Kim Kardashian spent $1 million on her tone-deaf private-island b-day party

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I’ve only seen my mom once in person in the past seven months, and we both had to wear masks and social-distance. My story is not unique – around the country, people are making the choice to keep their distance from loved ones and friends because of the pandemic. Which is one of the reasons why Kim Kardashian’s birthday party posts came across as so tone-deaf. She emphasized that she asked all of her friends and family to quarantine themselves for two weeks, all so she could surprise them with a trip to a private island halfway across the world. Anyway, we’re getting more details about the party and the island:

Kim Kardashian spent $1 million to fly her family and friends on a private jet to celebrate her 40th birthday on one of the world’s most breathtaking private islands in Tahiti, Page Six can exclusively reveal. Kim chartered an 88-seat Boeing 777 last week to fly a group of under 30 to The Brando, a luxurious private island resort in French Polynesia with just 35 villas.

Her group — which included sisters Kourtney Kardashian, Khloé Kardashian and Kendall Jenner, brother Rob Kardashian and mom Kris Jenner — were treated to a host of lavish dinners, spa visits and guided treks through the lush island, known locally as Tetiaroa Atoll and famed for its stunning blue lagoon.

A source told us, “The group was limited to Kim’s closest family and friends. Everyone on the trip was repeatedly tested for COVID before they left in the middle of the night on a private Boeing 777. Once on the island they had lavish dinner after dinner, spa treatments and hikes through the nature sanctuary. There was no expense spared. Everyone was banned from posting on social media by Kim to ensure her privacy.”

They jetted out of Los Angeles on Oct. 20 on Crystal Cruises’ Boeing 777-200LR, which features 88 flat beds, a restaurant and a bar, and returned home five days later.

Her group took over the entire breathtaking island, which features 35 one-, two- and three-bedroom villas, which all have private pools and rent for up to $20,000 a night plus tax. There are numerous white sand beaches, a shimmering lagoon — where Kim later posted bikini pictures of herself on Instagram — and vibrant coral reefs.

The Brando Resort — Marlon Brando’s private island — is known as one of the finest eco-friendly resorts in the world. It also offers two gourmet restaurants, two hotel bars, a luxurious spa and an organic fruit orchard and vegetable garden.

[From Page Six]

Would you spend $1 million to bring your friends to a private resort to cosplay normalcy in the middle of a pandemic? Would you trust 50 people to quarantine for two weeks just so they could enjoy a maskless, five-day, all-expenses-paid vacation? Eh. It seems like a lot of work when Kim could have just ordered a cake for herself and stayed in LA. But that’s just me. And I totally forgot that Marlon Brando bought an island in the South Pacific. He was the original “owning a private island” celebrity.

Kim is trying to save her reputation.

Anyway, I absolutely 100% love the meme that sprang up out of this mess.

Photos courtesy of Kim’s social media.

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45 Responses to “Kim Kardashian spent $1 million on her tone-deaf private-island b-day party”

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  1. Lurker says:

    Vote you say kim??? For your asshat husband?!?’ GTFOH.

  2. LightPurple says:

    MOMA wins!

    Did her children make this trip with her?

    • ME says:

      Doesn’t seem like the kids were there. My God those poor nannies seem to be with the kids 24/7.

  3. FC says:

    Think of all the staff, restaurant workers, and masseuses getting paid pennies who essentially had to risk the lives of themselves and their loved ones to pamper Kim and her guests.

    • Anna says:

      This @FC This is what upsets me the most.

    • manda says:

      Also think of all the good that $1 million could have done for fighting covid, helping get medical supplies to areas that need it, and helping with food for families out of work.

      That is what has always bothered me about them. The frivoloity in their spending when sooooo many people are in dire financial circumstances, especially right now. It just makes me sick to my stomach (now, I am saying this without doing any research into whether she has donated to charities so I could be very wrong about this, and I also understand how she can spend her own money how she wants)

    • lucy2 says:

      Yup.
      I agree with manda. I can’t imagine looking at the world right now and thinking hmm, I think I will spend $1 million on my adult birthday party. Forget the people struggling, forget the huge lines at food banks, forget the people waiting hours in line to vote, forget the doctors, nurses, and medical workers risking their lives every single day. She could have donated just a fraction of that now, gotten some good press, and then done a big party someday when it’s safe to do so.

