Did you ever have an urge to visit the film site of Gilligan's Island? There were actually a few different locations used, and we'll show you each and every one of them so you can take the trip yourself and check 'em out! Don't forget your camera's! The pilot and the first episode were filmed in Kauai located in the Hawaiin islands. The crew had looked at locations in Los Angeles and Catalina Island but found them to be useless. Los Angeles had no tropical settings and Catalina didn't have any palms trees. They finally found their island.... Kauai!

(Note) The first episode proceeding the pilot was filmed at Zuma Beach near Malibu, California, mixing in a little footage from Kauai. When they arrived in Kauai on November 15 1963, Bob Denver and the crew stayed the night at the Coco Palms Hotel on the east side of the island in Wailua next to Kapaa. Elvis also stayed there while filming "Blue Hawaii." That resort has been closed since Hurricane Iniki, but people are allowed to tour it by special arrangement, usually with a tour or wedding. The next day, they moved to a location closer to the film site at the Hanalei Plantation Resort in Princeville, overlooking Hanalei Bay (where South Pacific was filmed). In fact, the production designer of South Pacific designed the Hanalei Plantation and its cottages. The Hanalei Plantation consisted of a large main building with a series of small cottages leading down a steep hill to Hanalei Bay. The main building was for the crew, and the small cottages were for the cast and executives. The land which held the Hanalei Plantation Resort became a Club Med for a few years. The Club Med eventually closed down and was torn down. Someone started to build condos there, but lost their financing after pouring the foundations. It is now totally vacant except for those foundations. Two years ago, Disney tried to buy the property, but a deal was never put together.

Moloaa Bay was the filming location, and the scenes were shot in only four days from November 19th through to 22nd, 1963. While on Kauai, they realized that they needed a boat (the S.S. Minnow). Since they couldn't find a suitable boat on the island, they had to look elsewhere, and finally found a boat in the Honolulu Harbor. Once the Minnow was towed to Kauai, the suits got to work and punched some holes in the hull using a couple of sledge hammers. There were four Minnow's used on the show, this one seen beached on the island. After filming was complete on Kauai, the crew relocated to the Honolulu Harbor where they rented a boat (S.S. Minnow number 2) and filmed the crew boarding and sailing it out of the Honolulu harbor. Another Minnow was used when it fell apart from Gilligan's pancake syrup glue. The last Minnow was used during the opening theme of the second season sitting in the lagoon and was constructed just for CBS Studios in Burbank California. The island you see in the distance at the beginning theme of the second and third season is an actual island called Coconut Island or Mokuoloe. It is located in Oahu's Kaneohe Bay and is the home of the Institute of Marine Biology. The 1st season island seen in the distance is an island in the Bahamas called Sandy Cay. The best way to see the site where Gilligan's Island was filmed in Kauai is to take a tour. Bob, the President of Hawaii Movie Tours has a great package! They'll take you to the filming location of Gilligan's Island and even bring out TV's and show you exactly where each scene was shot! Amazing! They supply food and a lot of fun as well! You will also be shown other movie spots such as Jurassic Park, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Donovan's Reef, Outbreak, Fantasy Island, Blue Hawaii and South Pacific. The second and third season opening were filmed at beautiful Marina Del Rey located in Los Angeles. Not quite sure at what basin it was filmed from though. Here are a few good-looking Hotels at Hanalei Bay. These are:

Hanalei Colony Resort

The Princeville Hotel

Hanalei Bay Resort

Go to their home pages and you'll be amazed at how beautiful they are! Moloaa Bay is just about 10 miles away!

If you are lucky enough to visit the filming site of Gilligan's Island, please send us a report and tell us how you enjoyed your stay. Many folks have been married there, and are sure to be the envy of all Gilligan's Island fans worldwide! Have a great time, and "Smooth Sailing."

