Despite a year that included more than 40 days of heavy rain, a dam break that killed seven people on Kaua'i and a sewage spill that closed Waikiki beaches, the majority of visitors to Hawai'i last year rated their most recent trip to the Islands in 2006 as "excellent."

Those are part of the findings from the recently released 2006 Visitor Satisfaction and Activity survey produced by the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism. The state agency collects the visitor feedback and issued this early report last week looking at "major satisfaction indicators."

Good ratings means more people said their visit exceeded expectations and that they are likely to return and recommend the trip to others.

A longer study will be issued later this year. But these statistics give a boost to visitor industry officials stung by a year of mostly declining arrivals that follows two record years.

State tourism liaison Marsha Wienert said the report is useful in showing trends over times. "It gives everyone a better picture in regard to satisfaction levels by our guests."

The first quarter of 2006, which caught a significant amount of that rain, did show low ratings. However, owing to the remarkable gains in the third quarter of 2006, the ratings for the first three quarters of 2006 had returned to or exceeded 2005 levels.

When visitors plan a vacation to a place known for its tropical reputation, "they think it's going to be blue skies and sunny weather the whole time."

"All of us should be proud that our visitors are enjoying our destination," Wienert said. Although some categories showed more satisfaction that others, the ratings overall were good.

Some other report highlights: