More travel companies in Hawai'i are reaching out to the gay and lesbian travel visitors at a time when the industry is looking for fresh ideas to deal with a decline in tourism.

By some estimates, gay and lesbian travelers account for a $64.5 billion in spending annually in the United States, making it a market that is commanding greater attention in the visitor industry.

Aqua Hotels & Resorts, a small chain of boutique hotels in Waikiki, began focusing on the gay and lesbian market this spring.

Guy Underkoffler, senior vice president for Aqua, said Hawai'i has earned a reputation for hospitality to diverse groups and it seemed a good time to reach out to those less catered-to groups.

"We have some issues here and there but no more than any other city," he said.

And he took a business note from other destinations — Philadelphia, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and San Francisco — spending more marketing dollars for this niche market.

Underkoffler said the pitch to the market started with the employees, letting them know how to put people at ease and feel welcome, no matter their orientation. And it's a feeling that Underkoffler understands from his own life, after coming to the Islands the first time on vacation with his partner 15 years ago.

"Being a gay traveler myself, I thought Hawai'i is a great destination," he said. "When I travel I want to feel comfortable asking 'Where's the local gay bar?' "

He said the company recently became one of the more than 1,200 businesses that belong to the International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association.

HOTEL SPECIALS

Last month, Aqua announced a "Rainbow Honeymoon" special for same-sex couples at eight of its Waikiki hotels.

The deal includes a convertible car rental, one hour AquaSpa couple's massage treatment, plus a selection of add-ons similar to many kama'aina specials such as daily continental breakfast, high-speed Internet or WiFi, daily local newspaper and an issue of dakine — a local gay magazine.

Longtime Honolulu businessman and gay community advocate Jack Law said this is a good time for Hawai'i to reach out to a lucrative market that is responsive to a "welcoming environment."

"Gay and lesbian people are the same as any other people, but they have a tendency to travel to areas that reach out and let people know they want them there," Law said.

At the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, state economist Pearl Imada Iboshi said the market has become enough of a force to warrant a question in the visitor satisfaction survey that asks how many are traveling with a same-sex partner.

Iboshi noted that the overall number of same-sex partners has been about the same — 1.6 percent in 2006 and 1.5 percent in 2007. But the statistics show the number showing increases from nearly every Hawai'i major geographic market: U.S., Japan, Canada and even Europe.

"Gay and lesbian travelers — the vast majority of them have no children, therefore they have more spendable income to use when they go on vacation," Law said.

And partly, that's because most don't have to worry about their children's college fund or private school tuition although they have aging parents, and myriad other family obligations, he said.

Law said he has been trying for several years to get the official marketers of the state— the Hawai'i Tourism Authority and the Hawai'i Visitors and Convention Bureau — interested.

He said he got little feedback from officials who said they didn't exclude the market but didn't customize their marketing for these travelers. "They said they don't market to niches," he said.

Law is hopeful that the declining overall trend in visitor arrivals will allow that to change. University of Hawai'i economists last week forecast a 9.1 percent decline in the number of visitor arrivals this year compared with last year, the biggest drop since the aftermath of Sept. 11 in 2001.

Law said other visitor destinations aggressively market to the gay and lesbian market.

He pointed to national gay magazines that include "The Out Traveler." Editor-in-chief Ed Salvato said Hawai'i has long attracted this market. And that interest is reflected in the company's publication this year of the guidebook "Out Traveler Hawaii," which includes Hawaiian history of embracing diversity.

THE MAHU TRADITION

The book, by former Hawai'i resident Matthew Link includes this passage: "Now that modern media and politics have flooded Hawaiian culture, the word mahu is often used in a derogatory way to describe an effeminate man, or a gay man in general. But the mahu tradition refuses to go away: An annual transvestite beauty pageant, The Universal Show Queen, packs in crowds in mainstream Waikiki hotels. And Kim Coco Iwamoto, who is transgender, holds a seat on the state's board of education — the highest office ever for an elected transgender person in United States."

Law said Honolulu remains an inviting urban resort destination. As the owner of Hula's Bar and Lei Stand, the best-known gay bar in the state for 34 years, he has a good gauge of the community.

"Honolulu is a very accepting place," Law said. "I've lived here for 42 years, and I've experienced very little prejudice or discrimination against me even though I've been pretty much the face of gay Hawai'i because of my association with Hula's all these years."

Tyler Johnson, a student with a much more recent introduction to Waikiki visitors, has worked in guest relations at the gay-friendly Cabana-Waikiki Hotel for three years. It's a small property, with 15 expanded and renovated rooms, a sauna and veranda but no pool tucked off the busiest resort streets.

Johnson said business has slowed a bit compared to the "very booked" times when he first started and Hawai'i tourism was booming.

But he said business remains steady and depends on word-of-mouth referrals and lots of Web site traffic. "It is a gay-run and operated hotel," he said.

And he said the hotel specializes in making guests feel welcome to the Islands and comfortable with where they go. "We try to cater by our hospitality. All of our rooms are considered suites," he added.

If they are sold out of rooms, Johnson pulls out a list of other hotels that have a good reputation with past guests, most of them hotel chains.

"It does seem like there are a few more starting to advertise to be gay-friendly," he said.