When Alexandra Hudson (played by Shannen Doherty) first arrives on the show, she is coming out of her limo and is greeted by a valet. He asks her how she likes Hawaii and she replies, "It beats the hell out of Beverly Hills." This is an obvious reference to her days as Brenda Walsh on the teen soap Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990).
The hotel's name is a play on "Grand Wailea", a five-star hotel on Maui's southwest coastline.
The first view in the pilot episode is of an alarm clock activating. The time is 0545 and the date displayed is 6-14. This coincides with the actual date of the first airing, 14 June 2004.
The show has been axed twice: before it was aired, then given a chance and axed at the end of the first season.
When Jason Matthews is in the Surf Shop, his father states that the especially sturdy surf board he is building is for "Laird". He is referring to Laird Hamilton, one of the premier big wave surfers in the world.