About 576,087 visitors came to the Islands last month, up 6.5 percent from March of last year. There was a 6.6 percent increase in visitors on international flights and a 6.4 boost in visitors on domestic flights.

The state had more domestic visitors last month, 410,482, than in any other March on record, according to the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, which released the figures today.

State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert said the growth was helped by conventions held by the Coors Brewing Co. and International Association for Dental Research.

She also said the stronger yen and improved economic conditions in Japan will lead to more Japanese traveling to Hawai'i.

"It’s really good news that we’re seeing a recovery," said David Carey, chief executive of Outrigger Enterprises Inc. "This is the first time we’ve seen stability from multiple markets, and it’s been kind of steady over the year, as opposed to wide variations."

He also noted, "I wouldn’t get as excited about the (year-over-year) percentages, because it was so bad last year because of the war and SARS."

Japanese travel was one of the most severely damaged markets in Hawai'i because of global unrest last year. But last month, about 114,523 Japanese came to Hawai'i, up 11.2 percent over last March.

Meanwhile, visitor counts from the western United States increased 5.3 percent to 208,162. Visitor arrivals from the eastern United States increased 6.4 percent to 177,463.

One major market had a decline in tourists: The number of Canadian visitors to Hawai'i fell 7.7 percent (to 27,186) last month compared with March of last year.

Visitors last month spent about $797.8 million here. Visitors from the U.S. east spent about $253 million here, those from the U.S. west spent about $247.1 million, Japanese visitors about $164.5 million and Canadian visitors about $44.5 million.

Not all islands saw increases in visitor arrivals. O'ahu had a 9.8 percent increase in arrivals and the Big Island a 1.2 percent increase, but Kaua'i, Maui, Moloka'i and Lana'i each had declines in arrivals. That’s a switch from past periods when Neighbor Islands had bigger improvements while O'ahu struggled because of uncertainty in international travel.

"One of the most significant things that I noticed was the strength of Waikiki," Carey said.