The September 11th attack
Some plans must veer off course
| • | Hawai'i tourism in turmoil |
| • | Revisiting tourism's frontlines |
| • | Neighbor Islands cope with tourist, spending drop-off |
| • | Hawai'i's appeal helps draw visitors |
By Michele Kayal
Advertiser Staff Writer
Last summer, before the world thought much about Osama bin Laden, before the World Trade Center came tumbling down, taking the nation's economy with it, Hawai'i's tourism industry was racing toward a record year for visitors and hotel revenues.
Workers in the state's No. 1 industry had lots of bright plans laid out then, ways they would grow their businesses and spend their profits with their families.
Steve and Susan Philips from the Big Island were selling flowers to the cruise ships in Hilo and trying to stock their orchid house. Marnie Morgan on Kaua'i was hoping to visit friends in Alaska and struggling to raise her 3-year-old on her wages at Kayak Kauai. Florencia Daga, a housekeeper at the Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel, was saving money to retire some day back home in the Philippines.
But in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 events that would reshape the world, some of these lives, some of these plans, have been reshaped as well.
The changes — and the way they flow through the economy — will define the quicksilver fortunes of islands linked to tourism, and test the endurance that families here must muster.