    • ennie says:

      Regarding that, it is still work for them (I have family trying to get by in the dying tourism industry in my country).
      Totally tone deaf, and yes, they get paid pennies.
      Some people are still traveling for different purposes, private matter, and even if risky it helps the economy a little, but flying around the world and flaunt it? huge NO.

    • Nana says:

      That third pic, with her coming down the stairs holding the glass aloft in the gold tunic. Iconic. When society looks back in 20 or 50 years, that will be the ‘let them eat cake’ symbol of this time, epitomising just how the 1% breezed through… and the 99%, especially minorities and those living in poverty, suffered.

  4. whatWHAT? says:

    wondering why Kylie didn’t go. maybe she knew the optics would be bad.

  5. julia says:

    She also said that before COVID her and her friends didn’t truly appreciate the simple luxury of travelling. Ummmm….it’s not a “simple” luxury. It’s a huge luxury many people will never get to experience, COVID or not. And it’s a huuuuge luxury to have the ability to have 2 weeks of not working and then however long on the trip without it being a financial burden. but I highly doubt that the bunch of friends sjhe “asked” to quarantine actually did. They’re all entitled and we know it.

  6. Nire says:

    I wonder if they will all quarantine for two weeks afterwards to ensure they do not spread the virus if they’ve been infected… But then that would mean they care about lives outside their inner circle…

  7. My3cents says:

    Does this family ever give back in anyway? Genuinely asking since I don’t hear anything about it, and if they did they probably would have made it known?

    • JustMe2 says:

      Allegedly Kim donated $1 million to an Armenian fund. She’s getting trolled hard on Twitter and Instagram for supporting a terrorist organization in particular for bombings that killed civilians in Azerbaijan.
      I do not know anything about the conflict just saw it on her social media

    • Noki says:

      I heard they keep 75% of their ebay Kloset proceeds lol. I find them to be tight fisted,if that even makes sense. I know they are wealthy but they seem stingy at the same time. I remember there was once an episode where Khloe was teasing Kendall about footing the lunch bill and she was not having it,and Kourtney complains a lot about having to spend any extra money that she feels shomeone else should pay for.

      • A says:

        I was going to say this too – they shill all kinds of garbage, like the diet teas, that are harmful, just to make some more cash, when they have other projects and revenue streams and don’t need it.

        And they do seem stingy when it comes to giving back in any form.

    • lucy2 says:

      Probably to their “church”, for tax write offs.

  8. grabbyhands says:

    “Everyone was banned from posting on social media by Kim to ensure her privacy.”

    Please – everyone was banned from posting on social media so they wouldn’t scoop her on her big day and potentially ruin any deals she made to sell the pictures or endorsements.

  9. minx says:

    The memes are hysterical.

  10. Amelie says:

    MOMA’s tweet was hands down my favorite meme I saw come out of this whole nonsense.

    Is Kim launching some new product or something? I feel like she would only post these pictures if it coincided with some kind of thing business-wise? Or is she really that tone-deaf that she didn’t realize how these pictures would come across?

    • Sarah says:

      My vote goes for tone deaf. Bearing in mind she tried to talk about being ‘humbled’ in her original post she’s just clueless.

  11. Sarah says:

    Ok so it’s an eco resort but is any of the revenue going into the local economy? That’s the only things I could possibly feel good about here given the devastation to the tourist industry this year.

    I’m enjoying the memes but also realising that there’s a lot of pop culture that I just don’t get!

  12. Annabel says:

    I haven’t seen my family in 10 months and this story makes me want to cry.

  13. paranormalgirl says:

    I haven’t been to my own home in the Bahamas since the winter, I think. I haven’t hung out with my best friend/closest thing to a sister I will ever have. I miss her. So yeah, tone deaf.

  14. Andrew’s Nemesis says:

    The family – especially the Koven head – is just so overwhelmingly VULGAR. Debretts offers, arguably, the best etiquette classes on the planet. The Klan can certainly afford them. Might be a better way to use their money than grotesque little jaunts to the Pacific.

  15. josephine says:

    Super tight clothes, overdone make-up, hair straigthening and heels on an island? This just seems like a waste of time and pathetic. There are a million things wrong with what they did/when they did it, but to go and not even relax and enjoy because you have to take pictures to prove that you had a good time? Yeesh. Better just to have a good time. These people are relentlessly shallow and gross. I don’t even think they enjoy anything because they’re too obsessed with themselves and what they look like.

