Japanese visitors to Hawai'i in April decreased 33.2 percent compared with last year, with O'ahu suffering a 10.3 percent drop. However, domestic visitors picked up the slack, accounting for 78.4 percent of visitors last month. Advertiser library photo • Apr. 29, 1999

And Industry executives say the decline in international travel underscores why Hawai'i must find ways to attract more tourists from different markets.

A total of 479,371 visitors came to Hawai'i last month, up just 0.7 percent compared with last April, according to figures released today by the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.

Mainlanders, more immune from fears of war and SARS than Japanese travelers, continued to flock to Hawai'i. The number of visitors last month from the U.S. West increased 13.8 percent and from the East by 11 percent.

The domestic market made up 78.4 percent of all visitors to the state during April.

"Clearly the (Mainland) market is saving our bacon right now," said Kelvin Bloom, president of Aston Hotels & Resorts.

To many domestic travelers Hawai'i is perceived as a safe destination, even during a war, said David Carey, chief executive of Outrigger Enterprises Inc.

But the broader problem is that visitor arrivals are still significantly lower than pre-Sept. 11 numbers. Compared with April 2001 and April 2000, total visitor arrivals are down 14.1 percent and 16.2 percent.

The tourism industry's biggest worry is the drop in Japanese business, a years-long decline that has become even more severe.

The number of Japanese visitors to the state fell 33.2 percent in April compared with the same month last year, reflecting the thousands of people who canceled trips and decided not to travel.

April was the first month that the state's nearly $10 billion tourism industry saw the full impact of the war and the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome, which has stifled tourism in Asia and left many there fearful of going to airports and traveling.

Waikiki businesses that cater to Japanese also say that despite some recovery in tourism as a whole, the improvement is not evenly spread.

O'ahu is heavily dependent on Japanese tourists and continues to suffer. The number of visitors to O'ahu decreased 10.3 percent in April.

"If you look at O'ahu it's not a pretty picture," Carey said.

All other islands, meanwhile, saw increases in visitors. Maui, for example, had a 17.9 percent increase in visitor arrivals and Moloka'i had a 59.4 percent jump.

While the total number of visitors coming into the state was essentially flat, those who made the trip stayed longer, bringing up the total number of days all visitors spent in the state by 15 percent over last April. Visitor days are considered a good gauge of the economic contribution of tourism in the state.

For the year through April, visitor arrivals were up 1.5 percent, with an increase in arrivals from the U.S. West region (up 2.4 percent) and U.S. East (up 3 percent), while Japanese visitor arrivals were down 6.1 percent compared with the same period last year.

The state also released figures showing visitors spent $2.6 billion during the first three months of the year, up 8.4 percent compared with the same period last year.

Spending by Western Mainland visitors increased 8.2 percent and Easterners' spending went up 3.8 percent.

Japanese visitors, whose spending increased 7.4 percent, continued to spend the most per day at $242 per person or up 8.8 percent compared with the first quarter of last year. They were followed by U.S. Easterners ($163, down 4.2 percent) and U.S. Westerners ($151, up 6.2 percent).

The Japanese, however, tend to stay for shorter periods and spent the least per trip or $1,387 per person. Visitors from the Eastern Mainland spent the most per trip at $1,873 per person.

Tourism executives, eager to leave spring behind, are looking forward to better months ahead.

"We're still hopeful that the summer's going to keep this trend out of North America. And if we can keep SARS out of Hawai'i and get Japan to come back that would be very helpful," Carey said.

Carey said while he is not giving up on Asia, the numbers show the year "is going to be pretty tough."

"We've got to think about some new market sources for O'ahu," he said, such as promoting sporting events and festivals.