
for me here. There's a lot of
love that you don't expect"
Clearly she can travel anywhere
in the world she wants to, and
she has. But now she says, this
is the
only place she'll travel to. As
long as she possibly can.
MARYANN "It's the people here.
It's the warmth and the
friendship and the love"
KUI WRIGHT / MAI TAI BAR
"There's no better guest.
There's nobody else that
represents us better than
Maryanne. She is what the Royal
Hawaiian is all about.
She is the history what we want
but she's been through it all".
And back to the bar, where every
night ends. You'll find
Maryann. With a plaque on her
chair, a sparkle in a eye,
and always a story to share..
KUI 3:45 "And if you're the
lucky one to sit down next to
her and have conversation you'll
literally hear about the
history that is happened from
the beginning to the end".
BUTT TO:"And the whole bar the
whole bar the attention
goes to Maryanne".
Maryann says she humbled by how
everybody goes out
of there way to accommodate her,
and look after her. And she says
she's happy to know that she
will forever be part of the
iconic hotels history.
MARYANN 15:53 "I'm starting to
believe in spirits because of
the Hawaiian beliefs. And I
think I probably
want to be a spirited wandering
around"
MARYANN 16:10 "I don't ever want
to leave the Royal... I always
want to be a part of it".
DASH
MARISA:
JUSTIN CRUZ WILL BE BACK AFTER