Posted on: Thursday, September 4, 2003

BUSINESS BRIEFS
Island cruises on the rise

Advertiser Staff

Hawai'i's cruise industry continues to grow, with a 15.8 percent increase in passengers to 137,185 in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2002, the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism said.

From January through June, 30 cruise ships arrived in the Islands and took 75 tours, compared with 28 ships operating 66 tours a year ago.

Of all cruise passengers, 134,116 were out-of-state visitors, or about 4.3 percent of the tourists to the Islands.