Posted on: Friday, June 25, 2004
Hotel occupancy soars in May
| • | Chart: May hotel occupancy |
BY Kelly Yamanouchi
Advertiser Staff Writer
Tourists filled Hawai'i hotels last month to bring the statewide occupancy level to 72.5 percent, matching a record May in 2000 as the tourism industry benefited from a boost in visitor arrivals to the Islands.
The statewide occupancy level in May represents a healthy 8.1 percentage point increase over the same month last year, hotel consultancy Hospitality Advisors LLC said. The increase was driven by a 17 percent boost in visitor arrivals for the month.
The improvements come over a much weaker May 2003, which saw the outbreak of SARS and the resulting decline in Japanese travel.
The occupancy level matches the record in May 2000, though the total hotel room inventory is lower now, said Joseph Toy, president of Hospitality Advisors LLC.
At Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, occupancy was up substantially from last May, said chief executive David Carey. "We just got hammered last year," he said.
Strong travel from the East Coast this year has helped the hotel industry because those tourists tend to stay longer and spend more, Carey said.
"We've had a blockbuster year. I can't complain, period," Carey said.
"The return of the Japanese is just very welcome news. Granted they were way down, but at least it's a positive trend."
In May 2003, every classification of hotel from budget to luxury was in the 60 percent range, but this May every classification was in the 70 percent range. Budget hotels had the highest average occupancy at 74.6 percent. Economy hotels had the biggest improvement.
Each of the major islands had increases in occupancy rates. O'ahu, which has been the most dependent on Japanese visitors, had the biggest improvement over last year with a 10.9 percentage point jump to 72.5 percent occupancy this May.
"The improvement that we saw was really in the economy hotels and Waikiki in particular," Toy said. "Hawai'i has just been a very hot market throughout the year compared to other destinations."
Kaua'i hotels were the fullest at 77.5 percent, up 3.2 percentage points.
Big Island hotels had the lowest average occupancy rate at 61.8 percent, which was still an improvement over 54.2 percent a year ago.
Maui hotels averaged 76.8 percent full, up 5 percentage points.
"Our occupancy was strong on all of the islands," said Kelvin Bloom, president of Aston Hotels & Resorts.
The Smith Travel Research/Hospitality Advisors monthly hotel survey averages over 160 properties representing about 50,300 rooms reporting, or 75 percent of all lodging properties with 20 rooms or more in the state.
The figures also showed hotel rooms in Hawai'i became more expensive.
The average daily rate for a hotel room in the state came to $142.82 in May, up from $137.22 in the same month of 2003.
That helped to contribute to better financial performance at hotels last month.
The statewide average revenue per available room, a key measure of financial performance, was $103.57, up from $88.35 in May 2003.
For the year through May, the average occupancy level statewide was 77.3 percent, up from 70.7 percent in the same period a year ago.
The average daily rate was $150.95, up from $147.16.
Occupancy for most of this month is much higher than last year, reaching 80.4 percent through Saturday, up from 68.6 percent in the same period a year ago, Toy said.
Looking forward, Carey said bookings for the summer are strong, particularly at Outrigger's higher-end beachfront hotels.
"There's demand for quality. It's great," Carey said.
Reach Kelly Yamanouchi at kyamanouchi@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2470.
