Posted on: Tuesday, September 28, 2004

Summer tourism at record highs

By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Staff Writer

Tourists flocked to Hawai'i in record numbers this summer, topping even pre-Sept. 11 levels, the Hawai'i Visitors & Convention Bureau said yesterday.

The state attracted 1.9 million visitors in June, July and August, up 8.4 percent over the same period last year, according to an HVCB analysis of data from the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism. Summer arrivals were up 1.9 percent over the previous record high in 1990.

Domestic arrivals, which set a record in each of three summer months, totaled 1.4 million for the period. The 528,950 international arrivals surpassed the previous summer's numbers by 19.9 percent, but was below the record 789,360 in 1996.

Two national conventions in July helped boost numbers.

Sheryl Bell, vice-president of Serenity Spa Hawaii in Waikiki, said business was consistently busy this summer. Previous summers had a mix of busy and slow periods, she said.

Hotel occupancy is at its highest level in at least a decade. Average statewide occupancy rose to 83.6 percent last month from 82.9 percent in 2003, the highest rate for August since 1990.

Higher occupancy has allowed hotels to nudge up room rates. The statewide average increased to $160.66 in August, up from $150.59 the same time a year ago.

After Sept. 11, 2001, companies had to streamline and find creative ways to fill hotel rooms and airline seats. Many that had weathered Hurricane 'Iniki found the impact of 9/11 incomparable.

That forced the industry to diversify — a key component of strategic plans today. U.S. East visitors, who tend to stay longer and spend more, have risen for the past three years as Hawai'i came to be seen as an exotic destination still within the safety of the United States.

Nonetheless, experts caution that the state's top industry remains vulnerable to external events.

Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com or at 535-2470.