The September 11th attack
Tourism request will face close legislative scrutiny
By Michele Kayal
Advertiser Staff Writer
As details of Hawai'i's emergency tourism marketing plan slowly are revealed, state lawmakers are saying they'll give it a hard look before handing over any cash.
The Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau is seeking $10 million from the Legislature to execute a marketing plan intended to stabilize visitor arrivals by next June.
Since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, arrivals to Hawai'i have plummeted and visitor expenditure is expected to take a $1 billion blow for the year. Arriivals from Japan have declined as much as 50 percent, and Japan Airlines this week announced a 20 percent cut in the number of flights to Hawai'i.
Members of the Senate tourism committee yesterday questioned why the bureau needs money from the Legislature, rather than simply drawing on money it has available next year. They worried about depleting the tourism money they control, when the money could be needed for a more severe economic crisis next year.
"If we give everything in the special session, we may not have anything in March," said committee chairwoman Donna Kim, D-15th (Kalihi Valley, 'Aiea).
Tourism fund may be inadequate
Tourism marketing dollars come from the tourism special fund, which is created by visitor revenues. The senators said they worry that if fewer visitors arrive and fewer dollars are spent in Hawai'i next year, the fund may not be adequate to pay for even regular marketing efforts.
Each year, the Legislature gives $61 million from the fund to the Hawaii Tourism Authority, which makes tourism policy. The authority gives $45 million or more to the bureau to execute the state's marketing plan.
The money that the bureau has been seeking is above and beyond the $61 million allocated.
The emergency marketing plan, set to roll out next week in Japan and on the U.S. Mainland, is still being put together. Bureau chief executive officer Tony Vericella and Hilton Hotels Hawaii executive Peter Schall — who sit with Walter Dods, chairman of First Hawaiian Bank, on a special commission appointed by the governor to create the plan — said it should be ready before a special session of the Legislature that is expected to begin Oct. 22.
But preliminary details presented yesterday outline public relations and advertising efforts for 21 markets in North America that carry a message of "Aloha" and rejuvenation that began rolling Sept. 24.
In Japan, a "Super Value Hawaii" campaign set to start Oct. 15 will emphasize discounts on travel to the Islands, and events and price breaks once visitors get here. Gov. Ben Cayetano will lead a mission to Japan next week, and a message asking people to come back to Hawai'i will simultaneously run in newspapers.
The first two weeks of the campaigns, which are the only ones set right now, will cost roughly $2 million.
Tourism leaders back marketing plan
While senators questioned whether the messages chosen would really do the job, tourism executives generally favored the plan.
"That's exactly what's needed in Japan," said Sharon Weiner, DFS Group vice president. "This time of the year is when a lot of young women book travel. These packages should drive them."
But, she said, she would have liked something in the market sooner. "Guam is already running full-page ads in Japan," she said. "We're slower out of the chute than some other destinations are."
Joseph Hale, a former Aloha Airlines executive who runs a tourism-related consulting company, said that rather than send Hawai'i officials to Japan, there may be better results if Japanese officials were brought here.
"Organize a live telecast back to Japan, where people in Japan can hear live from people they have a sense of credence in," Hale said. "Especially in Japan, where the words of the government are very important," he said, the message should be: "Hey, I think it's OK now. Hawai'i is open for business. We're here, give us a call, we'll answer your questions right on the spot."
Kim said the "Aloha" theme was old hat, and questioned whether it really had enough punch to get people on a plane.
Jay Talwar, who handles the bureau's account at advertising firm Milici Valenti Ng Pack, said his research shows the message is the kind that people need now.
"We really haven't talked about the spirit of the place, which is what this campaign is doing," he said. "The tenor of people has changed. Given 9-11, family has become more important, community has become more important. And 'Aloha' captures a lot of that. We want to let people know that that's the way it is here."
More than the message, though, many tourism executives simply seemed happy that a message was going out.
"Anything that we can do now can only help us," said John Toner, general manager of the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua on Maui. "Our state is by far the strongest product as far as resort destination, and people are just a little unsure about travel right now. So anything we can do to get our message out is important right now."
Michele Kayal can be reached at mkayal@honoluluadvertiser.com.