  16. curachel20 says:

    I think her “guests” all got Skims and KKW goodies…so this was probably all written off as a business expense . Ahhhh the rich get richer 🙄

  17. Kyla says:

    I’d absolutely love to be able to do this for myself and my friends. Especially now. A massive private plane, and beyond luxurious over the water beach bungalows in French Polynesia. Hell yes! I’m so sick of my tiny living space and never having anywhere to go, see or do. I would be on board with this in a heartbeat. I could convince myself that I’d taking the right precautions and that I was helping out the resort and it’s workers by filling it up for a week with guests and no expenses spared.

    BUT, even if could, I don’t think I would. It’s irresponsible and impossible to ensure that everyone is safe and that we wouldn’t be endangering anyone on the island or at home when we returned.

    But I’ll admit that the temptation to ignore all that would be very very strong.

    • nb says:

      I hear ya. My husband and I had plans to travel several new places over the summer and winter. We love travelling. I was finally going to go to Europe! It’s been a longtime dream. All of it had to be cancelled.

      My state, along with many others, is at the peak of cases since everything started. A month ago a couple I know went to Cabo (from the US) and got engaged. Posted the pics all over social media (like, a TON of pics, because of the engagement). This past weekend they hosted an engagement party. They invited 80 people (I think 30-40 showed up, from what I heard – I didn’t go) and no masks required. It’s just so selfish and I’m just waiting to hear if it was a spreader event or not.

      My brother is flying to Cabo this weekend for a trip with his fiancee. Another facebook friend is also currently in Mexico on vacation.

      It’s so tough to ‘do the right thing’ and stay home when all I’m dreaming about is also being on a warm sandy beach with a drink in my hand, and then I see pics from KK and facebook of people doing just that. But I won’t do it, even though I have the means to travel, because it just doesn’t feel right when people are dying every day from this virus and the second wave is here right now.

  18. Christine Stephens says:

    I have definitely seen my family. The area we live in only has 1 active case. However we all stay in the area that we live in and honestly my parents need my help with a lot of things. As far as the Kardashians go….they seem less and less relevant as time goes on. I admire Kim for the work she does for Prison Reform, the rest of them are awful. Wasn’t there a blind that hinted that Khloe called non famous people “normies” ? Like she did not want to talk to “normies?” I don’t follow any of them on social media and I am glad. They need an image makeover. Kim included.

  19. JennyJenny says:

    And all guests were not allowed to take pictures and post them anywhere. Of course not!
    She had to approve the pictures and have them photo shopped and tweaked before any of them could be published.

    Narcissism, thy name is Kardashian.

  20. Queen Meghan’s Hand says:

    I actually don’t think this was a bad thing for Kim to do. She’s rich and can afford the cost of quarantine and the private island rental (??!!). What pisses me off is why did she make it public? She could have pretended to stay in LA or just keep posting photos of her unboxing her many presenting to keep her content fresh. She obviously thought the reaction would be positive and we would receive her party as aspirational. Which brings me to this point:
    For all the hype of the Kardashian empire and their fame longevity, they show themselves time and time again to be pretty unsavvy about the way they are perceived and their audience. There’s no real intelligence or strategy behind anything they do except when copying the literal faces and bodies of black women.

  21. SpankyB says:

    I don’t begrudge her doing this, it’s her money and she can spend it any way she pleases. I do think it was in VERY bad taste to post it on social media. I’m sure she thought everyone was going to complain about masks and social distancing, that’s why the comment about 2 week quarantine and many tests.

    She should spend her money, help keep businesses going, especially small businesses. But she shouldn’t flaunt it because she’s too thirsty to read the room. Give to charity and post that all over social media, it will be a much better look.

    And honestly, if I had the means I’d take all of my family to a covid free island and live there until there’s a vaccine.

  22. Jill says:

    Oh FFS, I’m so angry. I have an 80 yr old dad 2500 miles away slipping away to Alzheimer’s, but I can’t go see him. My mom has basically banned me from flying back to see them for the foreseeable future. This kind of display is so gross. Go spend your millions in private. But if a Kardashian falls in a forest and no one is there to document it on Insta, did it really happen?

