Visitor count flat
in February

But shorter stays mean
the industry didn't fare as well
as in recent years

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

February was essentially a flat month for tourist arrivals in Hawaii, as a drop in travel from Japan and other Asia-Pacific areas more than countered a small increase in arrivals from the mainland.

While total arrivals were down only 0.2 percent, the economic impact was substantial because the high-spending Japanese and other travelers from the Asia-Pacific area shortened their stay, the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau said today.

Not only did eastbound arrivals decline, by 4.4 percent compared with February 1997, they stayed an average of 5.4 days in February, down from 5.83 days in the year-earlier month.

The HVCB said that caused a drop in visitor spending of $37.9 million, based on expenditure figures from 1996, the last year in which the HVCB conducted a tourist spending study.

"However, the exact value of dollars lost is even greater than this because there is strong evidence that daily visitor spending levels have decreased since 1996," said Tony Vericella, HVCB president and chief executive officer.

The 1996 surveys showed that the average Asia-Pacific visitor spent $246.54 a day, compared with an average of $137 a day among American travelers.

Retailers and visitor attractions have been saying that Japanese spending has declined because of different shopping habits, the weakening of the yen, and the increasing percentage of Japanese who have visited Hawaii before.

Repeat visitors tend not to go back to attractions they have seen on a previous trip.

Overall, Hawaii hosted 553,880 visitors in February, compared with 554,840 in February 1997.

Westbound arrivals, from the mainland, Canada and Europe, totaled 339,380, up 2.7 percent from 330,420 in the year-earlier month.

Eastbound arrivals totaled 214,500, down from 224,420.

The overall daily census was 171,670 in February, down 0.8 percent from 173,000 in February 1997.

The daily census -- the average number of tourists in Hawaii on any given day -- is considered significant because it directly reflects the amount of money spent in the islands.

The shorter stays by the eastbound tourists brought their average daily census down 11.5 percent to 41,370 in February, compared with 46,730 in February 1997.

Westbound tourists stayed an average of 10.75 days, up slightly from 10.7 days, bringing their average daily census to 130,300, a 3.2 percent increase from 126,270 in the previous February.

Vericella said HVCB marketing efforts on the mainland are paying off in larger tourist numbers. He said travel to Hawaii from the mainland was up 1.3 percent, marking the seventh consecutive month of growth in the mainland market.