Posted on: Tuesday, September 3, 2002

Tourist promotion pact should be signed

While caution and great care is important in deciding how the public's tax dollars are spent to promote Hawai'i, the Hawai'i Tourism Authority must move quickly to award a new tourism marketing contract for the state.

As reported by staff writer Kelly Yamanouchi, the authority is moving cautiously in its effort to award a marketing contract for next year. It is widely expected that the current contract holder, the Hawai'i Visitors and Convention Bureau, will get the contract. But thus far, no decision has been made.

Marketing of this nature cannot stop and start on a dime. Much of the planning is long-range in nature, setting up contacts and schedules many months into the future. The HVCB cannot fully proceed until it knows for sure that it will have the contract.

By the same token, the Tourism Authority is still waiting for a marketing plan from the HVCB, due by Oct. 1.

For the sake of the health of Hawai'i's visitor industry, it is imperative that the two sides get their planning and due diligence out of the way and enter into a contract.

Our competitors are not going to wait for us to get our act together. Opportunities passed by now could be lost forever.