    • landsend says:

      The ostentatious, narcissistic flaunting of her extreme privilege and riches, and of all the abundant options/escapes/luxuries it provides her with, which so few others can (ever) attain, and especially at this time of Covid19 with all its dire physical, financial, and psychological devastation, is what bothers me the most about this whole extravagant, self centered,callously clueless display. The Kardashians are pure trash, with few if any redeeming qualities; that much, I have been well aware of for some time. Their cult of materialism, vanity, transparent dishonesty, self absorption, and, generally, their devotion to the superficial (plastic surgery, designer clothing, mansion buying, and acquiring ever more fame, etc.) are no longer a shock to me, so I admit to some surprise at just *how* incredibly offensive I found her social media “sharing” of her birthday celebration to be. So many friends, so many relatives! Meanwhile, there are people who are unable, by law, to even briefly see their loved ones: my father is in a nursing home for his Parkinson’s and its related dementia, and my state has blocked people, even all relatives, from visiting such residences, so it has been over 3 months since I’ve seen him. My closest friend had to say goodbye forever to her mother over Skype, who died of Covid19 in a hospital which my friend was not allowed to visit. My husband could not attend his cousin’s funeral, b/c his family is in the Czech Republic and he can not afford the very real risk to his health and that of others that flying might present him with. At least 6 people I know have, since March, lost their jobs. Yet meanwhile, Kim, whose wealth and celebrity status makes her–in her own mind, at least—immune to any such common misfortune, rewards herself for being born with a million dollar splurge to a remote beautiful island, to be with family and friends. And she flaunts it on social media, b/c in her delusional, arrogant, oblivious brain, other people and their feelings don’t exist, except to serve and flatter hers.

      I believe these photos were shared just to boost her self esteem, which is slightly shaky b/c she’s turning—gasp!– 40, and she needs her bloated but slightly deflated ego reinflated. And what better way to do that than to remind others of just how “special” and “humbly blessed” she still is, still a “model”, still beloved, still a princess. She rented out a whole island ALL FOR HERSELF AND THOSE WHO ADORE HER, TOO! She brought and posed in 47 “sexy” outfits in 5 days! She was determined that turning 40–a crushing blow –is not ABOUT to lessen her (imagined) universal and celestial appeal.

  23. Mina_Esq says:

    Trump is having covid rallies in hot spots, so what’s a little private party of less than 30 people? I’m joking, of course. It’s hugely irresponsible do this right now. BUT at any other time…? I honestly would spend $1 million to throw myself a giant party if i could afford it 🤷‍♀️

  24. JustMe2 says:

    Guarantee it wasn’t $1 million. They get comped for just mentioning the place on social media

  25. Nuddinwrongwitbnwealthy says:

    Is it possible that complaints about how the wealthy spends their wealth be seen as hating? Realistically when you have made it big, you can do things that others cant. Its – for me – to be appreciated. Agree with some of the virus concerns, but in her case a properly weighed and cautioned risk. Im am more ok with a celebration for one special day with known and close friends than a large gathering with strangers comin in from all points on a compass to hear a speech by someone. But thats me.

    • Ange says:

      It was my 40th birthday two weeks ago. I had previously had a big party planned with family and friends but couldn’t do it because, as a normal person with relatively limited means, that sort of thing was against regulations. It’s not the cash so much that’s the problem, it’s the vulgar show of using it to circumvent your way into something that the majority of society hasn’t been able to do for ages.

  26. Bread and Circuses says:

    If I had that much money to blow, yes, I might very well do this for my friends and family.

    But I would probably NOT tell the whole world about it. I mean, come on. Nothin’ good was going to come of that.

  27. nicegirl says:

    So, no Kylie and Stormi?

  28. kif says:

    People are blind. Didn’t anyone else see the same thing I did. When I read the “more details about the party and the island:” all I saw was one big advertisement for the island and the plane. People are asking ” why did she have to post it?”. Simple – because she has to. You think she actually spent all her own money for the trip? Of course not! She has lots of sponsors – this is how she and her family earn their living. If she didn’t post it – she’ll get sued. Now, it’s so convenient we get these little details of the pampering, the “35 one-, two- and three-bedroom villas, which all have private pools and rent for up to $20,000 a night plus tax”. I read this on the pamphlet. Please, people wake up. The Trumps are not the only family the country needs to get rid of. This family has been promoting nothing but greed and materialism, and abusing black culture, from the very start. Presenting to young people that their fake lifestyle is “goals”. Now, they’re trying to reinvent themselves by daring to mouth empty platitudes about prison reform. Let’s be more critical, please.