Travel industry still sputtering

Advertiser Staff and News Services

The Walko family of Glastonbury, Conn., scrapped a ski trip to Lake Tahoe over safety concerns.

Black and Decker Corp. used videoconferencing to help trim its travel budget by 40 percent.

Consultants at Computer Sciences Corp. flew less frequently, although not by choice: There just wasn't much new business.

Visitor arrivals in Hawai'i have plunged, leaving hotels, airlines, restaurants and retailers struggling to cope.

In countless ways, the recession and the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks are causing families and businesses to cut back on travel this year. It has been a staggering blow to the industries that depend on people leaving home for work and play.

Major airlines are expected to lose a combined $10 billion in 2001, despite more than 100,000 layoffs, $5 billion in federal aid and massive cutbacks in service. Rental car agencies and hotel owners also suffered.

In Hawai'i, the downturn continues to rock the industry and the state's economy. But recent visitor arrivals have shown some strength. Boosted by such events as the Honolulu Marathon, tourists to the Islands in recent weeks have been at their highest level since before Sept. 11.

While Japanese visitors to the state remain down about 25 percent compared with the same time last year, arrivals from the Mainland have, in some cases, even outpaced last year's levels. Statewide hotel occupancy had one of its best days Dec. 8, pushing the week's average up to 66.1 percent for the day — the best since Sept. 11.

But local experts warn that uneven performance will likely remain for the rest of the year. And local and national experts say the economic uncertainty that faces the state and nation next year will continue to take its toll on the travel industry, with no clear solution on the horizon.